To me, no trip to Singapore could ever be complete without trying a deliciously fruity, ever-so potent Singapore Sling. Face it. If you’ve been shoe horned into your economy class seat for 25-plus hours — or a paltry 19, if you can swing a non-stop flight — then you’ve earned a vibrant and strong chilled cocktail. You’ve earned a Singapore Sling.
Drop by Raffles Hotel and you’ll get not only the colorful drink but also its history. As the lore goes, it was here, in the hotel’s Long Bar, that bartender Ngiam Tong Boon whipped up the first Singapore Sling. Although the exact date remains unknown, it’s believed that he created his ‘cocktail for ladies’ sometime between 1907 and 1910.
The sling itself had been around since the turn of the 19th century. A fairly generic term, sling referred to a beverage containing brandy, gin, vodka or whisky, confectioner’s sugar and fruit juice.
What Boon had invented contained far more than just three ingredients. While the original recipe was lost in the 1930’s, notes from the previous decade indicate that his concoction included gin and lemon juice as well as the herbal liqueur Benedictine, cherry brandy, Angostura bitters and orange juice. Poured into either an old fashioned, high ball or Collins glass, it was topped off with club soda and a spiral lime peel.
It’s been said that no two Singapore Sling recipes are alike. After hours spent searching through bartender’s books and websites for the authentic Raffles Hotel drink, I’d have to agree. Maybe it was the Long Bar’s plantation-style atmosphere — palm frond fans, leather stools, wicker chairs and mahogany everywhere — or that I’d made it to sultry Singapore or that I hadn’t slept in days but I never found a recipe to match the complex flavor of that pink, ambrosial treat. Having said that, the following comes close to what I fell for.
SINGAPORE SLING
Cobbled together from sundry recipes, this version serves one but I always make at least two. With something this strong it’s best not to drink alone.
Serves 1
2 ounces gin
1 ounce Cherry Heering liqueur
1/2 ounce (1 TBSP) grenadine
1/4 ounce (1/2 TBSP) Benedictine
1/4 ounce (1/2 TBSP) Cointreau
4 ounces pineapple juice
1 ounce lime juice
1/2 teaspoon confectioner’s sugar
dash of Angostura bitters
ice cubes, for shaking
1 to 2 maraschino cherries, for garnish
1 paper cocktail umbrella or bamboo pick, for garnish
Place everything but the garnishes in a cocktail shaker and shake together until frothy and chilled. Pour the Singapore Sling, sans cubes, into a tall glass. Skewer the maraschino cherries onto a cocktail umbrella or pick and place them on the edge of the glass. Serve immediately.