The green mango martini at Superbueno, on the corner of First and First in New York City, is easily my new favourite cocktail. There’s no vodka involved. Instead, the main ingredient is Patrón infused with green mangoes and accompanied by mango brandy, Sauternes, honey, and a drop of costeño chile oil. Its otherworldly deliciousness and elegance represent in one cocktail how far tequila has come in the U.S. Aficionados know that the Mexican spirit is every bit as complex as whiskey but just as much fun as rum.
If you were to tell me 23 years ago, when I first started writing about drinks, that tequila and mezcal combined might one day beat out vodka to become America’s best-selling spirit and that people would be drinking $18 tequila martinis, I’d have done a spit take with my old-fashioned. Yet that’s exactly what’s happening. While vodka sales were flat last year, tequila and mezcal sales rose 17 percent, marking 20 years of sustained growth. Some cynics will roll their eyes and dismiss this as celebrity capitalism gone wild. (Everyone from the Rock to George Clooney has a tequila brand these days.) But I like to think of it as a triumph of taste in America.
Sure, the margarita has always been the drink of those who see Cinco de Mayo as a year-round way of life. But the popularity of the quintessential party drink alone wasn’t enough to propel tequila to number one. According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, the robust demand for more luxurious, premium tequilas—those that go for the price of single-malt Scotches— is a significant part of tequila’s boom as well.
With tequila, terroir is evident in each sip, perhaps more than in any other spirit (and most certainly vodka). It’s made from agave plants, which are particularly abundant in west-central Mexico. A highland tequila (Los Altos) will generally be fruitier and more floral than one from the lowlands (El Valle), which tends to be brighter and peppery. The very best tequila tastes ancient because it is: Fermenting agave goes back thousands of years. (The earliest references date to 1000 B.C.) Tequila tastes like it was made by the labor of many human hands and not the push of a button. And in a world where so much can be deepfaked, where White Claw and macro beers seem to dominate the drinking industry like unavoidable AI-generated Muzak at a bad airport bar, tequila just might be the most visceral, analog, transportive thing you can sip these days to cut through the noise and appreciate that what you’re feeling is indeed the real thing.
Let’s get the basics out of the way. There are blancos and platos. These fall into the unaged category. While reposados are aged at least 2 months in oak. Anejos takes it a step further with it spending at least one year in oak. (Extra Anejos are in the barrel for at least three years.) Age does not mean it’s better. In fact, hardcore tequila fans tend to prefer the freshness and vibrancy of blancos as compared to the more subdued anejos and repos. But put together, all three main types of tequila offer a wide spectrum of regions and flavors to explore in cocktails and sipping, and I guess, if you must, shots.
Here’s a few favourites of ours and other tequila fans Nacho Ximenez of NYC’s Superbueno, Robert Struthers the Beverage Director of Gair in Brooklyn, and bartender Lynette Marrero who is Co-Founder of Speed Rack, MasterClass host, and partner and Chief Mixologist of Delola.
Casco Viejo Tequila Blanco
"The best value tequila," says Nacho Ximenez of NYC's Superbueno.
Pueblo Viejo Anejo
Robert Struthers, Beverage Director of Gair, prefers this "When you need a lot of decent tequila to go around."
El Tesoro Reposado
"From a bartender's perspective, I'm always happy with El Tosoro, the reposado in particular," says Marrero. "It's always been very predictable and delicious."
Cimarron Blanco Tequila
“Always decent for a mixable light tequila” says Marrero. And it usually comes in a 1 litre size offering a good value.
Teremana Blanco
Marrero like’s the tequila company owned by Dwayne the Rock Johnson for their sustainability practices as well as what’s in the bottle. “They’ve tried to responsibly grow and have held back as they build their distribution,” says Marrero.
Siete Leguas Tequila Reposado
Nearly all of the bartenders we spoke to will say that this is a must. Says Struthers: “They stay true to making quality tequila AND steadily raising their prices as it becomes more difficult to maintain this dedication.” Marrero says, “There’s something that just feels like home with the blanco.”
