Latest news with #Larrakia
Los Angeles Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Distilling seven Australian seasons in a bottle ... with ants
Ants in gin, Australia's rule-breaking chefs, Adam Leonti's date-night pasta, curbing L.A.'s cream-top enthusiasm, Chin Chin's endangered Chinese chicken salad and more. I'm Laurie Ochoa, general manager of L.A. Times Food, with this week's Tasting Notes. For Daniel Motlop and his fellow Larrakia people in the Darwin region of northern Australia, there are not four seasons but seven. Some seem intuitive for outsiders to grasp — the rainy season (balnba), monsoon season (dalay), heavy dew time (dinidjanggama) and big wind season (gurrulwa). Others are named not only for weather changes but animal and plant patterns as well as harvest traditions, such as barramundi and bush fruit time (damibila), build-up time (dalirrgang) and the speargrass, magpie goose egg and 'knock 'em down' season (mayilema). These seasonal variations are different from ones observed by other indigenous societies in the country. 'In Australia,' said Motlop, who built on his fame as an Australian rules football star to become a native foods entrepreneur, 'we've got over 500 different aboriginal groups.' For instance, the Woiwurrung, of the Yarra River Valley in the country's southern reaches, observe eel (iuk) season and kangaroo-apple (garrawang) season. A sense of place, ancestry and the rhythms of nature are important for Motlop. Which is why he named his distillery company Seven Seasons — to honor the heritage, he says, 'of my grandmother's country up in Darwin.' Last week, Motlop was in Southern California pouring samples of some of his distilled spirits at the Great Australian Bite, an L.A. Times food event held at chef Curtis Stone's Four Stones Farm in Agoura Hills. 'Different signs in nature tell us when a season's starting,' Motlop said during the welcome drink hour. 'A lot of these native ingredients represents a certain season.' One of his most popular distilled spirits is a kind of vodka made, Motlop said, with 'yams harvested by aboriginal people up at the top end of Australia' during the rainy season. In the build-up season, just before the rains hit, he said, 'you can't really find that yam.' But with the rains' arrival, little bell flowers pop up from the yams in the ground, a sign that the tubers, which come in multiple varieties, can be harvested. One of the yams Motlop's team uses in Seven Seasons spirits is 'quite creamy,' he said, 'and another one is a bit like horseradish.' These are blended together, evoking, Motlop said, 'the flavor of the earth.' His most unusual and sought-after spirit might be green ant gin, made with boobialla, which is a native flowering juniper; strawberry gum, a kind of eucalyptus with a bell-shaped fruit; lemon myrtle; pepper berry, and, floating in the liquid if you give the bottle a shake like a snow globe, green bush ants, which Motlop says adds a pop of citrus flavor. (He points out that only the worker ants are used for the gin and the harvest never happens during the ants' breeding season.) Seven Seasons' spirits aren't easy to find at this moment in Southern California, but gin from another Australian small craft distillery pouring at last week's event, Four Pillars, based in the Yarra Valley, is sold in many L.A.-area stores, including Total Wine and Woodland Hills Wine. 'Australia went from about eight distilleries to about 600 distilleries in a period of about 20 years,' wine and spirits writer Mike Bennie said at the event. 'There's been a massive interest in the utilization of native ingredients in Australia ... and tasting Australia through the native things that don't grow anywhere else.' Native ingredients are just one aspect of Australian culture that make its cuisine distinct from other places and hard to define. In some respects, it's like California, both for its climate, openness to new flavors and the multiplicity of international influences that appear on the plate. Last week, restaurant critic Bill Addison wrote about eating at Jung Eun Chae and Yoora Yoon's Korean restaurant Chae outside of Melbourne, where the food, he said, 'expressed another side of the culinary Korean diaspora unlike anything I've experienced.' Clare Falzon, who traveled from her Barossa Valley restaurant Staġuni to join Stone as co-chef for the Great Australian Bite, brings her family's Maltese heritage into her cooking. 'I'm utilizing memories from my childhood experiences from when I was overseas, as well as produce from Australia,' she said after serving guests freshly baked flatbread topped with smoked tomato cream, amaranth, sumac and basil. 'Malta has Italy to the north and North Africa to the south so that's quite a lot of cultures smashed together.' 'You know, your background is Maltese, mine are convicts,' Stone said to Falzon, taking a break from the grill where he was serving spiced lamb ribs to the crowd. 'The truth is, we're rule breakers in Australia. We're a little anti-authoritarian. And I think you see that in the cuisine. You see lots of different multicultural influences and you also see a real spirit.' Date-night pasta: Watch Alba chef Adam Leonti make his lightly smoky spaghetti with lemon, which may be the perfect dish to make for a date. Find the recipe here.
