Cocktail trends come and go, but some are timeless and shape the mixology space. One of the most defining cocktail trends right now is a shift toward hyper-local, low-intervention drinking, where bartenders treat cocktails more like seasonal cuisine. Across leading bars, there’s a focus on foraged ingredients, regional spirits, and house-made ferments made with techniques borrowed from kitchens. There’s also a parallel rise in mindful drinking, especially among Gen Z, which is leading the charge with low to no-ABV (alcohol by volume) cocktails.
And then there are the star cocktails from Asia’s 50 Best, which are definite expressions of all of the above. Here, we take a close look at the 10 top ones.
The Olive Oil Sour at Bar Leone Hong Kong is a masterful blend of bourbon as base, with satin undertones of oloroso sherry and a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. The sheer balance and slither of that cocktail speak volumes about the craft as well as the ingredients. The Italian brandy lends a warm, lingering, and slightly sweet thread to it. The olive oil, though, that cornerstone of Mediterranean cooking, is the protagonist of this cocktail, lending it structure and length.
A decadent, slow-sipping riff on the Old Fashioned, the Soy Caramel leans into indulgence with butter-washed bourbon and aged rum. This is lifted with an umami flicker of soy. The result is lush yet precise. Salted caramel in spirit form, with a savoury edge that keeps it from veering into excess. Each sip is inspired by a warm, crumbly butter cookie. This is a definitive guilty pleasure, but camouflaged in restraint.
The heat of wasabi, grown in cool mountain streams, doesn’t come hurtling, but builds up slowly, unfolding intensity. In the Wasabi Highball, it gently complements Toki Suntory Whisky, making for an easygoing twist on a classic, but rooted firmly in Japanese craft. Topped with housemade apricot soda, the drink balances savoury warmth with lifted, aromatic freshness. This is part of BLOOM, the new menuzine series that presents 21 cocktails across four chapters: Hope, Growth, Beauty, and Just Be.
The Fish Soup cocktail at Bar Us is an unconventional, savoury, clarified cocktail featuring a complex blend of katsuobushi (dried fish) distillate, daikon, green chili, yuzushu, fortified wine, tsuyu sauce, ginger brine, and cucumber, finished with carbonated London Essence Tonic. The drink has a strong personality and an intense umami experience. It mimics the flavours of a fish soup, made the Thai way, with the play of spice and sourness. Bar Us has a "drinking room" concept where cocktails are designed like a multi-course tasting menu with starters, mains, and afters.
You can't put a finger on the notes when you try: When I tasted the What’s That Sour? It appears like a shapeshifter. Turns out, this is a playful spin on some classics. Inspired by the Pornstar Martini and Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s Amaretto Sour, it blends Rooibos tea-infused bourbon with longan and a hint of rose water. Each sip is bright yet unexpected, finishing with a gentle umami lift and a light dusting of maitake and berry powder. Very sippable and utterly delicious!
Beeter Man plays on bitter and bee, capturing a balance of sweetness and edge in one glass. Mint tea–infused gin, hop mead, acacia honey, and lemon come together in a bright, layered sweet-sour profile. A touch of whisky adds depth, while a two-toned honey jelly mirrors the drink’s contrast.
At Hope & Sesame, the enduring signature is the Earl Grey Dark & Stormy, the very first cocktail from 2016. Made with Havana Club 7- & 3-Year rums, Angostura bitters, Earl Grey tea, and ginger juice, the cocktail is bold and bitter-forward, with gentle acidity and low sweetness. The cocktail is so balanced in its flavours that all of the nuances seem like a coordinated dance, nothing overshadowing another. This is a beloved signature and a classic that still defines this bar.
Just as they serve as inspiration for artists and poets, plants, birds, and insects are the muse for the Flora and Fauna menu at Lair. Raw Mango is a spirit-forward serve from this menu. A cross between a Martini and a Gimlet, built with Tanqueray London Dry Gin, green mango cordial, and dry vermouth, the cocktail is bright, tangy, and elegantly restrained. Inspired by the Rose-ringed Parakeet, it captures the bird’s fondness for unripe mangoes.
The Fresh Campari cocktail feels almost alchemical; bright, bitter, and vividly alive. Built with freshly expressed ingredients in a mortar and pestle, and precise technique, it softens Campari’s sharp edges while amplifying its citrusy depth. This is a medley of grapefruit juice, angelica and calamus root, swertia japonica, cardamon, licorice powder, cinnamon, clove, callaway and coriander seeds, along with vodka. They are all hand-pounded in a mortar and pestle, then transferred to a shaker, shaken up with lime juice and syrup, and then topped with tonic water over a single ice cube. An orange peel lends it a nostalgic perfume. As you watch it all in wonder, you are handed a glass with zen-like composure. It is a theatrical experience in a glass.
This cocktail reimagines the classic banana daiquiri with striking finesse. Crafted with Planteray rum, sherry, tamarind, butter, and tonka bean, it draws depth and character from multiple parts of the Malaysian banana plant. The result is a creamy, fragrant cocktail layered with warm spice notes of cinnamon and nutmeg, balanced by a savoury tang from tamarind. Conceived by founder Jon Lee, it reflects the bar’s minimalist, highly considered approach to mixology.