Tepozan Tequila Blanco
A small-batch tequila you've probably never heard of and definitely should try and is surprisingly affordable too,” says Struthers.
When you want smoke in your margarita, it’s normal to reach for mezcal. Next time, try Maestro Dobel Humito instead which uses agave that’s been smoked with mesquite to impart a subtle smoke flavour.
El Tesoro Extra Anejo
“It’s extremely rich with notes of butterscotch and herbs,” says Ximenez.
Don Julio 1942
Easily recognisable in the tall, slender bottle, this very special Don Julio is aged in oak for two and a half years so it drinks a bit more like a smooth whiskey but is still very much a tequila.
It’s tequila, unadulterated, as if sipped straight from the still. Terroir times one hundred. Hard to find, but worth the quest. You’ll sometimes find bottles at duty free at Mexican airports.
Nothing wrong with your classic margarita, but tequila can make for some of the most dynamic and delicious cocktails you’ll ever have. If you’re up for experimenting, swap in tequila where you would normally use a gin or vodka. (A Bloody Maria bests the vodka-based bloody Mary in my book.) Here’s five essential modern classics.
Campari, grapefruit, and lime make this a cocktail light and bright enough to crush yet bitter enough to sip, too.
1 1/2 ounces tequila blanco
3/4 ounce lime juice
1/2 ounce grapefruit juice
3/4 ounce simple syrup
1/4 ounce Campari
Shake with ice. Strain into a coupe. Garnish with a lime wheel.
Traditionally made with Squirt soda from Mexico, this is the fun-loving combination that you’ve been missing all of your life.
2 ounces tequila
1/2 ounce lime juice, freshly squeezed
Grapefruit soda, chilled, to top
Add tequila and lime juice to a glass, and fill with ice. Top with grapefruit soda, and stir briefly. Garnish with a lime wheel.
Who needs triple-sec in a margarita? Swap that out with a touch of agave syrup, and you’ve got something light, bright, sour (and less calorie-dense) than margaritas that you always thought were too damn sweet.
2 ounces 100% agave tequila
1 ounce fresh lime juice
1 ounce agave nectar syrup (1 part agave nectar to 1 part water)
Shake ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.
If you swap out triple sec for orgeat (almond syrup) and add a dusting of nutmeg, you have a cool-weather margarita.
2 ounces blanco tequila
3/4 ounces lime juice
3/4 ounces orgeat
2 dashes rose water.
Shake with ice and strain into a rocks glass with ice. Garnish with freshly ground nutmeg.
If you're a scotch person who thinks they don’t like tequila. This will change your mind. While I’ve seen many folks skip the mezcal and go for a full two ounces of aged tequila, that’s essential if you want that smokey touch.
1½ ounces reposado tequila
½ ounce mezcal
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1 dash Angostura bitters
Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass with ice. Flame an orange peel twist over glass. Discard.
We know you’re still going to make margaritas. Here’s five simple tips to make them even better:
1) Don’t use table salt. The grains are too small. Go kosher or sea salt. Smoked salt if you want to get fancy. Tajin, the Mexican fruit seasoning can be revelatory.
2) Fresh lime juice. If you’ve been using store-bought lime-juice, we feel bad for you.
3) Try it up. On the rocks is great on a hot day. But the tequila really shines, and is downright elegant when served in a chilled coupe every once in a while.
4) Want spice? A few dashes of Cholula or Tapatio. Boom.
Originally published on Esquire US
With the way things are going, years down the line, our culinary scene might be transformed out of necessity. Known for its innovation, Johnnie Walker Blue Label collaborated with several forward-thinking chefs about the future of dining. To kick things off, the label got chefs Andrew Walsh (CURE), Mickael Viljanen (Chapter One) and Mark Moriarty (Diageo)to create a menu centred around the theme: "Air. Land. Sea." Here's how it went:
Taking place at CURE, the six-course dinner utilised AI-inspired digital artwork and 2D and 3D animations throughout the evening. Served on a table with projections exploring "sky, ocean and land", the entire endeavour reminds us of Le Petit Chef but this time, it is a more sombre affair.