ABC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Wild One: Drifting Clouds - Bawuypawuy
Conceived in the homelands of Bunhungura, ancient landscapes combine with ancestral Songlines for this week's transcendent Wild One from Yolngu artist Drifting Clouds, 'Bawuypawuy'. Drifting Clouds is the solo project of Terry Guyula, who draws upon an eclectic mix of musical genres, ancestral Songlines, Dreamtime stories, indigenous culture and life in community to create an inspired vision of First Nations artistry. Terry explains that his debut single 'Bawuypawuy', sung in his first language; Liyawulma'mirr-Djambarrpuyngu, a language of Yolngu Matha, 'is about the sea becoming rough and tough and also it is on the Songlines we dance and sing". The music video is directed by rage favourite Matt Sav, who skillfully captures the gorgeous natural beauty of Larrakia Country in all its dreamy 16mm glory. "It is a huge privilege to work on a project that is a songline from Terry's country' says Matt. 'I need to thank Zac who asked if I could help out and who collaborated on it from the start, and Terry for trusting me with his song. Also I want to Acknowledge and pay my respect to the Larrakia people whos country we shot the video on. 'This was my first time shooting on 16mm by myself with a super 16 bolex that my star dp Lewis Potts' dad jimmied with a lightswitch so we can power it with a V-Lock [battery]. Ghetto but functional setup'. Matt's ghetto/functional setup also translated into the set design for 'Bawuypawuy', with the whole team coming together to ensure that every piece of equipment was right where it needed to be. He explains 'we needed to prop the speakers up with something, and Zac (producer) said 'what about bricks? I have heaps of bricks at home'. I said 'I don't think we should use bricks, we need to carry them 500m across sand while the tide is moving fast. Have you carried any bricks before Zac?'. The next morning at sunrise, I ask Zac, what did you bring to prop the speakers up. He looks at me with a sheepish grin, ' Well if you look at the bts closely you can see us all happily carrying bricks across a croc infested creek as the tide is rising." "The funniest is about making this video, my director put me in the lake when it's cold season' says Terry. He also adds 'the BTS Crew makes me feel more confident by talking to me what to do and how to look at the camera."
