Monkey Shoulder Underground "Reverse Subverse" Party

Backwards, reversed, up-side down...three words that sum up (in the best possible way) the Monkey Shoulder Underground "Reverse Subverse" party, held in Sydney's Darlinghurst last night.

For those not familiar, Monkey Shoulder is a unique whisky in that it's a blend, but (unlike Johnnie Walker or Chivas Regal), it's a blend of only three malt whiskies, all from William Grant & Sons (Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Kininvie for the whisky geeks amongst us). At under $40AUD it's got to be about the best value for money whisky out there (before it came out in Australia, I bought a bottle from the Glenfiddich Distillery and lugged it half-way around the world, only to see it released here 6 months later...d'oh)!

Hosted by William Grant & Sons (and their excellent PR agency, Weber Shandwick), the party was held in what was previously a women's prison - a great setting. True to the "reverse" theme, guests were welcomed with a take-home Monkey Shoulder miniature, then served dessert first (which deceptively looked like sushi and mini burgers), followed by savoury canapes which flowed freely all night (much like the cocktails and punch!).

Retro fun was the other theme of the night, with plenty of classic arcade games (Daytona 500, PacMan anyone?), pinball machines, old school TVs and an inflatable boxing ring with oversized gloves (tiring after a few cocktails!)

As well as the fantastic food and drinks, there was a DIY Old Fashioned station (with your choice of bitters - chocolate seemed to be the winner), and serve-yourself punch (fittingly named "Knockout", "Roundhouse" and "Uppercut").

As if that wasn't enough interactivity, there were prizes for best tweets each hour made under #monkeyunderground and #monkeyshoulder.

The party was still pumping as last drinks were called, and more than a few guests poured themselves one last double Old Fashioned for the road. All up, a hugely successful night. Can't wait for the next one.

Cheers,
 - Martin.