Welcome to the next in a series of stories showcasing one drink, one bartender, at one great bar. This series is made possible by Brown-Forman's Elevate program — to learn more, contact your Brown-Forman representative.
When it comes to historic bar spaces in Sydney, you can’t get much more historic than at The Doss House in The Rocks.
The Doss House, which turns nine years old in 2026, is only the most recent iteration of the space. Located in the historic precinct of The Rocks, it’s all sandstone and dark moody interiors, says venue manager Lulu Sylvana.
“It’s been merchant shops,” she says, “it’s been an opium and gambling den. It was a bootmaker’s workshop.”
Below, Lulu talks about what makes the place unique, and shares with us her specs for a New York Sour riff with Glendronach Ode To The Dark.
BOOTHBY: What do you do here Lulu?
LULU SYLVANA: My name is Lulu. I’m the venue manager at The Doss House. We’re located right in the heart of The Rocks in Sydney. I always say we are first and foremost a whisky bar, but we are an Irish-owned whisky bar. So the heart of the venue is live music, whisky, and the people.
BOOTHBY: Can you describe the atmosphere here?
LULU SYLVANA: It’s nice and dark, a lot of timber, lots of history, sandstone all around us. It feels like you’re on the edge of madness sometimes. It’s full of people. It’s packed. Music is pumping, drinks are flowing, but it’s lovely. It’s busy. It can get overstimulating at times, but in the best way possible. You don’t want to be out of here. You’ll stay the whole night here.
BOOTHBY: Now, can you tell us about the drink that you made?
LULU SYLVANA: Absolutely. The name of the cocktail is Into the Thicket. The idea behind it is that as we’re heading into the colder months in autumn and winter, we wanted to do a twist on a cocktail that we do a lot of, which is a Whisky Sour. So with that in mind, we had the idea of doing Whisky Sour with a red wine float, as the red wine was of the same nature as the sherry cask that is Glendronach. And Glendronach Ode To The Dark became the product and the hero spirit in the cocktail. So it’s a twist on the New York Sour. It’s called Into The Thicket due to the Glendronach name, which means Valley of the Bramble.
BOOTHBY: What’s in the drink?
LULU SYLVANA: The ingredients are Glendronach Ode To The Dark, pinot noir syrup, PX espuma — so a PX foam — and we garnish it with dehydrated red berries, cloves, cardamom, and nutmeg.
BOOTHBY: What is it about The Doss House that gets you coming to work each day?
LULU SYLVANA: I love that it’s chock full of live music. So live music was the reason I got into this in the first place. And then as time grew, I fell in love with whisky.
BOOTHBY: There’s quite a history to this place, is that right?
LULU SYLVANA: They built this as the first hospital in the 1800s. And then throughout the last 300 years, it’s been merchant shops. It’s been an opium and gambling den. It was a bootmaker’s workshop. And then for the last eight years it’s been a bar called The Doss House.
The Doss House’s Into The Thicket
Ingredients
- 40ml The Glendronach Ode To The Dark
- 30ml pinot noir syrup
- 20ml lemon juice
Method
- Shake all ingredients with ice, strain into an Old Fashioned glass over ice.
- Top with pedro xímenez espuma.
- Garnished with mixed red berries, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg.
Recipe by Lulu Sylvana at The Doss House, Sydney.
Nestled in the Valley of Forgue in the majestic Scottish Highlands, The Glendronach Distillery has been dedicated to crafting the very finest Single Malts since 1826. Here, our distinct, characterful spirit is matured in rare Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso Spanish oak sherry casks, each one selected exclusively from the bodegas of Andalucía, Spain. This exquisite duality creates the signature richly-sherried style of our prestigious Single Malt Scotch Whisky.
Sam Bygrave
Sam Bygrave
Boothby Staff
Drink Responsibly. The Glendronach is a registered trademark.
