Category Archives: ~ Cocktails ~

KL Cocktail Week kicks

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The first KLCW went down all of last week at various outlets in the city. I only managed to squeeze two in.

The session at View Bar was entitled Spirits of the Tropics, ie rum, hence my presence. Mixologist Junior created four types of freshly-made cocktails, which were available for civilians at $15 net a pop.

Menu

Sweet deal, considering the quality of the rum (Angostura, Trinidad & Tobago) and the high-quality ingredients. The first, Jungle Bird, is the only well-known Malaysian tiki cocktail. An extremely unique blend of sweet, finishing with bitter, as it has Campari. As well as dark rum, fresh lime juice, syrup and pineapple juice.

Tiki time

I also liked the Missionary. It’s one of ’em fruity and tropical sweet-sour cocktails. Not too sweet, the way i like it. Better once the ice melts a bit.

The Screw Pine Mojito tastes like a very limey mojito. The loads of mint leaves had me chewing like a goat in Morocco.

The Screw Pine doesn't come with the dragonfly

However, the Malacca-Loda is too bland for me.

Malacca mari ah?

Also hit the tequila dinner at Las Carretas, Damansara Heights. Jose Cuervo sponsored the liquor, and i was taken aback when i saw this:

Yea! One of me fave tequilas

The walk-in drink is known as Old & New, a pair of shooters of iced tequila and Sangrita. I love the latter, like a salsa-sauce drink. Similar to the Red Hot Smoke i had recently.

Food was great, tho not what i expected, as it wasnt spicy.

Mixologist Timothy Jason also fried some sugared pineapples with a blowtorch for the second cocktail, Citrus whisper – 1800, Joseph Carton Triple Sec, orange slices and home made grape fruit soda. It tasted quite like a Screwdriver.

Toast 'em!

Before we left, there was a treat – an extremely rare Cuervo family reserve – the Jose Cuervo Reserva De La Familia. Only a couple of thousand bottles worldwide a year. Ben says “Each glass is probably over a hundred bucks.”

It has a nose similar to a single malt or cognac, with more caramel. Its super-smooth in the mouth, velvety, with a sweet, intense finish. Not a typical tequila.

Niice!

Especial

KLCW is likely to be an annual affair. It should get bigger next year, with more publicity and a heads-up for all yall who’d like to know more about (and get high on) an exciting variety of high-quality cocktails. You’ll be informed!

 

Brain damage: 8/10

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KL Cocktail Week!

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KLCW 2011 is basically a week (next week) dedicated purely to the enjoyment of good drinks and celebrating Malaysia’s cocktail culture. It’s the first cocktail week in Asia, that spans 5 days and 5 outlets across KL City.

It’s organized by Fluid Alchemy / mixologist Ben Ng.

This event is truly about cocktails…. cocktails.. and more cocktails. So brace yourself for a week of ‘hard work’ at the bar. You’ll also have the nation’s top bartenders mixing up their signature KLCW creations for your enjoyment. Their cocktails will be available for customers at only $15 nett.  A decent deal.

Details visit the event page here. C ya there!

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Gettin fresh with cocktails

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Sagatiba did a great cocktail session at View Rooftop Bar, G Tower, called Fresh Mixology Session with John Gakuru. In town for this was John, who’s Sagatiba’s brand manager based in London.

Funny thing – i shot all pictures blind – my camera’s lcd screen is blank, and there’s no viewfinder. Gotta mentally imagine the picture n shoot. Haha! Koyak.

Mari mari mari

Bartenders in action – John, Ben Ng (Fluid Alchemy), Junior (View) and Josh (21), all established guys.

For some reason, i wuz expecting a classroom / education session. Instead, what i got was an all-out, party-style, cocktail-making and drinking session! On a rooftop.

Definitely not disappointed.

It was very well-organized by TWE. Congrats Michelle, Vincent, u boozepimps!

In session. In the end, everyone was buzzed

Each bartender has minimum three special fresh cocktails created, and u just go up to each of them and make a request from their list.

Too easy.

Caipirinha with a twist

My first drink of the afternoon was at Junior’s station – Pineapple Cardamom Caipirinha: pineapple chunks, 30ml cardamom syrup, 60ml Sagatiba Pura. Interesting; lil too sweet for me.

Hit up the Kayu Manis next: a whole lime, 30ml palm sugar, 60ml Sagatiba, one cinnamon stick. This one’s refreshing, tho very limey after awhile.

Stick it!

Ben was my next visit. He fixed me a shooter called Red Hot Smoke. Totally loved this – zesty, fresh, slightly herbal-spicy.

Ben's poisons

It’s a mix of smoked Sagatiba and gazpacho (tomato, aged balsamic vinegar, chillies, ginger & citrus). I had many.

