If you live in Melbourne and love whisky, chances are you were at Hawthorn bar The Kilburn last Wednesday when a rare bottle of whisky was opened and served to patrons.
The tasting of the Glenrothes 1968 Single Cask is most likely the most expensive public tasting of a whisky anywhere in the world.
According to an article on DailyTelegraph.com.au the abuse of ice and alcohol has led to an escalation of violence at a remote NSW high school.
Walgett Community College is apparently being plagued by alcohol and ice abuse, more evidence of the importance of keeping minors away from alcohol and drugs.
Read more about the extent of the problem here.
New laws being considered by the Queensland government could see zero alcohol limits being introduced for motorcyclists.
Testing procedures would also be made a lot tougher under the reforms. These considerations come after a spate of motorcycle deaths in the state.
Find out more here.
You don’t have to be the most experienced bartender to look like a pro. You can fake it with these awesome cocktail making hacks…
On Monday, the Alcohol Tobacco and Other Drugs Council launched a framework to prevent and intervene on the use of alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
Entitled “Everybody’s Business’’, the plan calls for a review of the legal drinking age and the legal blood alcohol level for driving to 0.00. It also calls for restrictions on alcohol at sporting and other family events.
What do you think about these possible measures?
Click here to read more.
The OLGR is cracking down on bottle shops that sell alcohol to under 18’s after 3 venues were caught by police in an after school holiday compliance operation.
The blitz was held over the last 2 weekends and 42 bottle shops were checked, with a number of serious breaches detected.
OLGR Director of Compliance and Enforcement Anthony Keon reminded licensees that serving alcohol to minors is illegal with no exceptions. Find out more here.
If you never understood why James Bond always asked for his drink shaken, not stirred then you need to watch this video!
In the past 15 months there have been eleven drivers caught driving more than six times over the legal limit in South Australia.
South Australian police say drivers with extreme blood alcohol levels between 0.330 and 0.400 were caught 11 times in the past 15 months. Two of those drivers recorded readings of 0.400, while the other nine drivers recorded blood alcohol levels between 0.330 and 0.370.
Find out more here.
The late-night alcohol-fuelled violence in Bundaberg has sparked a call for action by a Wide Bay MP, after the drink safe precinct was axed.
Police in the area say late-night incidents are at an all time high in the area.
As servers of alcohol, we need to be especially aware of the situation. A recent incident involving a teenager who allegedly punched a bartender on the Fraser Coast after he was refused service is an example of the kind of behaviour we need to contend with on the job.
Responsible Service of Alcohol training is crucial to ensuring that servers are aware of their duties and what the law says about how alcohol is served, so that incidents like this can be avoided.
The former Newman government introduced a draft of changes meant to crack down on alcohol-fuelled violence in its “Safe Night Out” policy. Unfortunately the Bundaberg drink safe precinct was axed in the latest state budget, but there are calls for more action to be taken.
In an article on Abc.net.au, Burnett MP Stephen Bennett was quoted expressing his disappointment that one of the programs was axed. He did however stress the importance of all levels of government working together better to address the issues.
“We just need to get the education out there and we as a society to understand this is not going to be accepted,” he said.
“So there is more to do done and this needs to go further than political cycles and it needs to be supported.”
Source: http://www.abc.net.au
The State Government said drink safe precincts would continue in Fortitude Valley, Surfers Paradise and Townsville but not Bundaberg.
Denying Alcohol Service to Minors
Under Responsible Service of Alcohol law serving alcohol to minors carries major fines for workers, management and owners of establishments, but the real cost of serving teenagers are the social consequences, such as teenage drink driving, teenage pregnancy and teenage violence such as in the incident mentioned above. Recent alarming statistics indicate that teenage drinking accounted for more teenage deaths than any other cause.
All employees of licenced venues need to undergo the necessary training, Responsible Service of Alcohol training to ensure that they know the rules in terms of serving alcohol as well as the consequences for breaking those rules.
Workers also need to apply the knowledge learnt during the RSA course to protect themselves from fines and possibly the loss of their job. More importantly they also have to protect society from the harm of alcohol abuse.
Even if you don’t think you can deny alcohol service to minors, remember their are serious consequences for both you and your employer if you are caught by authorities.
Who Needs RSA training?
Remember anyone beginning work in a licensed venue anywhere in Australia, whether they are directly serving alcohol or not needs to undergo Responsible Service of Alcohol Training. Bartenders, waitrons, sommeliers, security staff at venues must all have a valid RSA certificate.
Police say that alcohol and speed were responsible for a double fatal crash that happened in Nakara in north Darwin this week.
Two men were killed in the crash after the apparently intoxicated driver, lost control of the speeding vehicle and wrapped around the tree. There was only one survivor in the crash, whom witnesses say is extremely lucky to be alive.
This is a sobering reminder of the consequences of drink driving. Read more about this tragic incident here.