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One of the things that my husband and I wanted to do while we were in Singapore was to drink a bona fide Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel. “Ugh, you may be disappointed. It’s all pre-mixed and modernized. The hotel has little of its original charm,” local food expert Christopher Tan told us. Despite Chris’s forewarning, we went to Raffles anyway, on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve.
Dressed in casual travel clothes, we didn’t want to line up for afternoon tea with the high-rollers, who were decked out in pressed dresses and high heels. Raffles is a tony, elegant establishment but surely there was a bar that evoked the era when adventurous traders hung out at the hotel, got drunk, and made deals.
The Singapore Sling was available at several Raffles bars so I stopped a cook who was pushing a speed rack through the hotel and asked him where we ought to go. “The Long Bar,” he said with confidence.
We found the bar’s sign by a staircase, with a few Japanese tourists posing for pictures in front. Interestingly, once you ascend the stairs to the actual bar entrance, there’s another sign that reveals that the current Long Bar is not the original one, that no one knows where the original Long Bar was. So maybe Chris was right...
We stepped inside and hesitated. The atmosphere was cool rattan but new and polished, somewhat characterless. The hostess was indifferent to the parade of tourists like us. From perusing the menu at another Raffles bar, we knew that the Singapore Sling cost $28 Singapore dollars ($22 US dollars). My husband and I looked at each other, and I said, “When the heck are we going to be able to do this again? Table for two please.”
We got the only table available. It was by the terrace, perfect for a wide view of the bar. While there was little actual history in that particular Long Bar, two things stood out. One, you can litter at the Long Bar. A box of peanuts is placed at each table and guests are suppose to dispose of the shells on the floor. Raffles Long Bar is probably the only place in Singapore where littering is encouraged. It felt a bit strange at first.
Second, the drink menu includes not only the $28 price but also the recipe for the Original Singapore Sling. It’s as if Raffles wanted to reward you for paying the price of admission. There’s also a recipe for a 1887 Singapore Sling champagne cocktail, but the equatorial heat called for gin. We wanted to try what Raffles was presenting as the original version, given the debate about what Raffles barman Ngiam Tong Boon actually concocted in the early 1900s.
Yours truly took a photo of the recipe. I didn’t mind being tacky and didn’t understand why no one else was. It was my souvenir.
The drinks came out and they were pretty good. They may have been pre-mixed but the bartenders may have shaken them. There was a nice amount of foam on top, the mark of a good Sling. We nursed them for an hour or so, ate peanuts, then paid the bill which was about $60 USD with taxes and tip. I put one of the coasters in my purse.
It was an experience worth having and once home, I hankered for that drink again. I asked my husband to assemble all the ingredients and make it for my birthday last Sunday. Instead of jarred maraschino cherries, we used homemade ones that I found in the back of the fridge.
Yes, that’s the Raffles coaster underneath our homemade version, which was refreshing and delicious, more vibrant than the one at Raffles. If you don’t want to fly to Singapore, here’s what you need to make one or two yourself.
Notes:
Sarawak pineapple juice is suppose to make Singapore Slings super foamy. What works for me is from Trader Joe’s, which makes great pineapple juice. One small can is enough for 2 generous drinks. The other thing about the foam is you have to shake hard and long – advice from Jeff Bareilles, my friend and Manresa restaurant’s beverage director.
Instead of Cointreau, we used triple sec because we had it in the house already. There’s little involved so it’s negligible. As for the gin, we keep several, but high-octane Tanqueray balanced out the other intense liquors well. Cherry Heering and Dom Benedictine are sold at well-stocked liquor stores and markets. If you don’t want to buy the big bottles, try finding the little ones. But why not stock up and impress your friends?
Use precise measuring cups, such as this or these. You can double this for two drinks, adding enough ice to fill about 3/4 of the shaker.