Smoked 'em

I checked in at John’s station. What i loved most was this –

Sagatiba Wallpaper

It won cocktail of the year by Wallpaper magazine. Nice mix of tangy n light sweetness.

Its 30ml Sagatiba, 20ml fresh passion fruit puree, 1 bar spoon of passion fruit syrup, 2cm of a vanilla pod, 1 small piece (5mm) of red chilli (to taste) (optional).

Vincent of TWE havin d chili option

Unfortunately, all the notes i made while drinking is gone. The wind was awesome on d roof, so i wondered how paper planes will perform if i threw them off, so unintentionally away went my notes.

Ridiculous! D stupid shit i do when am cruisin. Making paper planes from your media release gotta be waay up there.

Lift-off point

John also fixed me a berry-lime mix

Yuuummm seng!

Afternoon drinking. I like.

I think i asked John on several different occasions for particular styles of cocktails, etc, that i wanted him to make. He obliged, in style. We chatted n shit.

John takin a break

There came a point when John yelled, referring to me, “Who is this guy?? Really, who are you man?”. Haha! I guess i got his attention. After introductions, he says he’s been to this blog. Alco.

Main bar, View. Style. Will be reviewed on this blog soon..

John’s got skills, and it was an honour sampling his varied styles of cocktails. He gave me ideas.

Chachaca is pretty versatile, good for cocktails or shots. If u like rum, but would like a stronger-taste liquor base for your mixes, consider Sagatiba, either Pura or Velha.

The slingers - Josh, Ben, John & Junior. Very happy

A funky, casual, professional cocktail showcase in a great atmosphere. We could use more of these!

 

Brain damage: 7.5/10

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The cachaça samba

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While rum is da man in Central & South America, cachaça is big chief in Brazil. It’s a ol skool clear liquor produced from good ol’ sugarcane juice.

Hmmmm. Gives me ideas.

I did try to ferment sugarcane juice once but it failed coz the container wasn’t airtight. Will definitely retry soon.

Met up with Boozepimp Michelle from TWE & mixologist Ben Ng at Celsius, a stylish new bar downtown to get to know cachaça better (pronounced ka-SHAH-sa).

Yet more new stuff in town

Its similar to rum in terms of the raw product source, but rum uses sugar cane molasses, produced by boiling the juice until it turns to solids (crystals). Cachaça is made by fermenting and distilling fresh-pressed cane juice, thus it retains an intense earthy aroma. It’s used mostly for cocktails, the most popular being the world-famous Caipirinha (cachaça, lime juice, sugar), one of my faves.

If you’ve seen a red/white label bottle with a large “51” on it sitting behind bars, that’s cachaça, but a different brand, Cachaça 51.

There are more than 5,000 cachaça brands in Brazil, the majority known as a ‘poor man’s drink’, as its dirt cheap. 99% consumed domestically. But these days, better quality (and more costly) options are available. It’s Brazil’s national drink.

Maybe we should give some to our national team so they play better football.

Clear as water

Like capoeira, it’s got a long history (five centuries), but is only now becoming popular outside Brazil. Plantation owners used to give it to their slaves to make ’em work harder. Nice incentive.

One of them that TWE has brought in from Brazil is Sagatiba, which has the honour as the world’s first premium cachaça.

Had a sampling of it in several Caipirinha cocktails at Celsius, but of course a neat shot first.

It really grabs you with its strong flavours. I got some earthy vanilla hit. Its ABV is 38%.

Soon there was a Caipirinha feast goin down.

Pomegrenate Caipirinha

Spicy Mango Caipirinha

Mangosteen Caipirinha

A Cucumber Caipirinha

They’re all fruity, refreshing drinks. All that’s missing is a beach. You could add more liquor to give it some bite/resistance.

Then Ben brought out some eggs.

What's cookin?

Am not a fan of egg in cocktails, but he created a very drinkable and almost smoothie-like drink – Maracuja Sour which is from Peru, but Ben replaced pisco with cachaça.

Koktel tarik

Its other ingredients are passion fruit juice and sugar syrup.

Batida

The final one’s my favourite, a Strawberry Grapefruit Batida. A Batida is a popular cocktail in Brazil that combines cachaça with fruit juices, and sometimes coconut milk. I could drink this all day.

The Sagatiba Pura is available now at TWE (map) for about $130, as well as bars like Celsius, Traders Hotel, Elixir, Laundry, ReggaeBar, Werner’s and Friday’s. There are plans to soon bring in the top-shit premium Sagatiba Velha, which is aged in oak barrels. Lookin forward to that!

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Brain damage: 7.5/10

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