ABC News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Defence Housing Australia fined for unlawful land clearing at Darwin's Lee Point
A Commonwealth-owned defence housing company has been fined more than $18,000 for unlawfully clearing land at a popular birdwatching area on the outskirts of Darwin. Defence Housing Australia (DHA) is planning to build a residential housing complex for military personnel and their families at the site at Lee Point, to support an expanding defence presence in the Northern Territory. The project has long faced opposition from environmentalists and some Larrakia people due to the risks posed to cultural heritage and threatened species, including the Gouldian finch. DHA resumed bulldozing trees at the site in April last year following a tense showdown with protesters that led to multiple arrests and sparked claims of unlawful land clearing. After a year-long investigation into the claims, the federal environment department has now issued DHA an infringement notice of $18,780 for clearing land at Lee Point in breach of its environmental approvals. The breach relates to clearing land outside of the approved stage of development. In a statement, DHA said it "takes compliance matters seriously and is committed to ensuring strict adherence with approvals across all development projects". "The infringement was issued following DHA clearing a small area between 30 April and 2 May 2024 that was not in compliance with its Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 conditions at the time," a DHA spokesperson said. "This infringement notice does not affect the validity of DHA's environmental approvals." Australian Conservation Foundation lead investigator Annica Schoo said she was pleased DHA had been fined, but frustrated the land was unlawfully cleared in the first place. "And yet they were still able to breach their environmental approval doing something that destroyed habitat — this exact habitat that everyone cares so much about." Environment Centre NT executive director Kirsty Howey said the fine was "little more than a slap on the wrist" and "shows how profoundly broken our environmental laws are". The controversial housing development has faced significant delays in recent years. DHA paused works for about 12 months in 2022 while then-environment minister Tanya Plibersek assessed the project's impact on the endangered Gouldian Finch. In August 2023, works were again paused for eight months after Larrakia elders made an emergency application to Ms Plibersek. Larrakia Danggalaba community leader Lorraine Williams is now calling on federal Environment Minister Murray Watt to revoke DHA's approval "to stop any further cultural and ecological destruction at Lee Point". Mr Watt has been contacted for comment.
The Advertiser
21-05-2025
- General
- The Advertiser
Artefacts returned after 'emotional' journey
Ten glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband are being returned to Australia after almost a century away from Country. The culturally significant objects were returned to the Larrakia people of the Northern Territory in a handover ceremony at the Fowler Museum in California. The objects were collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and donated to the museum, spending generations away from Larrakia Country. Elders have been working with the museum and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies to have the objects returned since 2021. Elder and Larrakia Development Corporation chairperson Mark Motlop said once the objects are back on Country, they will be displayed at a Larrakia Cultural Centre, which is under construction and set to open in 2026. "It has been a long and emotional journey for Larrakia people in the repatriation of these items back to Larrakia Country and one that will facilitate healing and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge," he said. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the return is an important milestone for Larrakia people. "Safeguarding our Indigenous cultural heritage is vital to the continuation of Australia's rich and diverse First Nations cultures and ensures the stories of our ancestors are passed on," she said. The repatriation was facilitated through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies' return of cultural heritage program. It is the second return from the Fowler Museum through the program, following a repatriation of Warumungu cultural materials in July 2024. Institute chief executive Leonard Hill said he is proud of the work being done to return cultural heritage material to Country. "It is so important that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia not only have access to, but also agency over their cultural heritage material," he said. "These events reinvigorate cultural connections and promote healing and reconciliation more broadly." Ten glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband are being returned to Australia after almost a century away from Country. The culturally significant objects were returned to the Larrakia people of the Northern Territory in a handover ceremony at the Fowler Museum in California. The objects were collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and donated to the museum, spending generations away from Larrakia Country. Elders have been working with the museum and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies to have the objects returned since 2021. Elder and Larrakia Development Corporation chairperson Mark Motlop said once the objects are back on Country, they will be displayed at a Larrakia Cultural Centre, which is under construction and set to open in 2026. "It has been a long and emotional journey for Larrakia people in the repatriation of these items back to Larrakia Country and one that will facilitate healing and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge," he said. