Singapore’s nightlife is renowned for its variety of excellent cocktail bars. But don’t count out the comfy appeal of a homebrewed tipple—messiness included.
Chances are you have at least a couple of the ingredients on hand to make cocktails in your kitchen. After all, gin and tonic only requires two things to transform an otherwise placid night into a rousing good time. Who wouldn’t want to ditch the fuss of making reservations at a bar—on a weekday night no less—in favour of an easygoing time in the comfort of your own home?
Beyond that, though, things can get complicated. Even if you enjoy partaking in the occasional drink, and the idea of making it at home appeals to you, it can be hard to know where to start. It’s one thing to have a bottle of Hendrick’s Gin and a few cans of Schweppes tonic water sitting on your shelf. It’s another thing entirely to juggle spirits, mixers and garnishes to craft libations that go down easy, much less well.
In the pursuit of the perfectly crafted home cocktail, Vogue Singapore reached out to four local bartenders for their insights, each hailing from establishments with very different knowhows. Daniel Raghani, the founder of Parliament Bar, finds comfort in the zany, wonderful trappings of true-blue Americana nostalgia. Gabriel Lowe, co-founder of Cat Bite Club, channels his creativity through the floral zest of agave and nutty sweetness of rice spirits. Betty Sim is the assistant principal bartender of Jigger & Pony’s latest, buzziest joint inspired by Seoul’s nightlife, Bartenders of Pony. And Chuan Poh is the head bartender at the small, but no less swanky, Night Hawk, where cosy community meets meticulous craftsmanship.
We asked after three important elements; a punchy cocktail suggestion that would be easy to whip up; the ingredients that would be required for it to come to fruition; and one crucial tip before anyone were to try their hand behind a home counter. For the enterprising mixologists, consider this your veritable crash course in home bartending.
1 / 4
Daniel Raghani, founder, Parliament Bar
The cocktail: I’d say a Boulevardier. It’s essentially a Negroni but with whisky instead of gin, so it feels a bit richer and more approachable for people drinking at home. It’s also hard to mess up—equal parts, stirred, and you’re done. But at the same time, small tweaks in ingredients can completely change the drink, which makes it fun to play with.
The process: Combine equal parts bourbon whisky, a red bitter liqueur and vermouth in a mixing glass with ice, stir and strain. I’d go with something like Maker’s Mark for the bourbon as it’s smooth, reliable and works well in cocktails without getting lost. For the bitter component, Campari is the obvious choice. It gives the drink structure and that signature bite. And for vermouth, try something like Dolin Rouge. Just make sure you keep it in the fridge once opened. That’s probably the one thing most people overlook at home.
The tip: Keep it simple and focus on balance. A lot of people overthink cocktails, but most great drinks are just about getting the ratios right. Taste as you go, adjust slightly and trust your palate.
2 / 4
Gabriel Lowe, co-founder, Cat Bite Club
The cocktail: I’d go with the Bamboo. It’s a low ABV classic that doesn’t get talked about enough, and it’s incredibly forgiving for home bartenders. No shaking, no citrus, no precise timing. Just stir, taste, adjust. It teaches balance in a really intuitive way. At home, people don’t always want something heavy, and the Bamboo sits in that perfect space where you can have one or two and still feel good. It’s also a great entry point into sherry, which is one of the most underrated categories behind the bar.
The process: After mixing equal parts fino sherry and dry vermouth, stir and strain into a chilled glass, then garnish with a lemon twist. For sherry, try clean and dry like Tio Pepe or Hidalgo La Gitana. They’re widely available, and give you that crisp backbone the drink needs. For vermouth, Dolin Dry Vermouth is a solid choice. It’s light, floral and doesn’t overpower the sherry. A couple dashes of orange bitters help tie everything together. Angostura Orange Bitters or Regan’s orange bitters work well and are easy to find.
The tip: First make sure both your vermouth and sherry is fresh. As wines, they don’t have an infinite shelf life. And then it’s all about treating every drink as a work in progress. Make a version, taste it and think about what you’d change next time. Maybe it needs to be drier, maybe colder, maybe a touch more dilution. The next time you make it, adjust one thing and see how it changes the drink. Over a few rounds, you start to understand not just the recipe, but why it works. That process of iteration is where the learning actually happens. It builds confidence, sharpens your palate and makes the experience more personal. You’re not just following a recipe, you’re developing your own version of it.
3 / 4
Betty Sim, assistant principal bartender, Bartenders of Pony
The cocktail: I’d say the Bee’s Knees! It’s super simple, but always works. There’s a bright acidity from the lemon, while the honey adds a nice, sweet roundness so it doesn’t feel too sharp. The texture and flavour profile are both refreshing and comforting. Beyond its simplicity, the Bee’s Knees is also just highly versatile. It can be easily adjusted to suit personal preference, slightly drier, richer, or more citrus-forward without compromising its integrity. This balance of accessibility, flexibility and crowd-pleasing flavour makes it great to have at home.
The process: You only need to add gin, honey and fresh lemon juice into a shaker with ice; give it a good hard shake until it’s nicely chilled; then fine strain into a chilled glass. Finish with a lemon twist, and you’ve got a sweet-and-sour cocktail that’s bright, refreshing, and super easy to enjoy. I usually go with Roku Gin, which has a refined and well-balanced aromatic profile. The light floral notes of Roku Gin pair really nicely with honey and lemon, making it a natural fit for cocktails like the Bee’s Knees. It’s also widely available and versatile, so you can use it across a range of gin-based cocktails without overthinking it.
The tip: My tip would be to keep it simple, but stay curious. The beauty of home bartending is having the freedom to do what you want. You don’t need a lot of ingredients or complexity to create something enjoyable. Start with simple structures like a classic sweet-and-sour, and focus on getting the balance right. Once you’re comfortable, you can start experimenting with ingredients you enjoy. Whether it’s a different citrus, a unique sweetener or a small twist on a classic, exploring your own preferences is what makes the experience both personal and rewarding. At the end of the day, it should be something you enjoy drinking, so just have fun with it!
4 / 4
Chuan Poh, head bartender, Night Hawk
The cocktail: I think a really good Old Fashioned is great to have on hand always. The drink format in itself is already a deep rabbit hole with endless combinations of base spirits, sweeteners and bitters of your choice. It’s also super versatile with a bit of thought and intention. Fancy a Hot Toddy on a rainy evening? Add some hot water and a lemon slice to the mix. If you’re feeling like shaking up a drink for your friends that are over, add in some citrus cordial of sorts and you basically have a Sour!
The process: Build this whole drink in your tumbler glass for a quick drink or batch a bigger portion of it to store in the fridge ahead of time as well! I would honestly use whatever I had on hand, but I would highly suggest trying out Michter’s Bourbon and Angostura Bitters to start, along with some rich demerara sugar syrup (in a 2:1 sugar-to-water ratio). I also love Knob Creek Rye with Bob’s Abbott’s bitters in this format too—you get spice from the rye whisky, with baking spices from the bitters. Either way you go, just stir two dashes of bitters, a teaspoon of sugar syrup and 50ml of bourbon before adding ice (the larger the chunk the better) straight into the glass. Peel the zest from a fresh orange and squeeze it to release its aroma over the cocktail and enjoy!
The tip: If there is a specific ingredient (more so hyper-specific spirits or liqueurs) you don’t have access to, try and see if you can create your own alternative. That’s how some of the greatest discoveries in cocktails were made and everyone is sharing their recipes online these days. It might not be easy at first but the skillset and knowledge you gain from this process is oh-so-rewarding. I also highly recommend recording down every variable you change and to keep a history of it if you ever need to backtrack and review what you are attempting to create!
