Booze Bonanza

I’m pleasantly surprised to find that @ajummasg has brewed up a trio of tantalising craft makkolis, and I’m even more pleasantly surprised to discover that every flavour is stellar. Starting with the Yuja, or Yuzu ($32++ a bottle), this was the mildest makkoli amongst the trio. A hint of yuzu flitters over your palate as you sip on the slightly sparkling makkoli, which is simultaneously refreshing & rich due to the natural viscosity of the drink. The Yuja is quite mild, and will pair effortlessly with any of Ajumma’s delectable dishes.⠀
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The most fragrant makkoli was, without doubt, the Melon ($32++ a bottle). It is alluringly aromatic with the pleasant pungency of ripe, sweet melon, and my first sip made me think of melon milk, but slightly sparkling. It’s sweet, effervescent and has all that natural melon flavour, making it a delight to drink by itself or when paired with dishes like their famous Crispy Samgyeopsal With Scrambled Eggs & rice or their Jjajangmyeon.⠀
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And last but not least, the brilliant Byeolsan Odi Berry ($34++ a bottle) absolutely blew both of us away. Made from Korean mulberries, this makkoli reminded me of mixed berry yogurt for some reason. I thoroughly enjoyed it though, and would definitely order a bottle of berry makkoli & pair it with something as intense as their kimchi stews. The berry makkoli is fantastically flavourful, and it’s robust enough to be pairing with any dish & still shine.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite @ajummasg!

Unfortunately good things come to an end, but at least we ended it on a sweet note at @sugarhallsg. They have two cocktails that could be considered to be dessert-like, especially the Dirty Chocolatini. All cocktails are $26++ which is about the market average price for a cocktail, but these concoctions are far from average.⠀⠀
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The Dirty Chocolatini is a concoction built on a base of Monkey Shoulder Whisky, Merlet Amerisse, a bitter blackcurrant aperitif, chocolate, white cocoa, raspberry and lime. I already knew that chocolate & whisky were quite a good pairing, but I didn’t realise just how good it could be. The Dirty Chocolatini tastes & feels like a melted down chocolate gelato, and then the Merlet Amerisse & raspberry pop in to turn this cocktail into a crazily chocolatey black forest cake. The amalgamation of fantastic flavours conceal the whisky well, and it’s definitely a dangerous dessert cocktail. Especially when you’re already a few cocktails deep.⠀
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The Souffle Espresso Martini is less of a dessert cocktail and more in line with the post meal espresso. Santa Teresa Rum and Mr Black Coffee Liqueur are complemented by the addition of cold brew coffee & macadamia, right before the espresso elixir gets topped with dalgona foam. The sweetness and smoothness of the rum & coffee liqueur neutralise the acidity of the cold brew coffee and make it even smoother. However, I couldn’t really pick out any extra nuttiness from the macadamia, but the simultaneous alcohol & caffeine punch was more than enough to satisfy. Mixing booze & espresso might leave you with the Forrest Whittaker, but it will definitely give you enough of a jolt to stumble out of Sugarhall.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite, @sugarhallsg!

We started off fairly well at @sugarhallsg with the noteworthy opening cocktails, but the next pair were a couple of levels above. The Passionfruit Daiquiri and the Peach Smash (both $26++) were fabulously fruity & flavourful cocktails that concealed a potent punch. I’d call it a dead tie between both, as I absolutely adore the uniquely delicious quirks of each.⠀
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The Passionfruit Daiquiri is a mix of 4 year old Bacardi rum, green tea, passionfruit and lime, and garnished with a gummy bear couple. Despite the rum being the sole spirit here, the daiquiri is still pretty powerful, although the green tea quells most of the alcoholic burn from the young rum. The sweetness of the passionfruit juice is kept in check by the spritz of lime, and is then evenly mixed into the green tea & rum concoction. The daiquiri is smooth, sweet and somehow tremendously thirst quenching, and the urge to just chug it all down is nigh unbearable. As for the little gummy bear couple that I eventually ate…I’m sorry, little ones.⠀
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The Peach Smash was a truly smashing cocktail and is another single spirit drink, comprised of Woodford Reserve Bourbon, peach, rhubarb & lemon. This isn’t quite as quaff-able as the Daiquiri, but it’s definitely a stellar sipper. The velvety rich sweetness of the bourbon composes most of the drink’s weighty body, and it adds a delightful oak & smoke aroma to the cocktail. The peach is ripe & sweet, but kept in check by the sourness of the lemon & rhubarb. I can’t place my finger on why, but I am fairly certain that I tasted pear in there.⠀
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Sugarhall’s cocktails are all sublime, but when it comes to the Passionfruit Daiquiri & the Peach Smash, I’d be like the Hulk and passionately smash, smash, suh-MASH! Thank you so much for the hospitality, @sugarhallsg!