Diners were proffered the question: what will the future be like in an era of global warming, overfishing and overfarming? What will the dining experience be like when certain ingredients are scarce? With this in mind, alternative elements were used for the dishes served. (Steak was replaced with red-earth cabbage!)
As diners contemplate the import of heirloom ingredients in a shifting industry and environment, the dishes were paired with exclusive Johnnie Walker Blue Label cocktails. While the menu was created solely for the evening's experience, the dessert, Velvet Cloud Yoghurt 2223, along with a Johnnie Walker Blue Label pairing, were made available to the public at CURE… albeit for a limited time.
In a world that's ravaged by corporations' greed, it's a sobering look at how we will eat. Especially, around the time of CURE's 8th anniversary. But it is Chef Andrew Walsh's hope that this menu would cultivate conversation. And that conversation would lead to acts, which would lead to positive change. It is a perfect alignment with Johnnie Walker Blue Label's commitment to sustainability and innovation. One that will be the stepping stone to a better culinary and spirited future.
Dive into 100 years of whisky innovation. At the ArtScience Museum, you'll meet with an immersive exhibition about the humble beginnings of Suntory, the process of its storied whisky and where it is heading.
Called, The Legacy Continues: 100 Years of Suntory Whisky Innovation, visitors can revisit key moments of the whisky house. Running until 17 July, not only do you get to witness history being made but you can also sit in on an exquisite tasting of Suntory's rare and iconic whiskies.
Entering the exhibit and it feels like you've stepped into the past. Inspired by Suntory's legendary Yamazaki distillery, the exhibit showcases the sights, scents and sounds of the place. With interactive displays that guide you through the taste profiles of each of Suntory's iconic whiskies, you'll also appreciate the work and artistry that went into making Suntory a global sensation.
Don't miss out on the exclusive showing of the docuseries, The Nature and Spirit of Japan. Directed by Roman Coppola and starring Keanu Reeves, discover Suntory via its pillars of nature, spirit and the essence of Japan.
And finally, the journey reaches its crescendo at The Bar. Sit at the counter, where you'll go through three distinct eras of Japanese culture. You'll be privy to curated visual projections, carefully selected playlists and a refined selection of whisky flights and cocktails. The drinks feature Suntory's coveted limited-edition Yamazaki, Hakushu and Ao whiskies.
If fate isn't kind to you and you missed the exhibition, there's still a reprieve. At Changi Airport Terminal 1, there's a global travel retail launch outpost at the transit area. It'll feature animmersive exhibition, interactive video elements and, of course, a moment to sample the finest of Japanese whiskies... unless you're the pilot. We suggest holding off the drink unless you're returning from landing a plane.
Very little should surprise the well-travelled connoisseur. But the world of gastronomy always has little tricks up its sleeves, ready to catch a seasoned gourmand by surprise with sparks on his palate. It is a position he willingly puts himself into, over and over again, in pursuit of that intangible yet evident je ne sais quoi in taste. “A complete lack of caution is perhaps one of the true signs of a real gourmet,” the legendary food writer MFK Fisher tells us in her anthology of essays, An Alphabet for Gourmets. “He has no need for it, being filled as he is with a God-given and intelligently self-cultivated sense of gastronomical freedom.” Where then should a gastronome who considers himself an arbiter of taste go when he has tried everything? What restaurant can one go for flavours that can shock the senses?
Enter Chifa!, Resorts World Sentosa’s newest jewel in its decorated offerings of restaurants. It’s named after the word for that eclectic blend of Peruvian-Chinese food, “Chifa”, which is said to have come about after locals heard Chinese immigrants saying “chi fan” (“eat rice”) during lunch. As for the declarative exclamation mark, one need only walk into Chifa! to be confronted with its bold philosophy, with bright lights, neon lanterns and bright red furnishings that mimic the interiors of a temple.
