Singapore Sling

History of the Singapore Sling

Created by Mr. Ngian Tong Boon of the Long Bar for the Raffles Hotel in Singapore, sometime in the early 1900s. Originally known as the Straits Sling. Sadly, the Raffles Hotel no longer has the original recipe, and currently serves a modernized version of the drink.

Official Raffle's Singapore Sling Blurb

"The Singapore Sling was created at Raffles Hotel at the turn-of-the-century by Hainanese-Chinese bartender, Mr. Ngiam Tong Boon.

In the Hotel's museum, visitors may view the safe in which Mr. Ngiam locked away his precious recipe books, as well as the Sling recipe hastily jotted on a bar-chit in 1936 by a visitor to the Hotel who asked the waiter for it.

Originally, the Singapore Sling was meant as a woman's drink, hence the attractive pink colour. Today, it is very definately a drink enjoyed by all, without which any visit to Raffles Hotel is incomplete."

Historical References

"The Washington Post", 6th April 1930

"...and mixed drinks from "flips of all kinds" through Singapore slings and St. Luke's rickeys to "high balls of all kinds."

"Waterloo Daily Courier", 3rd July 1949

"Dream, for example of a lovely courtyard in old Singapore, Malay attendants, white dinner jackets, lovely inscrutable ladies, coconut palms and the Hotel Raffles Gin Sling. This boon to mankind is said to consist of proper applications of dry gin, cherry brandy and Benedictine, shaken for a moment, and stirred in a bar glass, ice-chilled, filled to taste with chilled club soda and garnished with a spiral peel of a green lime."

"The Times Recorder", 14th September 1951

"The Singapore Sling is a drink. It's got gin, cherry brandy, the white of an egg and soda in it. It's red, cold and delectable. I have tried this drink and found there's nothing to it."

Common Recipes

Recipe#1:

• 1 ounce gin
• 1/2 ounce Benedictine
• 1/2 ounce cherry brandy
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• Fill with sodawater

Build in a glass over ice.

• Singapore Sling Recipes

Official Raffle's Singapore Sling Recipe

• 30ml Gin
• 15 ml Cherry Brandy
• 120 ml Pineapple Juice
• 15 ml Lime Juice
• 7.5 ml Cointreau
• 7.5 ml Dom Benedictine
• 10 ml Grenadine
• A Dash of Angostura Bitters
• Garnish with a slice of Pineapple and Cherry

Dale DeGroff variation

"The following is the only and real recipe for the Singapore Sling (also the best tasting). I have a fax from the head bartender sent to me at Rainbow several years ago with their original recipe...all the others whether they are in books or not are wrong AND they don't taste good! Everyone quotes Bakers version and it is wrong and doesn't taste good"

• 1 1/2 oz. Gin
• 1/2 oz. Cherry Herring
• 1/4 oz. Cointreau
• 1/4 oz. Benedictine
• 2 oz. Pineapple Juice
• Dash of Angostura Bitters
• 1/2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a highball glass. Garnish with orange slice and cherry. Top with soda.

External links

• The Origins of the Singapore Sling (PDF)
• DrinkBoy on the Singapore Sling