Glenlivet unveils a new whisky

Scotch producers Glenlivet recently blessed planet Earth with a new expression, labelled the Guardians’ Chapter, a limited edition.

It was unveiled at an outlet of the oldest barbershop in the world, Truefitt & Hill, in JW Marriott, KL. Guardians were entitled to a complimentary service at the outlet – The Royal Cut, or The Ultimate Shave. Nice.

Obligatory

Obligatory

The Exotic is the result of a special voting process by thousands of Guardians spanning 37 countries including Malaysia. Master Distiller Alan Winchester created three whiskies (single malts) to choose from –  Exotic, Classic and Revival in Sept 2013.

In the domestic market, the Guardians’ Chapter will be available only to the Guardians for purchase at RM398 a bottle, or at selected travel retail.

Mall party

Mall party

The Exotic is rich and luscious. I find it velvety smooth as well, and almost Cognac-like in it’s hints of sweetness, making it easy to drink.

It’s cool that they went for a high ABV of  48.7%, but you’d never know it – you wouldn’t feel any burn, at least when enjoyed with rocks.

I recommend it.

Incoming

Incoming

Sluuurp!

Sluuurp!

After several delicious whiskies, I went for the Royal Cut. Quite a detailed process, considering my hair was pretty short to begin with. It was a relaxing 45-minute experience which i enjoyed. Fortunately we could drink during the session. And then the party moved to Omakase + Appreciate.

Hard at work

Hard at work

Truefitt & Hill hails from an era of craftsmanship, with a history that began in fashionable Mayfair, England, in 1805. Patrons have included  Oscar Wilde, Frank Sinatra, Alfred Hitchcock, Fred Astaire and The Thirsty Blogger. There’re several outlets here.

Fondling men's hair for 200 years

Fondling men’s hair for 200 years

Says Pernod Ricard Malaysia’s Angelyn Gan, “Taking our Guardians on a little trip back in time to experience such classic old world grooming services is what the Guardians programme strives for with each event.”

Good job there PRM. Some of the previous events have been cool too. Something i always look forward to!

Hey Monkey-Man. Need a leg-shave?

Hey Monkey Man. Need a leg-shave?

Brain damage: 8.5/10

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Christmas goodies @ Press Room, BSC

Had a major gulp n munch session at Press Room (Bangsar Shopping Center) recently, checking out their Christmas specials. Good stuff. (Some of the the below are also available at all La Bodega outlets.)

Some interesting cocktails are available too. We opened with sumtin called Grinch (Creme de Cacao White, peppermint liqueur, Midori, milk). It’s melony n refreshing. And well-balanced – which is a rare thing when it comes to cocktails.

There are light mint flavours too, and the drink’s creamy light green hue looks awesome. (All these cocktails are Rm20.90 nett.)

Am obviously no salad freak, but the prawns in the Press Room Prawn Cocktail were great – fresh n crunchy, with fruity, sweet-sour flavours from the dressing.

Kick-starter

Kick-starter

All these nice pix courtesy of Suanie. (Thanks!)

There were a couple of other salads lying around which i ignored.

The Roasted Pumpkin with White Truffle Oil soup is gooood. Thick n creamy, with random chunks of pumpkin surprises.

Pump it

Pump it

The Steak Tartare here is excellent. Raw beef bits which are tender, fresh, spicy, with pickled bits n herbs adding to the party in your mouth.

Raw session

Raw session

I had the 25th Toast next (strawberry puree, passion puree, cava). Sourish, bubbly & strawberry-like, served in a champagne flute. Pretty OK if you like sour stuff, but it should have been served a lot colder.

I’d definitely have the fish dish again – Sea Bass with sautéed spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce. Tender, juicy chunks of white flesh, with just the right marination and baking time.

Looks boring, but it aint

Looks boring, but it aint

And for the traditionalists, there’s Roast Turkey with chestnut stuffing, roasted sweet potato mash and cranberry sauce. It’s a bigass drumstick. Basically, for those who want a caveman meat fest. Would have preferred more sauce / gravy.

Belasah

Belasah

As am cheesy, i dug the Oven-baked Herbed Provolone. Semi-hard, baked cheese. Slightly chewy.

Cheeeeeeeeeeeeese...

Cheeeeeeeeeeeeese…

I enjoyed the Udon Carbonara, with smoky, flavourful duck, and the meat is particularly strong-tasting.

SONY DSC

With shrooms too

Rudolph’s Fuel is an excellent cocktail served in a martini glass. It’s like a strawberry smoothie, with a boost of course – rum. Tilting a lil towards the sweet side, but still very enjoyable, with its ingredients being Matusalem (Platino), banana liqueur, strawberry puree and Creme de Cacao (White).

Pick 'em

Pick ’em

Crème Brûlée with Strawberries was one of the designated desserts. Pretty good.

SONY DSC

But my dessert was Vanilla Sky – Matusalem (Platino) rum, almond syrup, vanilla chai, egg n milk. It’s strong, nutty, with spice hints due to floaters of cinnamon bits (which i thought was chocolate n tried to eat. Bad idea). I wdnt recommend the margarita or mojitos. I tasted mainly sugar n nothing else.

