Sling Time In Singapore

As a lot of you already know, I am a gin man, with gin and tonic being a favourite drink along with the recently discovered gin based Negroni. If the Negroni was the drink of la dolce vita, the Gin Sling (or Singapore Sling) was the drink of the era of colonialism while sitting at the Long Bar in Raffles. I remember my first Singapore Sling at the oh so terribly adult age of 16, sitting down for cocktails before dinner on the roof of the Singapore Hilton around the swimming pool with the lights of Singapore spread out below. I felt so grown up and sophisticated, thinking that this was one of the most divine things I had ever drunk.

The original Singapore Sling was created sometime between 1910 and 1915 in the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel, that fabled outpost of the Empire in Singapore. Even today a trip to Singapore must include a visit to Raffles. Again I remember, this time when I was around 14, and not alowed to partake so to speak, my parents sitting down in Palm Court of Raffles having a Singapore Sling. The guest list of Raffles reads like a who’s who of famous people, with Somerset Maugham, Noel Coward, Rudyard Kipling crossing its famous lobby. Set in tropical gardens, the hotel was a British oasis in an all too unfamiliar Asian world.

Unfortunately the original recipe was lost in the 1920,s however here is what I consider the best.
1 1/2 ounce gin
1/2 ounce Cherry Herring
1/4 ounce Cointreau

1/4 ounce Benedictine

4 ounce pineapple juice

1/2 ounce lime juice

1/3 ounce grenadine

1 dash Angostura Bitters

Garnish: Cherry and slice of pineapple
Shake with ice. Strain into an ice filled Collins glass.

So, now you don’t have to trek all the way to Raffles to have one ( however I urge you to), you can create one at home, sit underneath or next to the potted palm on the terrace or patio, and think of England!

PS. Fly Singapore Airlines where the drink is available free in all classes, even in Row55!

Marquesa Luisa Casati

I was at the Art Gallery of Ontario the other day, and had forgotten that they possessed a portrait of the fabled Marquesa Luisa Casati, by Augustus John.

At the beginning of the twentieth century right through until the late 1930’s, she was one of the most recognizable and exotic creatures in European society. Like a whirling dervish she rushed headlong into society, inspiring and maybe even frightening all of whom she came into contact with, whether it be couturiers such as Schiaparelli, authors like Proust or artists like Augustus John.

Maybe it was her appearance that left all she encountered quivering in her wake? Tall and thin, with an almost deathlike pallor to her skin, which was topped off with the reddest hair that anyone had ever seen. Large green eyes that bewitched were crowned with immense false eyelashes and the thickest lines of kohl ever seen since Cleopatra. It was even said that she added belladonna to these so that they glittered like emeralds, so that they were even more enticing.

Asked to dine with her and you could have been seated next to a bizarre wax mannequin, said to contain the ashes of a past love, while you were waited upon by nude servants only attired in gold leaf. Animals were an accessory to be worn and paraded around like the panthers and cheetahs she parade around Paris on diamond studded leads, or the live snakes she wore as jewellery.

Like Madame Rubinstein, she is perhaps one of the most artistically represented women of the twentieth century. Painted by artists such as August John, Kees Van Dongen and countless others. If you were a photographer you also didn’t escape her clutches, as Man Ray and Cecil Beaton found out! Today she still inspires the same groups of people sh e did in her lifetime. John Galliano for Dior devoted a whole collection to her.

Unfortunately with all this excess she went from being one of the richest women in Europe to dying in relative obscurity and poverty in London in 1957. It was even said that right up to the end she was sometimes spotted rummaging through garbage bins in search of feathers for her hair.

Calling All Gentlemen!

Gentleman, here are two fragrances that epitomize the art of being a gentleman, something that seems to be lost in this modern day and age. Wear both of these and seriously strangers will stop you in the street and ask you what you are wearing. However there is some good and bad news. Try and find a bottle of Yardley Gentleman eau de toilette and you might as well start searching for the Holy Grail while you are at it. Givenchy Gentleman on the other hand while readily available is a shadow of its original self originally launched in 1975.