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the return is an important milestone for Larrakia people. "Safeguarding our Indigenous cultural heritage is vital to the continuation of Australia's rich and diverse First Nations cultures and ensures the stories of our ancestors are passed on," she said. The repatriation was facilitated through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies' return of cultural heritage program. It is the second return from the Fowler Museum through the program, following a repatriation of Warumungu cultural materials in July 2024. Institute chief executive Leonard Hill said he is proud of the work being done to return cultural heritage material to Country. "It is so important that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia not only have access to, but also agency over their cultural heritage material," he said. "These events reinvigorate cultural connections and promote healing and reconciliation more broadly." Ten glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband are being returned to Australia after almost a century away from Country. The culturally significant objects were returned to the Larrakia people of the Northern Territory in a handover ceremony at the Fowler Museum in California. The objects were collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and donated to the museum, spending generations away from Larrakia Country. Elders have been working with the museum and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies to have the objects returned since 2021. Elder and Larrakia Development Corporation chairperson Mark Motlop said once the objects are back on Country, they will be displayed at a Larrakia Cultural Centre, which is under construction and set to open in 2026. "It has been a long and emotional journey for Larrakia people in the repatriation of these items back to Larrakia Country and one that will facilitate healing and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge," he said. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the return is an important milestone for Larrakia people. "Safeguarding our Indigenous cultural heritage is vital to the continuation of Australia's rich and diverse First Nations cultures and ensures the stories of our ancestors are passed on," she said. The repatriation was facilitated through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies' return of cultural heritage program. It is the second return from the Fowler Museum through the program, following a repatriation of Warumungu cultural materials in July 2024. Institute chief executive Leonard Hill said he is proud of the work being done to return cultural heritage material to Country. "It is so important that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia not only have access to, but also agency over their cultural heritage material," he said. "These events reinvigorate cultural connections and promote healing and reconciliation more broadly." Ten glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband are being returned to Australia after almost a century away from Country. The culturally significant objects were returned to the Larrakia people of the Northern Territory in a handover ceremony at the Fowler Museum in California. The objects were collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and donated to the museum, spending generations away from Larrakia Country. Elders have been working with the museum and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies to have the objects returned since 2021. Elder and Larrakia Development Corporation chairperson Mark Motlop said once the objects are back on Country, they will be displayed at a Larrakia Cultural Centre, which is under construction and set to open in 2026. "It has been a long and emotional journey for Larrakia people in the repatriation of these items back to Larrakia Country and one that will facilitate healing and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge," he said. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the return is an important milestone for Larrakia people. "Safeguarding our Indigenous cultural heritage is vital to the continuation of Australia's rich and diverse First Nations cultures and ensures the stories of our ancestors are passed on," she said. The repatriation was facilitated through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies' return of cultural heritage program. It is the second return from the Fowler Museum through the program, following a repatriation of Warumungu cultural materials in July 2024. Institute chief executive Leonard Hill said he is proud of the work being done to return cultural heritage material to Country. "It is so important that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia not only have access to, but also agency over their cultural heritage material," he said. "These events reinvigorate cultural connections and promote healing and reconciliation more broadly."
West Australian
20-05-2025
- General
- West Australian
Artefacts returned after 'emotional' journey
Ten glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband are being returned to Australia after almost a century away from Country. The culturally significant objects were returned to the Larrakia people of the Northern Territory in a handover ceremony at the Fowler Museum in California. The objects were collected in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and donated to the museum, spending generations away from Larrakia Country. Elders have been working with the museum and the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies to have the objects returned since 2021. Elder and Larrakia Development Corporation chairperson Mark Motlop said once the objects are back on Country, they will be displayed at a Larrakia Cultural Centre, which is under construction and set to open in 2026. "It has been a long and emotional journey for Larrakia people in the repatriation of these items back to Larrakia Country and one that will facilitate healing and the intergenerational transfer of knowledge," he said. Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the return is an important milestone for Larrakia people. "Safeguarding our Indigenous cultural heritage is vital to the continuation of Australia's rich and diverse First Nations cultures and ensures the stories of our ancestors are passed on," she said. The repatriation was facilitated through the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies' return of cultural heritage program. It is the second return from the Fowler Museum through the program, following a repatriation of Warumungu cultural materials in July 2024. Institute chief executive Leonard Hill said he is proud of the work being done to return cultural heritage material to Country. "It is so important that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia not only have access to, but also agency over their cultural heritage material," he said. "These events reinvigorate cultural connections and promote healing and reconciliation more broadly."
