The Booze Blog Portal - Alcohol, Bars, Malaysia and Beyond.

03 November 2015

Insta Weekly: 44 Bar has moved - KL Oysters Festival - Mortlach launch - Heineken Sundown Party - The Good Batch - Cocktails of 2 weeks -

I know, I know I've been tardy last month. Got too caught up with some crazy offline commitments. But after this week, things will go back to normal again. This I can promise all 5 of you. Without further ceremony:

44 bar has moved!


44 Bar said goodbye The Row @ Jalan Doraisamy and said hello to Dr. Inc @ Bangsar.

Until December 2015, check them out at their new location for your American craft spirits, bespoked gin tonic happy hour sessions and bottle-aged cocktails (truly special stuff) fix. There might be more stuff coming once they have properly settled down - if there is, I'll definitely let you on, on it.




KL Oyster Festival: Oysters & Drinks Promos!

Shucked & Southern Rock Seafood offered  set menus, fun activities, oyster & drinks promotions as well as oyster masterclasses in conjunction with this week-long festival.


In case you didn't notice by the tonnes of spamming of your FB page (terribly sorry), I was invited by Shucked to experience their Oyster Masterclass - which opened my eyes to oyster appreciating. Like whisky or wine there are different types of oysters and each of them has its own distinct qualities - look, scent, flavours, finish. Learnt that I don't like pairing them with champagne (vs convention!) because it brings out the metallic taste. Learnt that I did enjoy it with white wine, stout and even cider (I am surprised too). Boozed enjoyed: Hole in the Water NZ wine, Noche y Dia Cava & Laurent Robert champagne.

I'll be writing a feature post on this experience soon, because Shucked & Southern Rock will continue to host such classes frequently and I thought it'll be good for you to have an idea of what to expect.

Meanwhile, get with their activities updated here:
www.facebook.com/ShuckedOysterBars
www.facebook.com/southernrockseafood


Mortlach Malaysia launch


The old Speyside whisky label, which had whisky geeks all over the world waiting in anticipation since last year, is finally launched in Malaysia. 3 expressions will be available - Rare Old (NAS), the 18 and 25 years old. I'll be writing a feature post on this soon enough. Meanwhile, here's the official website: www.mortlach.com (check out the brand ambassador, Georgie Bell -  she has got to be one of the most enthusiastic & lively ambassadors I've had the pleasure of meeting to date).


CIMB Classic & Heineken Sundown Party


Heineken is the official partner of the CIMB Classic (for the 3rd year!). To shake things up a bit, there was a big #HeinekenSundownParty last Saturday - which was lovely because the haze cleared. And what better way to celebrate blue skies with a glass of ice cold beer in hand?

Also, tried 2 (of 3) types of cocktails made using Heineken - Honey Shandy (ginger juice, honey, lemon juice, bitters & egg white) and Michelada (a take on bloody mary but with beer instead of vodka). Both were delicious but the Michelada really surprised me as I don't really like Bloody Marys. I missed out on the Lagerita (a margarita but with beer instead of tequila) which sounded promising too. Beer cocktails man. Take heed guys - this is gonna be the next new thing. And I can't see why not - if done right, it still tastes good, and it's less cost for the bar. :p


The Good Batch


... doesn't just serve coffee and cafe food. It also has cocktails, wines beer on tap and even bottled craftbeer (just 3 types of Hitachino for now).

If you don't already know, it's actually ran by the same people behind Hyde 53M (just upstairs!) and the new Nara Kitchen & Co (same area!).


Homemade cocktails of the week - Mint Julep, Old Fashioned & White Lady

I managed to make 3 last week. It's been a while since I had the time but when one has got to drink, one HAS got to drink, eh?
When life a friend gives you lemons mints, make lemonade Mint Julep. For something very common & easy to make, it's usually either a toss between the mojito or the mint julep. Mint julep won this round - I needed the practice. I used Difford's Guide recipe for this, which I love.
The usual mint julep recipes call for stirring all the ingredients in the serving cup directly - so when your serve, the bruised mints get served with it. I never liked how the leaves always get stuck in the straw, and how the mints smelled and tasted wilted in the drink.

Then went to a home party with lots of gin. I had some syrup with me and my shaker (yes I actually do bring out a set of tools out, bitters & syrup to house parties because you just never know when you're hankering for something more than a 2-ingredient cocktail right? I mean, that's normal right? You do it too right? RIGHT?). So instead of just having to drink gin and tonic all night, I made a White Lady with gin, cointreau,  lemon juice  and syrup. 

Remembered how I failed a few times trying to follow Difford's recipe for their version of their Old Fashioned? This goes to show that not everyone's recipe was made to please everyone. :) Well I've went back to making it with a basic recipe which I truly enjoy: 45ml bourbon, 10ml sugar syrup, 1-2 dashes of bitters, 1 orange peel, Stir with 1-2 large chunks of ice for 1-2 minutes or until happy. Serve.

Until next week, drink safe!

Insta Weekly is a weekly summary of boozy updates from my Instagram.com/fireangel80 with the hashtag #angeltini. Feel free to follow me if you enjoy daily updates on booze, food and other random stuff by a girl from Malaysia. Cheers!