Bartender · Creative · Consultant
Reuben
Beasley-Palmer
A Melbourne bartender with more than a decade behind the stick, known for technique-driven drinks and a room-reading approach to hospitality.
Bio
Reuben Beasley-Palmer has spent over a decade in Melbourne's bar rooms, from early years at Black Pearl through Botswana Butchery and Society, to bar manager at Maison Bâtard and, most recently, Bar Ferdinand.
His drinks lean on fermentation, clarification and carbonation — lacto ferments, spiced foams, long-tail preparation — but never at the expense of the guest in front of him. "It's the people and making things, making someone's night," he told Boothby. "All those little moments built together make it special."
Alongside service, he works as a creative and consultant with spirits brands on competitions, menus, tastings and events across Australia.
“It's very easy to carry on with the way you love doing things — but how are you going to grow and get better if you can't try new things and try to master that?”
Accolades
Suntory Cup
Winner, professional category — 2025 Australian National final
Nikka Perfect Serve
National winner 2023 · Australian representative, global final, San Francisco
Espolòn Afterlife
Top 25, To The Bone cocktail competition, 2024
Behind the bar
- 2017
Black Pearl
Fitzroy. Where the craft got serious.
- 2023
Botswana Butchery
Wins the 2023 Nikka Perfect Serve national final and represents Australia at the global final in San Francisco.
- 2024
Society
Bar manager at the Lucas Collective's Society and Lillian Brasserie. Named a top-25 bartender in the Espolòn Afterlife To The Bone competition.
- 2025
Maison Bâtard
Bar manager. Takes out top honours in the professional category of the 2025 Australian National Suntory Cup.
- 2026
Bar Ferdinand
Behind the bar, plus consulting and brand work.
Brand partnerships
On Instagram
@boozelypalmer
Written about Reuben
Press page →- Boothby7 May 2026
Get winning advice on how to score your share of $40,000 in prizes at the Suntory Cup
Reuben and Tom McHugh, the 2025 winners, talk through the brief and what the judges are looking for.
- Boothby15 August 2025
Here are the six Australia & NZ finalists for Hennessy MyWay
Coverage of the Hennessy MyWay Australia & New Zealand final.
- Australian Bartender13 June 2025
Announcing the 2025 Suntory Cup finalists
Eighty state finalists named as the Suntory Cup returns after a decade-long hiatus.
- Bars and Cocktails11 June 2025
Suntory Cup finalists revealed
- Boothby19 August 2024
'It's good to push yourself' says Reuben Beasley-Palmer
An interview at Society on technique, hospitality, and the Duke Returns — his modern revamp of the Freddy Fudpucker.
- Hospitality Magazine11 July 2023
Reuben Beasley-Palmer wins 2023 Nikka Perfect Serve
The Melbourne-based bartender of Botswana Butchery crowned winner, going on to represent Australia in San Francisco.
- Bars and Cocktails11 July 2023
Reuben Beasley-Palmer mixes winning whisky cocktails at 2023 Nikka Perfect Serve
Australia's best bartender named after a regional final at Burrow Bar.
- LinkedIn — Lucas Collective17 September 2025
Lucas Collective congratulates Reuben on the 2025 Suntory Cup