Head bartender Arathorn Grey drew inspiration from songs released over the six decades to craft his innovative tipples
Arathorn Grey, the head bartender of Tippling Club, loves music. You could even say that it was his first passion, having learned classical guitar as a child and playing the instrument in his school’s marching band. And, while he discovered other passions such as bartending throughout his life, music remains a big part of his identity.
Which is why it’s no surprise that for Tippling Club’s latest cocktail menu, dubbed A Guide to Modern Drinking Volume III — 6 Decades of Music, he took inspiration from songs from the 40s all the way to the 90s to craft his tipples. “Choosing the songs took the longest time in creating this menu (with chef-owner Ryan Clift),” admits Grey, as each of the three tunes featured in each decade needed to have a “food and drink element”.
Don’t miss: The top 30 bars in Singapore
He immersed himself in the greatest hits of the decades and created a total of 31 drinks named after the songs and the artists. The 1940s, he says, is his favourite decade for music, where jazz and blues dominated the airwaves. Thus, he created the likes of It’s only a Paper Moon, inspired by the “Queen of Jazz” Ella Fitzgerald’s song of the same name and blended with Nikka Grain Whisky, barley and egg white; and Moonlight Cocktail, created with Glen Miller’s song Moonlight Serenade in Mind and using Stranger and Sons Gin, almond and elderflower.
“I am a Christmas baby,” shares Grey, and that is why the cocktail, White Christmas by Bing Crossby, completes the 40s offerings. It is a riff on the traditional Christmas eggnog, but his version is more potent and delicious with a base of metaxa (Greek brandy), made more Christmassy with cacao, cream and a snowflake topping.
Read more: 5 refreshing gins that are perfect for your summer cocktails
