See if this scene is familiar. You’re on a date, either at a bar or at your pad, and you’re gunning for a nightcap before you make your move. She asks for an old-fashioned, and you’re clueless as to how to make it or what liquor to order it with the bartender, so you excuse yourself to the bathroom and try hit Wikipedia hard. Not very sexy or impressive.
Brendon Khoo, resident bartender at 28 Hongkong Street, has come up with the three drinks that in his professional opinion, every guy should know how to concoct or at least what goes into each drink. You’ve got the old-fashioned, that classic, slightly sweet but perfect for a nightcap. Then there’s the daiquiri, a sophisticated and gentle charmer and finally a whisky sour.
There’s plenty we could have picked from, such as Manhattans, negronis, mint juleps… the list goes on. But these three are essential to the cause. Read the instructions below, watch Brendon’s comprehensive video guide and then you can critique the bartender next time you order one… not that we’d advise actually doing that. That’s a recipe for disaster.
Old Fashioned
Liquor type: Any brown spirit that you may prefer.
1. Chill a rock glass with crushed ice or ice and water.
2. Pour 2 shots of brown spirit, 0.5 tablespoon of sugar syrup, and a dash of angostura bitters into a mixing vessel, add ice and stir until the drink is well chilled.
3. Strain it into the rock glass and garnish with an orange peel. Serve
Daiquiri
Liquor type: Any white rum of choice.
1. Chill a coupette glass with some crushed ice or ice and water.
2. Pour 1 shot of fresh lime juice and 2 to 3 bar spoons of white sugar and stir.
3. Following that, add in 1.5 shots of rum, add ice and crushed ice and shake thoroughly.
4. Strain into the glass and serve.
Whisky Sour
Liquor type: Any whisky of your preference.
1. Pour 1 portion of whisky of choice, mixed with half the amount of fresh lemon juice and 1 table spoon full of sugar syrup.
2. Add all these into a shaker tin, along with a dash of egg white.
3. Seal it and shake thoroughly without ice first.
4. Then add ice and shake again until well chilled.
5. Strain into a cold coupette glass and add a couple of drops of angostura bitters.
If you’d like to debate or discuss any of these drinks with Brendon, he can be found hanging around 28 Hongkong Street both during, before and after opening hours.
This video is brought to you by August Man and Tudor Watch. We’d also like to thank Proof & Company Spirits Pte Ltd for assisting in this video production.