Sydney bars ‘go purple’ for epilepsy awareness

Some of Sydney’s most popular bars are ‘going purple’ this month to mark Purple Day on 26 March, the internationally recognised day for epilepsy awareness.

Led by award-winning bar owner Mikey Enright of The Barber Shop and The Duke of Clarence fame, select outlets around Sydney will be selling two specially created purple drinks – the Gin and Violet Blossom Tonic (alcoholic, pictured above) and the Artisan Tonica (non-alcoholic) – to raise awareness of the impact of epilepsy.

The newly-launched Artisan Drinks has supplied the mixers for these drinks, and Bombay Sapphire has contributed the gin.

A portion of the proceeds from the drinks will go to Epilepsy Action Australia (EAA) to support life-changing programs and services for people with epilepsy. EAA is the largest provider of education and support services to children and adults with epilepsy across Australia.

Enright, whose fiancée Freya has lived with epilepsy since childhood, wanted to show his support for Freya and the 250,000 other Australians living with the neurological disorder.

“We’re really proud to have instigated this Purple Drink campaign and work with Epilepsy Action Australia to raise awareness of the impact of epilepsy, and it was fantastic to see the number of other bars that wanted to jump on board to help,” says Enright.

“We’ve created two drinks, one being alcohol-free, as we know that alcohol can be a big trigger for some people with epilepsy.”

Purple drinks will be sold on varying dates leading up to 26 March (see below) at Enright’s two venues The Barber Shop and The Duke of Clarence, as well as The Dolphin Hotel, The Soda Factory, The Green Lion and Baby Coffee Co.

Purple Drinks availability

• The Barber Shop – CBD – Tuesday 19^th March until Tuesday 26^th March
• The Duke of Clarence – CBD – Tuesday 19^th March until Tuesday 26^th March
• Baby Coffee Co – Waterloo – Friday 22nd March until Sunday 24th^th March
• The Green Lion – Rozelle – Tuesday 19^th March until Tuesday 26^th March
• The Dolphin Hotel – Surry Hills – Tuesday 26^th March
• The Soda Factory – Surry Hills – Tuesday 26^th March until Saturday 30^th March