<![CDATA[

London, United Kingdom

Something rather special happened tonight – a legend was born.

From the time I had my very first Guinness many moons ago, I have always thought it should taste a little bit more like Vegemite to give it that little extra oomf. With each passing pint, I have expressed this view over and over only to have it fall on deaf or disgusted ears.

Last week, Vic, Pete and I found ourselves in the cutest little Guinness bar in Soho, The Toucan, where Pete and I availed ourselves of a pint of the black stuff. After the initial sip, I again expressed my wish for it to be a little more Vegemitey, expecting to be dismissed or admonished, but I wasn’t. Pete’s interest was piqued and the idea tossed around. We discussed how such an concoction could be mixed and served, finally settling on the perfect solution…

Today, whilst roaming the aisles of Sainsbury’s, passed the extraordinary array of vegetarian options and home brand spirits, I picked up a 4 pack of Guinness and headed straight to the Vegemite aisle (there’s not a entire aisle devoted to it but it is readily available) knowing that the day had come, it was time to turn this dream into a reality now that I had a willing accomplice.

After a lovely dinner at the brilliantly named Apollo Banana Leaf in Tooting with Pete’s sister Katie (seriously the most stunning brother/sister team ever born!) we came back to the flat for the inaugural round (aka ‘the first fleet’) of the drink that shall henceforth be known at ‘The Convict’ for its Irish-Australian components.

And here’s how you do it – take a glass, any will do but preferably an old Vegemite jar. We used lowball glasses for the brave and shot glasses for the timid. Generously smear the rim of the glass with lashings of Vegemite, margarita-style and I mean really cake it on, the more obscene it looks, the better. Pour the Guinness into the prepared glass, watch it work and then drink up!

The result – the perfect Guinness, just as I’ve always imagined it should be. Even the doubters in the room had to admit it was damn tasty. Try it yourself and remember in years to come when everyone is drinking Convicts, you heard it here first!

]]>