Even if you can’t make it onto a sunny summer beach, you can still feel like you’re relaxing on one with a charming cocktail in hand at @sugarhallsg . A mojito is usually the first cocktail that comes to mind when anyone says “beach bar”, so naturally Sugarhall’s version had to be our first drink.⠀
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The Iced Mojito ($26 before 10% service charge) is Sugarhall hitting the upgrade button on the standard mojito. Diplomático Planas Rum is muddled with mint and lime, but the usual soda water & simple syrup is substituted for crème de menthe & sugarcane ice. That’s right, Sugarhall froze sugarcane juice & turned it into ice! The mint from the crème de menthe and the muddled mint should be incredibly overpowering, but the sweetness from the crème and the sugarcane ice negated the pungency of the mint. The result is an extraordinarily easy to guzzle drink that’s satisfyingly sweet and refreshing, and it’s the ideal standard of a beach cocktail.⠀
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The blue one is unsurprisingly named the Blue Lagoon (also $26+service charge), and the ingredient list on this one makes for interesting reading. Chardonnay vodka from @discardedspirits is mixed with coconut blue curaçao, cachaça and homemade lemonade, making for a mildly zesty drink that leaves an intriguing aftertaste of bubblegum. One thing I particularly enjoyed about both cocktails is how they manage to be tastefully sweet & delicious, but never cloying. Definitely a dangerous cocktail, but I do enjoy living on the edge from time to time.⠀
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Thank you so much for the invite, Sugarhall!

It’s finally Friday, so go get some beers to celebrate from @getsome.sg . I stumbled upon their Clementi location after a hard day’s work out on a job site in the wild West of Singapore, and I was stunned to see this beer pub pouring up pints at the void deck of a block of flats. Son of a gun, I wish my block had a craft beer pub on the ground floor too.
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Get Some also got some rather decent brewskis on tap and Happy Hour offers till eight pm daily on deck. Pints of Get Some’s own lager & Hofbräu on tap for eight bucks before extra charges? Pints of craft brews from twelve to twenty dollars? Yes please, let me get some more, like this $20++ pint of Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout from @northcoastbrewingcompany.
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From what I understand, this is a pretty rare brew, and its rarity is matched by its deliciousness. Just like the real Rasputin, this stout is big and strong, in its eyes a flaming glo-sorry. The stout’s heavy body is smooth and creamy, chock full of the aroma & flavour of extra chocolatey mocha, barley malt & caramel, with a slight hazelnut aroma with every sip. The complexity and weight of each sip certainly helps to hide the punchy 9% alcohol content, but I drank it all and said “I feel fine.”

I’ve always spurned whisky highballs as fizzy wastes of money & whisky that don’t even qualify as a cocktail. However I decided to give Nobu-ya legendary Whisky Highballs ($15++) a fair shake since I had heard about it’s rumoured strength. I am totally thrilled that I did, because Nobu-ya’s whisky highball is probably the most potent one in all of Singapore.⠀
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The traditional highball is the simplest drink to make: whisky & soda water are poured over the rocks and stirred. Nobu-ya doesn’t do anything fancy, but the drink director who made my highball free poured (!!!) a whole lotta Suntory whisky into the mug, filling it about halfway with whisky and then topped it off with soda water. Even after accounting for all the ice in there, I’m almost certain that there’s at least five (!!!) shots worth of sweet, sweet whisky in every highball. ⠀
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Getting buzzed on a budget this close to my office? It’s almost like divine providence, I tell ya.

(INVITED TASTING) Racking your brain for decent happy hour deals every single day of the week? Well, don’t you worry your pretty lil head, just head up to @whiteshadessg rooftop bar for their Golden Hour, which runs (almost) daily from 5-7pm and all day on Monday so you can fend off those damned Monday blues. From pints of draft beer for ten bucks, cocktails from White Shades’ cocktail taps for eleven dollars a pop or fifty five dollars a caddie, your thirst will be quenched at a reasonable rate.⠀
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We decided to split a cocktail caddie among the four of us, and we chose the Vetiver High ($55++ for the tall pitcher). It’s White Shades’ fancier version of a highball cocktail, with Kakubin whisky & soda water getting jazzed up by the inclusion of Vetiver Gris. After googling what Vetiver Gris is, it’s a liqueur that has a wonderfully woody & sweet aroma. The cocktail was the same: light, aromatic & enjoyably effervescent, and paired well with the complimentary house-made focaccia & buah keluak butter.⠀
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So hesitate no more, head to White Shades with good company & enjoy the surprisingly great views with decent food & booze & great banter. Thanks for the invite @whiteshadessg & @accela.comms!