RECIPE
Singapore Sling
Yield: 1 drink
Ingredients
30 to 35 ml gin, such as Tanqueray (use more for an edge)15 ml Cherry Heering7.5 ml Dom Benedictine7.5 ml Cointreau or triple sec120 ml unsweetened pineapple juice, such as Trader Joe’s15 to 18 ml fresh lime juice (use more if juicing with a reamer)5 to 10 ml grenadine (use less if you don’t like sweet)A forceful dash of Angostura BittersIce cubesPineapple and maraschino cherry (optional, for garnish)Method
Pour ingredients, from the gin down to the grenadine, into a cocktail shaker. Add the bitters. Drop in enough ice cubes to fill about 2/3 of the shaker. Cover and shake hard and fast, until the container feels cold, about 30 seconds.Fill a tall glass with ice, then strain the cocktail over the ice. If you want, garnish with the pineapple and cherry. Drink up.Related post: My best Mai Tai recipe
Posted in Cookbooks, Recipes: All, Recipes: Drink and Beverage, Recipes: Gluten-Free , Recipes: Vegan, Recipes: Vietnamese | Permalink | |
| Comments Raffles Original Singapore Sling Recipe One of the things that my husband and I wanted to do while we were in Singapore was to drink a bona fide Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel. “Ugh, you may be disappointed. It’s all pre-mixed and modernized. The hotel has little of its original charm,” local food expert Christopher Tan told us. Despite Chris’s forewarning, we went to Raffles anyway, on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve.
Dressed in casual travel clothes, we didn’t want to line up for afternoon tea with the high-rollers, who were decked out in pressed dresses and high heels. Raffles is a tony, elegant establishment but surely there was a bar that evoked the era when adventurous traders hung out at the hotel, got drunk, and made deals.
The Singapore Sling was available at several Raffles bars so I stopped a cook who was pushing a speed rack through the hotel and asked him where we ought to go. “The Long Bar,” he said with confidence.
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Traditional quality of Sapporo Ichiban. Cooks in 3 minutes. Made in USA.
Hot Kid Baby Mum-Mum, is made from selected fine-quality Japonica rice. It is made to easily melt in your baby's mouth. It is trans-fat and cholesterol free and no artificial colors or flavors are added.
Since 1835, LEA & PERRINS has been the only truly authentic brand of Worcestershire Sauce. With its distinctive blend of spices from around the world, it makes for a tangy, robust meat marinade. From just a handful of ingredients including, of course, a secret one, the Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce we find gracing our tables today has hardly changed from the original blend, which first matured in 1835. The full recipe has been kept hidden for over 160 years. Only 3 or 4 people at a time know what that special secret ingredient that gives it that extra kick is. Developed by chemists Mr Lea and Mr Perrins, they passed the knowledge to their two sons. They in turn passed it on to a select few. Following the Second World War, it was decided that no one person should be aware of the whole secret so it was broken up. They even gave the ingredients code names to secure the secret further! To this day, that entire recipe is still a mystery.
Introduced at the 2000 Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, this super-versatile marinade blends toasted sesame oil, baby Australian ginger, and Thai chilis, with roasted garlic and natural soy and erotic spices. Go baby!
Hot Kid Baby Mum-Mum, is made from selected fine-quality Japonica rice. It is made to easily melt in your baby's mouth. It is trans-fat and cholesterol free and no artificial colors or flavors are added.
Nissin the Original Cup Noodles Chicken Flavor Noodle Bowls Twenty-four 2.5 Ounce Cups Delicious Chicken flavored Cup of Noodles Since 1958, the world's leading brand in ramen noodle soups 24 2.5 Ounce Cups Per box.
Australia's finest hot pepper sauce! This hot sauce is twice as hot as the Outback sun. An Outback mix of habanero, jalapeno, and wild Australian peppers in a carrot purée mix, this sauce uncommonly blends of heat and flavor. Flamin' Hot Sauce takes its name from the common Australian response to a first taste of this hot pepper concoction. "Cripes, mate, that's a flamin' hot sauce!" 5 oz. per bottle.
Delicate & tasty. Your salad never got such a lift! The pea has played an important role in dietary life and culture since the dawn of recorded history, and because of its nutritional value it has great potential for our dietary lives in the future. We are expecting to see the continuing development of Snapea Crisps as a delicate and tasty product that has taken advantage of the pea's original goodness, and we propose this product as a new type of snack. No artificial flavor and color.
All natural crackers. Fat free. Gluten free. 0% Fat. 100% Natural. Cholesterol free. Preservatives and MSG free. Product of Thailand.