It is routine for bars to introduce a new cocktail menu with eight, maybe ten creations. At Origin Bar, there are 18.
The Shangri-La hotel bar has refreshed its cocktail offerings based on historical moments in time, such as the commercialisation of peanut butter, the advent of the nuclear age, and the first emoji.
The drinks were introduced late last year by bar manager Adam Bursik and his team, who have done a masterful job. The ingredients are balanced and play well together. The execution is amusing, with absurd garnishes like a lipstick, pill, chewing gum, and Lego figurine.
If the choices are overwhelming, Origin Bar has a helpful graph that charts where the drinks fall on the flavour spectrum. Here are some highlights.
What to order from Origin Bar’s new cocktail menu
Atomico
Atomico pays tribute to the development of the first nuclear reactor in 1942. The liquid equivalent is just as potent, with the heat of wasabi offset by a fruity tang from rum, sake, and yuzu. At table-side, a server uses a gun-like tool to place a bubble on top of the drink, which explodes in a cloud of smoke.
S$25++
Star Was Porn
The internet started in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to share information, but to every teenager, it’s their first education in the human anatomy. This cocktail nods to the online smut industry by redistilling the classic Porn Star Martini with passionfruit, and a topping of champagne offers a tingly sensation. It comes with an edible lipstick, and a server recommends that you eat “just the tip.”
S$27++
Call Me A Doctor
To paraphrase a certain lovable cartoon yellow dad, alcohol is the cause and solution to all of life’s problems. Origin Bar doubles down on the last sentiment with this cocktail based on the invention of penicillin. It is served with a pill filled with Ayurvedic spices, to be washed down with this warm and herbaceous drink. It also comes with a doctor’s note, but whether HR accepts it when you skip work the next day is another story.
S$24++
Chicle
The bane of MRT train doors and cleaners everywhere, Chicle marks the birth of the chewing gum in the 1860s. This Paloma riff is equally refreshing and sweet from mint and raspberry, as mezcal lends a hint of smoke. Drink it with a side of chewing gum – it is made of fondant, and the only one you can swallow.
S$24++
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Dark Matter
Dark Matter represents day zero, the big bang, and the birth of the universe. The Negroni-like cocktail broods over the use of aged tequila, smoke, and savoury Spanish sherry, as a gooey chocolate ball garnish mimics what we assume to be the planet’s molten core.
S$26++
A Sazerac by nature, Peanut Butter Therapy is a homage to the commercialisation of the now-ubiquitous snack. At Origin, peanut butter-washed rye whiskey gives the drink a slick oily texture, and a serving of salty peanut cuts through the drink’s richness. The therapy part comes in the form of a diffuser pumping out absinthe vapour.
S$26++
Origin Bar is located at Shangri-La Singapore Lobby Level, Tower Wing, 22 Orange Grove Rd, 258350. Book here.
This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia Singapore
