6 Festive Cocktails for the Holidays
Tasty tipples from MOGĀ, Dimple, White Shades and other cool bars will surely get you in high spirits.
In tropical cities like Singapore, bartenders don’t lean on winter warmers like spiced cider or toddies to satisfy their patrons. Instead, they reinvent classic festive drinks, infusing them with playful twists or special ingredients to spread the cheer. Tis the season for indulgence and nostalgia, and for some, inspiration comes straight from cherished holiday moments.
Gavin Teverasan, newly appointed bar manager of mod Japanese cocktail bar MOGĀ, has always fancied cosying up at home with a funky booze in hand to watch the holiday classic Home Alone. It’s not difficult to see the appeal. The chaotic warmth of the McCallister family — bickering at the dining table, forgetting passports (not to mention precocious protagonist Kevin), and eventually coming together despite the mayhem — feels exactly like Christmas distilled. That messy, joyous spirit became Teverasan’s muse for his latest creation Nog Nog, Who’s There?, an ice-blended whisky eggnog garnished with Azuki bean and a generous dusting of matcha powder.
Like Teverasan, Danica Garalde of Oasis at Grand Hyatt Singapore is reminded of the comedy-drama Miracle on 34th Street when describing her bar’s festive tipple Winter Oasis, a cheerful pomegranate-based cocktail enriched with allspice dram and crowned with prosecco. “The cocktail mirrors the movie’s feel-good energy with its blend of sweetness, zest and sparkle, leaving you with a sense of joy and a touch of holiday wonder,” she says.
While the aforementioned find inspiration in the heartwarming allure of holiday classics, other bartenders turn to Asian influences to add a distinctive twist to their creations. Mo Bar’s Junghoo Kim incorporates the traditional cooling herbal syrup Pei Pa Koa into his festive tipple Tropical Christmas. Meanwhile, Bai Jiawei, founder of four-storey cocktail playground White Shades, crafts a concoction poetically named Under the Winter Tree, featuring persimmon, pine nuts and cinnamon to evoke the flavours of Sujeonggwa, a popular traditional dessert punch from Korea.
The festive spirit isn’t all about ingredients; there’s also the intent behind them. At Capella Singapore’s The Pineapple Room, the holidays are all about balance, both in life and in a glass. With Festive Tidings, bartender Franz Lagajino chooses to work with Brass Lion’s Pahit Pink Gin, a Singapore-made spirit known for its bright herbaceous profile, adding spices like ginger and cinnamon to instil warmth. “It’s a blend of both cosy and whimsical, while being light on the palate,” he explains.
While The Pineapple Room is all about restraint and balance, newly opened independent cocktail bar Dimple embraces indulgence with a nod to tradition. Their Hazelnut Old Fashioned leans into the richness of freshly toasted hazelnuts, which are blended and infused into bourbon to create a drink that is as warming as it is decadent. Served with a chocolate bonbon perched on a small spoon, the cocktail is a nod to the small joys of the season, like unwrapping gifts and sharing desserts with friends and family.
