Inside Fashion Journal’s first Supper Club in Sydney

Cheers to you.

Any FJ reader will know it’s our wider creative community (not just our editors) that makes Fashion Journal content so great. Within this community are writers, designers, activists, photographers, stylists, models, programmers, curators, content creators, hair and makeup artists and many, many more.

Want to read more about how others navigate the world? Head to our Life section.

For us, the success of Fashion Journal turns on the many voices and visions within it. So we were so thrilled to bring together a number of these creatives for the launch of the Fashion Journal Supper Club, in partnership with Croser. 

The event saw 40 Australian creatives connect over a series of share plates and a glass of Croser’s newest sparkling wine, made in collaboration with 78 Degrees. The (rather delicious) drop sees signature botanicals from the 78 Degrees gin distillery added to Croser’s premium sparkling wines, adding a delightful touch to two Croser classics in a first for the category.  

For this first iteration of the FJ Supper Club, we wanted to expand from our usual Melbourne home base to connect with the creatives we admire on Gadigal land in Eora Country. And so we settled on Esq Bar and Dining atop the Queen Victoria Building. 

There were squeals of delight as we finally had the chance to meet some of our favourite collaborators after so many faceless messages sent on email or Instagram. Similarly, we were thrilled to connect with a number of creatives for the first time, opening the floodgates for many more conversations and projects to come. 

What was more exciting though was watching connections form across the table. Most guests arrived knowing one or two people in the room if any, and left exclaiming they’d made new friends. Despite orbiting each other in Sydney, they’d never had the chance to properly meet. 

This opportunity for connection was pivotal to our first Supper Club, and we wanted to encourage guests to move past the small talk. Across each menu was a series of conversation prompts to help us connect more meaningfully.

We were thrilled by the conversations that followed. We discussed what support is lacking for emerging designers in Australia’s fashion industry; the difficulty of making friends as adults; the importance of diversity within modelling agencies and industry; and what we wish was more openly discussed at dinner parties. 

Conversation flowed more easily as the night wore on, helped by a menu designed for sharing and an interactive tablescape by Sophie Wolanski of Muck Floral that invited guests to add elements to their drinks to alter the tasting notes. 

Guests drinking Croser NV x 78 Degrees were invited to add juniper berries and dried myrtle leaf to their coupes. The result was an extra herbaceous spice added to a wine with notes of Juniper, coriander, orange, lemon, lime, clove, cinnamon, black pepper, nutmeg, star anise, orris and angelica.

Likewise, those enjoying the Croser Rosé NV x 78 Degrees could select dried strawberries and rose petals from the table, to lift their wine’s botanical profile of strawberry gum, bush apple, juniper and rosella.

The classic Croser NV was also on hand for guests, offering a true aperitif-style sparkling wine that blends the rich strawberry lift and fine mousse of pinot noir with the nectarine, cashew and biscuity characters of chardonnay. 

Fashion photographer Jason Henley was on-site to capture the evening, drinks and all. 

The Croser x 78 Degrees range is now available nationally at Dan Murphy’s and BWS. To discover Croser’s sparkling collection, head herehere.