Yardley Gentleman is one of the finest, most under-rated fragrances around. It has been unfairly maligned and is not for everyone. However if you can try it you will have an almost religious experience Apply lightly, maybe two spritzes administered as a mist from almost arms-length. It is just slightly "old world" reflecting the charm of Yardley which has been in business for over 300 years. It is a wonderful mixture of Grapefruit, Cinnamon, Bergamot, Cloves, Cederwood, Sandalwood and Vetiver.

This is a hidden classic, blatantly British, not worn by many others, that is going to be loved by those in close proximity to you, and strangers alike.
Givenchy Gentleman is timeless, determined, sophisticated and will be an instant hit with your adoring public. People will stop you with this one and ask “What are you wearing?” Like a true gentleman you will tell them. However if you don’t like patchouli stay away!

It is very complex with notes of Tarragon, Cinnamon, Patchouli, Vetiver, Russian Leather and Civet. Don’t be put off as to the civet content, as this it what makes it so wonderful. Did I say complex? This is one of the most interesting fragrances around, and there is always something in it which you can never put your finger on.
Who says being a Gentleman is passé? Wear these two and you will be one!

a la Lambada

Ever wanted to know how the jet-set lives or what they are up to these days. Some say that the phenomena of the jet-set as a culture faded with the advent of cheap airline travel back in the early seventies. Wrong! It lives on in the art of Jordi Lambada of Spain.

Wallpaper which is one of my favourite magazines, can (I believe) be responsible for Jordi’s big break. I think one of the reasons why I only bought the magazine was for his illustrations within, which invariably included a full page as the very last thing in the magazine.

Through his illustrations we have a glimpse in to what the “bright young things” are doing these days, where they are going and what they are wearing. There is a definite retro flair in his work, which combines elements of sexual ambiguity, politics, cheekiness and savoir faire.

Hip bars, embassy parties, streetscenes, exotic pool side locations are all illustrated in a sophisticated style. Bright young things are seen in bars and restaurants enjoying the good life and society matrons (perhaps left over from the real jet set) are seen also, glasses of champagne in hand, being the life of the party.

Sexual ambiguity runs rife, which leaves us guessing to the character’s sexual orientation.

Occassionally a political undertone creeps in, such as the guard with a machine gun outside a gate, which is by no means threatening, but treated with a sense of playful flirting.

One of my favourite commercial artists, so get inspired, raise a glass of champagne, imagine yourself a la Lambada enjoying the good life.

Aqua Mirabilis

We have all seen it, heard about it and maybe even smelt it, but do we really appreciate this elixir of life, this magic potion all wrapped up in the ubiquitous gold and blue bottle which it was said Napoleon doused himself in a bottle every day!

Long before eau de cologne became a plethora of anything in a bottle that was weaker than eau de toilette, there was 4711! This is a scent like none other that includes various elements of a man of God, Royalty, Popes and pop stars.

Legend has it that a Carthusian monk who because of persecution had taken refuge with one of Cologne’s wealthiest families (the Mulheses) and as a token of gratitude gave their son a wedding gift of a parchment scroll inscribed with the recipe for an elixir known as Aqua Mirabilis because of its healing powers. And miracle water it is! Thanks to the French occupation of Cologne in 1794 and a new street numbering system we now have 4711.

Napoleon was not the only one was aware of this miracle water; Goethe, Wagner and Dostoyevsky were avid wearers. It won awards from Moscow to Melbourne, and the bottle has been de rigueur on dressing tables ever since.

