F&B veteran Michel Lu turns his hand to distilling boutique Asian flavours under The Orientalist Spirits brand, and also aims to champion other independent distilleries in the region
Turning 50 this year has offered veteran F&B entrepreneur Michel Lu time for introspection. “A brand done properly can last a lifetime, and even outlive you,” he muses, as he shares his thoughts on his latest venture, The Orientalist Spirits.
Lu is the founder and single shareholder, which makes the local spirits brand something of a legacy project for the serial restaurateur who has created and marketed F&B brands for the past 20 years or so. Think Centro, Hacienda, Stereolab, Foodology, The Privé Group, Wildfire Kitchen + Bar and, more recently, Savourworld, a joint venture with events company Savour.
“This idea of Asian spirits has been percolating in my head for the past four years,” he shares during the soft launch of the brand’s first product, The Orientalist Origins Vodka, held over cocktails at Cut by Wolfgang Puck in June. The beautifully packaged bottle is noticeably the most polished of all the local spirits we have seen so far— which includes creations by local distillers Brass Lion Distillery and Tanglin Gin—with its sleek elongated form and modernised oriental typography. It is what is inside, however, that Lu believes will create an impression in the booming global craft spirits market.