A Singapore Tradition Moves with the Times
For its small size, Singapore certainly has a stealth selection of offerings. The city is renowned for its luxury duty-free shopping, dramatic skyline (particularly around Marina Bay and the ‘boat’ topping the Marina Bay Sands), spectacular marina light shows, year-round summers (and humid stickiness), superb cleanliness, hawker street foods and sensational seafood.
But one tradition that many tourists undertake while in Singapore (and I’m very much one of them) is sipping a legendary Singapore Sling cocktail (or three) while seated at the Raffles Singapore Hotel Long Bar.
The colonial ambience of the famous Raffles Long Bar. Image: © Nannette Holliday
This deliciously refreshing, tall glass, ruby cocktail was initially created by Raffles barman Ngiam Tong Boon in 1915 to quench the thirst of British Colonial upper-class women.
Back then, it was considered improper for women to drink alcohol in public, but fruit juice was acceptable.
Boon creatively infused his tropical pineapple and lime fruit juice drink with gin, Cointreau, Dom Benedictine, cherry brandy and grenadine to give it the feminine pink colouring. Naturally, it was an instant hit amongst his clientele.
A century-plus on, it’s clearly remained a hit — and not just with women. Touted as Singapore’s National Drink, a Singapore Sling once cost a mere $2.50. Today, its cost of USD26 upwards hasn’t deterred tourists from at least having one at the Long Bar and throwing their accompanying peanut shells on the floor.
Peanuts shells on the floor of the Raffles Long Bar. Image: © Nannette Holliday
It seems only natural that such a classic drink was born at Raffles Singapore. Opening in 1887, Raffles Singapore is still one of the world’s most historic hotels, complete with luxury suites, each serviced by a famed Raffles butler. (While most people utilise their butler to the hilt, and I loved the cuteness of this service, my butler said I didn’t give him enough to do. But in my defence, I’m not used to having someone wait on me hand and foot either.)
Between 2018 and August 2019, while the hotel was undergoing a complete restoration of its beautiful 19th-century architecture, the Long Bar continued to produce their Singapore Slings from a pop-up beside the Raffles Gift Shop.
Thankfully, since re-opening, the distinctive heritage, service, charm and ambience of Raffles Singapore amongst its marble colonnades, teak verandas, and lush tropical gardens has been maintained.
My stylish Raffles suite before the renovations. Image: © Nannette Holliday
While the building facilities have been upgraded to move with the times and suit today’s traveller’s needs, changes have also been made with the delivery of the Raffles Singapore Sling. But don’t panic. It’s still retained its distinctive taste and flashiness.
During the last couple of years, Raffles Singapore has worked closely with Proof & Company ecoSPIRITS (another Singapore-first technology company) to reduce its carbon footprint and single-use waste and become more sustainable and eco-friendly for the environment.
Today, all Singapore Sling liquid ingredients are delivered in special ecoTOTE, replacing thousands of glass bottles. The garnishes and bitters are also delivered in low-waste formats to eliminate thousands of kilograms of packaging, and single-use plastic straws have been replaced with potato starch biodegradable ones. Raffles Singapore is the first hotel in the world to use this unique green technology.
A distant view of the Marina Bay Sands from the Raffles. Image: © Nannette Holliday
And the best part is that these initiatives save around 200g of CO2 emission per Singapore Sling. Plus, for every 25 Singapore Slings bought, Raffles Singapore is planting a native tree in the endangered Sumatran or Kalimantan rainforests. Thus, creating a permanent legacy of carbon reduction and reforestation.
So, if you want to help save the planet, pull up a seat at the Raffles Long Bar in Singapore and start lining up those salacious Singapore Slings!
Header image: © Claudine Van Massenhove