In an era when we have seen the rise and fall of everything from Brut 33 to Old Spice this one is a stayer. This could be due to fact that not only is it a perfume but a refresher. Feeling wan? A few drops on a handkerchief will instantly revive you. Hot summer’s day outside a few spritzes of this and you can face the world. Need an antiseptic in a hurry? You guessed it, 4711. Each year I participate in a bike rally that cycles 600kms between Toronto to Montreal, and you guessed it! In my repair kit with my spanners, tubes and pump is a bottle of 4711! A couple of sprays and instant refreshment takes over!

The ingredients are still top secret over 200 years later, but I can tell you that Bergamot, Lemon, Neroli, Orange, Petigrain, Rosemary, Rose and Musk all play a part. Read any herb book and most of these are known for their healing and refreshing properties.

So all stock up summer is on its way! Don’t leave it on your dressing table or bathroom shelf! Carry it with you, spritz frequently and know that you and Napoleon have something in common!

Savoir Faire with Pluck

Early one morning 1964, three burglars entered Madame Helena Rubinstein’s Manhattan apartment while she was still in bed and demanded her jewelry collection, which was reputed to be valued at over one million dollars. First of all the intruders would have been amazed at Madame Rubinstein’s lucite furnitured bedroom. Long before Philip Stark made the ghost chair famous, Rubinstein had a whole room of the stuff. This included an illuminated bed specially made that would fit her short frame. Over ninety years old, Rubinstein refused, saying they could shoot her. Unnerved, the robbers left with only $200 in cash, which one of them had found in her handbag. With her quick wit and just plain courage she told two of the burglars that they had better make sure that they got their share of the $200.

Three hours later Madame, emerged from the building immaculately attired in Balenciaga, a Hermes scarf tied around the handle of her handbag and one of her signature bowler hats on her head and headed off for a day at the office. Mind you this was only after driving around the block in her limousine to compose herself. Still you have to admire her courage and her savoir faire as any other 93 year old would have probably died of fright when confronted with 3 gun wielding intruders or emerged still clad in their housecoat, too upset to do anything let alone spend a day at the office! Though I have no photo of this, below is an example of how she would have been dressed

Tehran - Au go go

One of my favourite restaurants here in Toronto is Banu on Queen Street West. To most people, tell them you are going to an Iranian restaurant for dinner and they will probably beg you not to ask them to accompany you. Images of shwarma and dona kebabs are probably flashing through their minds while their throats are becoming parched with the thought of not being able to indulge in an alcoholic beverage of some sort. However tell them that you are going to Banu and they will beg to be taken along.

They call themselves Banu – Iranian Kabob Vodka Bar and it does not disappoint. Walk in to this average sized restaurant and all your preconceived notions of what an Iranian restaurant should look like, might as well be left in the trash can on the street. Here is a sleek modern interior that gives you a feel of what a hip nightclub/restaurant would have been like in pre-revolutionary Tehran. There is definitely a retro 70’s vibe to the place. Dark hardwood floors highlight the low white leather chairs and banquettes that are used for seating. They are islands floating in space surrounding wonderful turquoise tilled top tables. The walls decorated with wonderful teal blue arabesques similar to what I have seen in the coffee shop at the Nile Hilton in Cairo.

The menu doesn’t disappoint either. Who would have thought that a normal kabob could taste so good with melt in your mouth organic meats and the freshest flavours that you have ever experienced. After taking your first bite of several menu items accompanied with the fresh basil and mint that are provided, you are in culinary heaven. Don’t let the inclusion of several items from dubious parts of an animal’s body put you off, as I believe they are an integral part of the cuisine and have been sometimes unavailable attesting to their popularity.

Again think Iranian restaurant and you would be forgiven that it is going to be a dry evening with nothing but juices or water to indulge in. Wrong again! Twenty-five different vodkas on offer! Not being a vodka drinker, I am sure that the vodka aficionado has probably thought that they have died and gone to heaven after reading the list. However, don’t despair if you don’t drink vodka, there is a small but comprehensive wine list that pairs perfectly with the menu.

So if someone asks you to Banu, GO! Raise your glass and eat your kabob and feel part of the jet set!

www.banu.ca