Every man needs regular post nut clarity in his life, and @fura.sg Post Nut Clarity ($25++) as well. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve mostly forgotten what this drink tasted like, all I remember was that the Remy Martin 1738 cognac made this tipple delightfully weighty & smooth, and the aroma of hazelnut added a nice nuttiness to proceedings. ⠀
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As for the cocktails my pals got, I remember a Pick Me Up ($25++) being ordered. According to Fura’s menu description, it’s a ‘coffee’ cocktail with ayuuk as the base spirit. And finally, the Caviar Papi ($28++) was crafted out of Grey Goose vodka, kombu cream & caviar.⠀
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Fura has an exceptionally wild & wacky cocktail menu, and I’d certainly recommend any cocktail appreciator to come to Fura & have a tipple at least once. Just don’t forget to be young at heart when sampling these innovative cocktails.

Every man needs regular post nut clarity in his life, and @fura.sg Post Nut Clarity ($25++) as well. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve mostly forgotten what this drink tasted like, all I remember was that the Remy Martin 1738 cognac made this tipple delightfully weighty & smooth, and the aroma of hazelnut added a nice nuttiness to proceedings. ⠀
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As for the cocktails my pals got, I remember a Pick Me Up ($25++) being ordered. According to Fura’s menu description, it’s a ‘coffee’ cocktail with ayuuk as the base spirit. And finally, the Caviar Papi ($28++) was crafted out of Grey Goose vodka, kombu cream & caviar.⠀
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Fura has an exceptionally wild & wacky cocktail menu, and I’d certainly recommend any cocktail appreciator to come to Fura & have a tipple at least once. Just don’t forget to be young at heart when sampling these innovative cocktails.

Every man needs regular post nut clarity in his life, and @fura.sg Post Nut Clarity ($25++) as well. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve mostly forgotten what this drink tasted like, all I remember was that the Remy Martin 1738 cognac made this tipple delightfully weighty & smooth, and the aroma of hazelnut added a nice nuttiness to proceedings. ⠀
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As for the cocktails my pals got, I remember a Pick Me Up ($25++) being ordered. According to Fura’s menu description, it’s a ‘coffee’ cocktail with ayuuk as the base spirit. And finally, the Caviar Papi ($28++) was crafted out of Grey Goose vodka, kombu cream & caviar.⠀
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Fura has an exceptionally wild & wacky cocktail menu, and I’d certainly recommend any cocktail appreciator to come to Fura & have a tipple at least once. Just don’t forget to be young at heart when sampling these innovative cocktails.

If you think @fura.sg food is the most innovative thing about them, wait till you find out that they ferment five of their own wines. Yes you read that right, Fura produce their own wines! Forget importing some premium drops from the Old World or the New World, Fura makes it their own world.⠀
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If you’re feeling particularly adventurous, the Funk Flex ($23++ a glass) pairs the same refreshingly fizzy mouthfeel with aromas of sweet & sour pineapple, along with smoky notes reminiscent of the peat that you’d get from a robust Scotch. The Funk Flex is a little sharp, slightly sweet and a total joy to slowly savour.⠀
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Fura’s modest lineup of the five wines that they ferment themselves are quite easily the most memorable part of the menu for me. I believe my fellow wine connoisseurs will be sufficiently intrigued & impressed by the fabulous fermented wines, and I kinda regret not seeing if Fura sells bottles of their wacky but wonderful wine.⠀

If you think @fura.sg food is the most innovative thing about them, wait till you find out that they ferment five of their own wines. Yes you read that right, Fura produce their own wines! Forget importing some premium drops from the Old World or the New World, Fura makes it their own world.⠀
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The Strawberry Generation ($22++ a glass) has been fermented for 60 days, and as the name suggests the aromas give strawberry candy along with a healthy helping of vanilla. It’s also a little fizzy, almost like a bubbly, and the Strawberry Generation is quite a fun drink to imbibe.
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Fura’s modest lineup of the five wines that they ferment themselves are quite easily the most memorable part of the menu for me. I believe my fellow wine connoisseurs will be sufficiently intrigued & impressed by the fabulous fermented wines, and I kinda regret not seeing if Fura sells bottles of their wacky but wonderful wine.⠀