The food is no less exciting than its exteriors, helmed as it is by chef de cuisine Rodrigo Serrano, a Peruvian native who has years of restaurant-helming experience across Peru, France, the Maldives and finally here, in Singapore. Each dish is made with Peruvian ingredients, glimmering with the Chinese and Cantonese touches that make Serrano’s dishes so unexpected, creative and explosive. The yellowfin tuna tamarind ceviche, for instance, is made with a tamarind leche de tigre (a citrus-forward seafood marinade), which dances on the tongue with its sharp sweet and sour profiles. Japanese cucumbers and daikon add a welcome crunch to the ceviche, which is balanced by the smooth fat of avocado.
Elsewhere, a hen “caldo criollo” chimichurri soup borrows Chinese techniques by long-boiling chicken broth with Chinese herbs and flower mushrooms, updating a traditional Peruvian chicken soup. What’s special is its pairing with ginger chimichurri, which adds a bright kick of freshness and spice to what is typically a simple soup with muted profiles. A kong bak bao, widely known as the Chinese version of a hamburger, is spiced up with a “chalaca” salsa, infused with mint and accompanied by sweet potatoes to round up a fuller-bodied palate.
China and Peru are on two ends of the world map, but go somewhere in the middle and you’ll find the Middle East—a land with diverse culinary histories and cultures going back thousands of years, perfumed with spices and rich flavours. It’s what inspires Morrocan-born Israeli celebrity chef Meir Adoni, whose first venture in Singapore, Aniba marries eastern and western influences in a daring declaration of Middle Eastern cooking.
Dimly yet atmospherically lit, Aniba harkens back to an archaic time with its gentle, sloping ceilings adorned with symbols, alongside a wall that stretches across the bar glittering like crystal formations on the face of a cave. The food, however, is anything but. Bringing with him all the artful expertise of world-famous restaurants Arzak, Alinea and Noma, Adoni’s menu includes gems like the eggplant carpaccio, with its fire-roasted eggplant slices served with tahini. But Adoni’s dishes are never as straightforward as that—date molasses and dried roses are unusual ingredients in our part of the world, which are expertly used to add an exciting sweetness to lift the dish. Generously drizzled in olive oil and made texturally interesting by pistachios, it’s a wonderful starter to the rest of Aniba’s offerings like the katayef, which is traditionally a kind of sweet dumpling dessert served during Ramadan. Adoni’s version is decidedly savoury, which sees grouper, pine nuts, harissa and fresh market vegetables enveloped within a preserved lemon semolina pancake. Never one to let your palate recede to complacency, Adoni serves it with an electric Thai-style vinaigrette to spark the imagination with its seemingly disparate yet sensuous blend of flavours.
Dessert is not to be missed either, with items like the malabi, a traditional milk pudding. It is updated with a plum and warm spices compote that adds a comfortingly fruity and earthy quality to the dessert, topped with a raspberry sorbet and caramelised shredded filotuile. A sprinkling of pistachio hibiscus powder and dried rose petals adroitly complete the presentation, concluding a meal that had just set one’s palate ablaze.
To add more excitement to the gastronomical experience is a trip to London, England, at HUMO with Colombian chef Miller Prada’s newest restaurant nestled in Mayfair. Prada isn’t swayed by one cuisine or the other, on closer scrutiny though, his Colombian roots and Japanese training under Michelin-starred chef Endo Kazutoshi become evident. What’s most striking about HUMO is the prominence of wood-fire cooking in Prada’s gastronomy, using different species of wood to deliver varying qualities of smoke and char. The result? Elegantly-plated dishes with bold flavour profiles for a titillating edge in one of London’s most refined districts.
Prada uses every technique in his repertoire to amplify flavours, such as ageing Ike-Jime Hampshire trout for 12 days cooked over HP18 oak, served with three month-aged caviar grilled in kombu kelp for a briny, electric start to a meal. The West Highland langoustine is undeniably a standout, which is grilled in direct contact with AB55 whisky barrels, HR2 applewood, and CM13 silver birch for an unparalleled char. Served with fermented Kissabel apple, it’s an explosion of flavours that fills one’s senses assertively. Elsewhere, Prada proves that vegetables are just as interesting as meat, with a cauliflower cooked under ash and served with Rokko Miso, yuzu, tarocco orange, nori and Spanish black winter truffle for both an acidic and umami punch.
