In partnership with Archie Rose Distilling Co.
If music be the food of love, perhaps whisky is the drink? There are few pairings more instinctive than records and whisky, both demanding patience, atmosphere and attention. On a whisky drinking weather evening (also known as wet), RUSSH and Archie Rose Distilling Co. brought together a room full of artists, musicians, actors and friends to celebrate precisely that. It was an evening in three verses, with guests experiencing perfect pairings at each moment.
Guests arrived beneath the Opera House sails at Bennelong and were welcomed with a custom cocktail of Archie Rose Single Malt, white miso, glazed banana, tarragon and orgeat, alongside Sydney rock oysters topped with lemon granita, a combination that felt at once bracing, saline and quietly decadent. Across the room, a crowd of creative minds gathered as anticipation slowly built for the evening ahead, amongst them Serena Wardell, Liv Parsons, Alix Higgins, Bryn Chapman Parish, Thomas Cocquerel and Nyaluack Leth. Purists, romantics and the whisky-curious mingled together beneath the low light as glasses clinked as rain traced softly across the harbour outside.
Guests were later guided downstairs into Bennelong’s Tide Room where the atmosphere shifted into something moodier and more transportive. Like entering a secret door behind a bookcase, the Tide Room served as something between an intimate listening room and a late-night salon, where music, spirits and conversation flowed. A deep black tablescape with purple florals set the visual tone while John Cale and Brian Eno spun through a Technics deck courtesy of Bondi Records – the music filling the room with a kind of cerebral warmth before the tasting began.
Hosting the evening alongside Archie Rose’s Master Distiller Dave Withers, RUSSH Music Editor Alys Hale framed the dinner as the extension of a deeply personal ritual. Records and whisky, she explained, had quietly become a fixture of her downtime, long afternoons spent sitting with albums and drams at home, and the evening represented something of a personal fantasy realised, the opportunity to share that private pleasure with a room full of creative minds.
Rather than pairing entire albums with each whisky, self appointed ‘whisky witch’ Hale instead selected individual songs designed to capture the essence, emotional register and atmosphere of each expression. As Withers led guests through the tasting, his approach proved deeply personal, weaving together technical mastery with anecdotes that revealed the emotional life behind distilling itself.
For the Archie Rose Rye Malt Whisky – filled with notes of stone fruit jam, nutmeg, candied almonds and crème caramel that carried an autumnal sweetness – Hale paired Witches' Song by Marianne Faithfull. Faithfull’s smoke-lined voice embodied the whisky entirely, all mysticism, woodsmoke and strange feminine magic.
The Archie Rose Single Malt Whisky followed, layered with pineapple, praline, sweet tobacco and homemade toffee, and was paired with Seems I'm Never Tired Lovin' You by Nina Simone to mirror the depth of character in the dram. Simone’s aching tenderness softened the room entirely, bringing a lush intimacy to the tasting while underscoring the whisky’s richness and warmth.
The evening’s emotional centre, however, arrived with the Heritage Red Gum Cask. Withers explained that the whisky was deeply personal to him, crafted from some of the rarest barrels in Australia, including barrels once used by his late father to make wine. What could have simply been a tasting note became something far more moving, a meditation on inheritance, memory and craftsmanship passed between generations. Hale paired the whisky with Strange Religion by Mark Lanegan, drawing not only upon the whisky’s notes of incense, espresso and dried jasmine, but also the yearning embedded within Lanegan’s voice. The song’s repeated desire to remain beside someone, to “just keep driving”, mirrored the emotional weight of Withers’ story and the melancholic romance of the whisky itself. Hale was quick to add, however, that despite the sentiment, no one should be driving anywhere that evening…
For the final whisky, guests were lucky enough to be the first ever to try the soon to be released single Cask Raw Rye Whisky, with its notes of aged cigars, musk sticks, madeira and orange poppyseed cake, Hale selected First We Take Manhattan by Leonard Cohen. Urbane, knowing and quietly dangerous, the track perfectly ushered guests toward the evening’s final act, a live appearance by Fran Lebowitz.
Following the tasting, guests ascended into the theatre where Lebowitz delivered exactly what one hoped for, razor-sharp wit, glorious cynicism and the kind of intellectual nonchalance that cannot be manufactured or replicated. Amongst her many declarations, her particularly strong feelings regarding adults wearing T-shirts beyond their thirties drew audible delight from the audience, although perhaps not from the fashion team. Amongst her many declarations, her particularly strong feelings regarding adults wearing T-shirts beyond their thirties drew audible delight from the audience.
By the evening’s conclusion, it became clear that the true pairing had never solely been whisky and music, but the conversation between all elements of the night. Records amplified flavour, flavour altered mood, and every detail, from the saline brightness of the oysters to the final notes of Leonard Cohen and Lebowitz’s sardonic observations, appeared to speak fluently to the next. It was an evening of intimate and intoxicating pairings.
For those who wish to conduct their own tasting at home, you can enjoy Hale's playlist below.
