Ginza-inspired cocktail bar Live Twice introduces a refreshed cocktail menu that continues its very Japanese pursuit of elegance, sophistication and perfection.
It’s entrancing watching Yinying Leow, principal bartender at Live Twice, work her magic behind the bar. Every pour is effortless grace, each shake economical in movement, every stir studiously measured.
It’s haiku in motion.
Cocktail making here is part science, but mostly art. Each cocktail being made behind the bar at Live Twice is a very visual representation of the Japanese concepts of shokunin and kaizen; shokunin referring to a craftsman’s entire approach and attitude towards work, while kaizen is the enduring Japanese search for perfection.
Yinying possesses both shokunin and kaizen in spades.
Consider the classic Japanese Mizuwari, essentially a whisky highball that’s cut with water instead of the usual ginger ale or soda. Such mixers can mar the flavours of – or hide defects in – the whisky. With water, there’s nothing for bad whisky to hide behind. Live Twice’s version blends two Japanese whiskies – the Nikka Coffey Grain Whisky and Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky, if you must know – for the right balance, and then adds Hokkaido soft water to gently accentuate the malt notes of each whisky.
Or how about their Vesper, unanimously voted by my drinks-loving friends as the best – and booziest – version of that style of martini in town? Here careful manipulation of the shaking process results in fine ice shards lacing the cocktail, which helps maintain the drink’s icy-coldness but also dilutes it to round out its subtle punchiness.
And like those signature cocktails from the previous menu – which are thankfully retained! – our cocktails from the new Live Twice menu arrive at exactly the right temperature and dilution.
This is their first major menu update since opening in 2019.
There’s their reinterpretation of Fuzzy Navel; that peach schnapps and orange juice concoction has been reimagined with vodka, peach liqueur, and orange juice for a more elegant approach. The Moonwalk takes that classic champagne cocktail and gives it a far stronger yet incredible balanced spin.
Golden Butterfly – which mixes pisco with cold brew coffee – tasted a lot better than it was described. Also new is Little Crane, a complex yet delicately layered creation of unaged rye spirit, vetiver liqueur, oloroso sherry and pineapple.
And we absolutely loved Yellow Bird, an elegant Daiquiri on steroids. It cleverly blends two white rums – one robust Spanish-style, the other fresh French agricole – for the perfect equilibrium in flavour.
There’s more. But seeing – and tasting – is believing.
No wonder then that Live Twice was included on the extended list for Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2022 at No. 65 this year, up 10 spots from its debut in 2021. With this new menu, we may just see them break into Top 50.
Live Twice
Address 20 Bukit Pasoh Rd, Singapore 089834 (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 6pm to 12mn Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays; 6pm to 2am Fridays and Saturdays; closed on Tuesdays
Tel (65) 9011 8304
Web livetwice.sg
Facebook livetwicesg
Instagram @livetwicesg
[…] we love Live Twice for its casual Japanese vintage chic and minimalist cocktails (particularly its heavy-hitting Vesper). The mid-century Ginza-style cocktail bar recently doubled down on its cocktail menu with even […]
[…] love mid-century Japan-inspired cocktail bar Live Twice for many things, especially their intensely spirit-forward Vesper and its cosy yet elegant vibes. […]