“Gastronomy is the intelligent knowledge of whatever concerns man’s nourishment,” the great epicure Jean-Antheleme Brillat-Savar indicated in his book, The Physiology of Taste. It is this savoir-faire that all chefs take to heart, even in Phuket at its corner of the world. At Hom, chef Ricardo Nunes channels the ancient art of fermentation, a notoriously tricky undertaking with vastly unpredictable outcomes and even more volatile flavours. Nevertheless, it is an art that has sustained generations through inhospitable winters and continues to nourish under Nunes’ gastronomic ethos—one that respects the seasonality and sustainability of local ingredients and strives towards a lower carbon footprint.
Jars of ferment line the bar at Hom, where cucumbers mature with bunches of dill in amber-coloured brines alongside vines of young peppercorns (or are those young eggplants, or juniper?) in dark liquids. It’s hard not to feel like you are wandering through a zoological lab with animals preserved in formaldehyde, which is probably the point—Nunes wants you to expect the unexpected. Nunes, who has several years of experience working in storied restaurants like Potong, Belcanto and Gaggan, works closely with resident zymologist Mateo Polanco to refine fermentation techniques that take centre stage in Hom’s 10-course menus.
There are no ingredients especially air-flown from different regions of the world; in the name of sustainability, it’s important to Nunes that every ingredient sourced is grown in Thailand. It also means that all ingredients are extremely fresh, allowing their pristine qualities to shine through in each dish. Take one of Nunes’ liquid amuse-bouches, starring an organic passionfruit that’s been fermented to accentuate its already-tart and acidic profiles. Served with ruby pomelo, local herbs and flowers, it’s the perfect starter to electrify the palate before taking in other unusual delicacies like the fermented wild boar belly. Never mind the novelty of wild boar meat—its fermentation is undoubtedly peculiar with an even more indescribable flavour profile, with intense notes of umami and acidity all at once.
Elsewhere, Nunes refuses to shy away from durian as he harnesses the smarting flavours of black durian with goat, pumpkin and his version of a Mexican mole, creating an eclectic blend of savoury, sweet and pungent flavours that will shock one’s palate. There’s only so much one can say, Nunes’ creations demand to be experienced, not read about; to surprise diners and engulf smell and taste so completely with the assertive maturity of fermentation, while always maintaining a balanced palate.
Sitting at H Bar, in the Post Oak Marriott Hotel in Houston, Texas, my face gradually becoming beet red from the hops in the beer that was slowly, but surely, revealing my Asian body’s inability to effectively process the alcohol, I started to ponder.
Why was I having a beer anyway, knowing full well that I lack the enzyme in my body to properly breakdown the alcohol in this specific class of intoxicant?
It’s not like I very much like the taste of beer, but perhaps I’ve been conditioned to believe the golden elixir is the "proper" inebriant for a "real man." Where a "real man", especially one who drinks, but may not necessarily enjoy beer, fits in the modern context is perhaps an increasingly unclear proposition.
There was a time when a "real man" worked with his hands, his sweaty body requiring the refreshment of a nice-cold beer after a hard day’s work, typically outdoors and exposed to the elements. Today, most men work with their hands still, in anonymous open-plan offices or shared workspaces, hammering away not at nails, but keyboards.
In centuries past, the liberalisation of women could arguably have been the focus, but the past several decades could possibly be seen as the "liberalisation of men". Whereas women were deservedly breaking out of their gender-specific roles, that sea change also afforded men the opportunity to redefine what it means to be a modern man.
For men, giving up their careers to dedicate themselves to domestic roles as the key caretaker of home and offspring is no longer seen as something to be concealed but celebrated. And many of the stereotypical qualities associated with so-called “toxic” masculinity have started to be chipped away at, replaced with more fluid concepts that appear increasingly tolerant of various interpretations of what being a man is.
Yet despite the progress made in redefining the modern man in virtually every area of life, one area which appears to remain “Old Fashioned” is at the bar—there’s even a drink named after it!