Overall, dining here is a good experience. The atmosphere is nice, the food quality high, and the Christmas cocktails enjoyable. Reservations required – 03 2095-8098.

Merry Christmas everybody! Drink on; rock on!

 

Brain damage: 7.5/10

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A girl in Changkat

The following post is written by Marta, a reader from Portugal who lives in KL:

I am Marta from Portugal. I have been living in Kuala Lumpur for around three months now, planning to stay a few more!
When I decided to come to Malaysia I believed that it would be a good opportunity to get a “detox”. I mean, no alcoholic drinks for a while… or at least only on rare occasions. The idea that I had was that the drinks here would be expensive (yes that’s true!!) and that being a Muslim-majority country, it would not be common to drink around here (that is not very true!).
Anyway, I ended up living around Bukit Bintang, I guess that if you have been in Kuala Lumpur you are familiar with the area; it is not more than a really busy area with a lot of bars (mainly western style). At first I was not going out much but due to platforms like VibeHero I started discovering the best bars around the area!
Wednesday is “ladies night” around the area, translated as freeflow of cocktails for all the girls. So far so good, it is definitely a good break in the middle of a working week. I usually hit the bars with my girlfriends for some cocktails and dancing.
I would say that frequent (or even not so frequent) in Changkat know about Wednesdays, especially 21’s ladies night that seem to be pretty famous. But you know what? One thing that few people seem to know is that in Changkat, being a girl will get you free drinks EVERY single day. Yes, even on weekends!!

I will share my favorite’s list with you:
Temptations:  free EVERYDAY
In here you can get the house cocktail (different every day and usually pretty acceptable in terms of taste) as many times as you can. The environment is good as you can sit outside and chat with your friends or hit the dance floor if you’re in a dancing mood. They are the only bar that also gives you the pleasure of enjoying free drinks Fridays and Saturdays as well, with the only restraint that the offer ends at 11.

 

Elixir: Say Beer!!
From Tuesday till Thursday you can not only get into Elixir for free but also get a voucher with 4 free drinks.  To get this voucher you only need to give your contact information (I would advise you to ask and  put your name on the list so you don’t have to fulfill a new contact form every time you go there) and you can choose rum, vodka, gin or BEER, four times!! It is the only bar that offers beer so it is definitely one of my l favorites. The only negative point with this bar is that it does not have an outside area and inside the music is always loud (really, really loud). It is the place to go if you feel like dancing!!
Why not: My new fetish
This bar opened not even a few weeks ago and it’s already one of my favorites. So far I have not figured out how the offer works, if it is a daily or just a launching promotion  but the truth is that they offer the best free cocktails in Changkat and you can also choose wine(red wine from Chile). I am more of a wine/beer kinda  gal so this offer fits me like a glove. The environment is super cool and the staff are really nice. Top rate for this one!!
21: The classic
I would say that 21 has the original ladies night. Wednesdays seem to be the busiest nights in this bar. Girls can choose between four different types of cocktails (vodka or gin, melon or cranberry flavors among others). Quantity is up to you but my personal experience tells me you should try not to go over four cocktails in the same night and remember don’t mix different flavors!! (Being a weekday I can tell you that I learned my lesson!!).
With so many offers, it gets hard to choose and even guys needn’t worry! Some bars are already doing “Guy’s Thursday” –  that does not necessarily mean free drinks (yet!!) but it’s a 50% discount.
Enjoy!

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Hit The Roof

A complete eating, drinking and playing experience is gonna kick-off real soon. It’s collectively called The Roof, and has five outlets that basically cover all angles.

A preview party took place on Saturday, tho the joint is still under construction. It’s located on the top floor of First Avenue building in Bandar Utama, PJ.

We had a few drinks at Score, the sports bar, before the tour. This place has pool, darts, and will feature beer deals and finger food.

Score has a running-track thing goin on

Score has a running-track thing goin on

Beside the sports bar is Play, a huge club with a capacity for 600. Definitely the largest one in these parts, and will see DJs and gigs takin place.

Signature will be a trendy gastro-lounge of 11,000 sq ft. There’ll also be stuff like cooking classes, weekend brunches and wine dinners.

Serving single malts and cigars is Malt & Leaf. There’ll be premium malts and cigars from around the world, and occupies a scenic corner with sunset views.

Malt & Leaf comin soon

Malt & Leaf comin soon

The highlight (for me at least) is Stratosphere. Open-air partying, especially hundreds of meters high on a 360-degrees open rooftop, is sumtin else. The feel is awesome.

Goin in

Goin in

The helipad spot

The helipad spot

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Chillin

Bar

Bar

Twin Towers way yonder

Twin Towers way yonder

Party on grass

Party on grass

Buzzin with Paulie

Buzzin up with Paulie

What a spot

What a spot

Light balls. I like

Light balls. I like

IMG_2879

The Roof will definitely will create a major impact on the scene, and hopefully more events will move away from KL City to PJ. I cant recall exactly how many events i skipped coz it was in KL i was lazy to drive in. And joints like Vertigo might be in trouble.

Look out for the gradual opening full-operation of all the outlets over the next few weeks. However, it’s actually opening this weekend.

(Am assisting with The Roof’s marketing, so media keen on checking out the place and have some fun can reach me at deepklc@gmail.com.)

 

Brain damage: 8/10

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