Disagree? Attempt a first date by ordering a lychee martini for yourself from the mixologist and look out for the noticeable flinch from your date. That tropical cocktail with the little umbrella? You might not be looking at a second date.
As much as it ought not be the case, we can’t help but at least form an impression of each other by what we wear, do for a living, and of course, order at the bar.
Scotch and soda? Safe, staid, if not a little bit boring.
Blue Curacao? A Pandora’s box.
The same way a man in the eighties and nineties could have been judged for ordering a salad on a first date, similarly, would a date not judge a man based on what he orders from the bartender today?
To be sure, change is afoot, as evidenced in the advertising of the liquor companies, with a subtle shift towards more “friendly” beverages, many of them mixed. But one can’t help recognising the predominant message is of a certain brand of masculinity when it comes to most male-targeted spirits. Backdrops of hunting and the Scottish countryside certainly seem to suggest the beverage was intended to be imbibed by men, sans mixers of any sort.
Yet there seems one representation of a man who is partial to a cocktail—Ian Fleming’s creation of James Bond. While Bond may have preferred white spirits, his cocktail of choice, a vodka martini, shaken, not stirred wasn’t always served in the most “manly looking” stemware. Which brings us down to the question of glassware—does the vessel imbue its beverage with so-called “manliness” or lack thereof? In a lineup of various glasses to serve drinks, would one argue that a whiskey glass is decidedly more manly than say, a martini glass?
A wine glass possesses more machismo than say a champagne flute? But if so, who became the judge of what manly glassware is?
Yet somehow, and at least this is something I know I am certainly guilty of, in the back of our minds, there is an unwritten hierarchy to glassware for drinks and a beer mug must certainly rank quite high on the testosterone scale. And if it’s not the glassware that matters, surely the colour of the cocktail makes a difference too?
Is a blue curacao necessarily less manly than a whiskey sour? I would think there are more than a few who would believe so.
A Midori cocktail, more effeminate than a vodka tonic?
Unwittingly, there are so many of us, myself included, who pull up to a bar and especially if we’re getting a drink alone, would scarcely dare to order some cocktail in a neon green or blue hue.
If we as a society are to break gender stereotypes wherever they exist, then this must surely extend to the cocktail bar as well.
So as my mind drifted to these thoughts at the H Bar that summer afternoon, I gulped down what remained of my beer and motioned for the barkeep, not for the bill, but to whisper, somewhat conspiratorially, “I’ll have a mai tai please, and oh, if it’s not too much trouble, could you put an umbrella in it?”
Baby steps.
Like that first crack when you open up a fresh can of beer, Heineken has a refreshing take on a common concept. For the Dutch pale lager's 150th anniversary, they continue their creative collaboration, this time, with local fashion brand, The Salvages.
But this isn't Heineken's foray into the fashion scene. The label worked with Union, A Bathing Ape, Yeti Out and even with The Shoe Surgeon for kicks with beer-injected soles. For its collab with The Salvages, the fashion company took inspiration from Heineken's iconic imagery of Heineken. Using elements like the iconic red star and the striking viridescent palette, they are joined with The Salvages' unique pattern-cutting techniques. With a collection that tempts you into indulging in life's simple pleasures, the t-shirts have loose-fitting drop shoulders that are intricately cut and sewn together to form something new.
All Heineken x The Salvages t-shirts are vacuum-packed and stored in limited-edition Heineken cans. Just dunk the compressed material in water, let the fabric unravel, dry that sucker and wear it like a bawse.
Heineken also tapped on local creatives like beatboxer Dharni and design collective TELL YOUR CHILDREN for a bottle redesign.
These limited-edition bottles will be available as prizes across popular drinking spots from 29 June until the end of July.
As founder Freddy Heineken once said “I don’t sell beer. I sell gezelligheid (Good Times).” This ethos would become Heineken’s north star and is the tone for its 150th anniversary bash in Singapore. Speaking of which...
With the t-shirts available now, the first 50 purchases will get an invite to the Heineken x The Salvages Party. This is a by-invite-only event at an undisclosed location.
