Where Best to Sip a Single Malt

By Laurence Civil

Single malts were made to be sniffed, sipped and savoured in an environment with an air of unashamed luxury, preferably while seated in a comfortable chair. The mood needs to be cool, the lighting set low amid background music that does not impede the gentle art of conversation. Here is a selection of the bars we enjoy to have our single malts poured.

Bar @ 494

There are essentially two distinct areas, the Bar and the Divan amid a cluster of seating in between them with one-armed leather chairs that are easy to slip in and out of. The original Bar@494 is a wine and champagne bar with a garden ambiance. This has been complimented with Divan@494, a whiskey and cigar library reminiscent of a gentleman’s club in Mayfair. It has been recently renovated with two exclusive whiskey tasting rooms, both fitted with individual air conditioning systems and air filtration systems to create a rarefied atmosphere where an indulgence in a cigar is possible. The service is stylish, the bottle with separate ice and water is served to be added by the guest to suit their taste. With a list of 40 single malt whiskies, they possibly have the best selection in the central business district.

Glen Bar

High ceilings, oversized armchairs, semi darkness and jazz are the elements that set the tone at Glen. While the guest chairs are in semi darkness, spotlights have been strategically placed directly over each table to give enough light to comfortably read the drinks list. The armchairs are so spacious that they could easily accommodate anyone, and we liked the freedom they offered to move around plus alter positions while having conversation with friends. When ordering a single malt, an empty tumbler plus bottle is brought to the table with a separate glass full of ice and another of water. They currently list a total of 54 single malts of which 31 are single cask, making it at the time of writing the largest selection of single malts in town. Nightly live jazz entertains while sipping, from 10am-8pm, Glen Bar offers all day Happy Hour.

My Bar

This was once the location of the Dusit Thani’s legendary Bubbles disco, MyBar has been recently renovated to have a bright, light and thoroughly contemporary feel. It is a bar made of two elements; one is the square shaped bar fringed with stools with active bar staff dispensing drinks directly to their customers, the other is a lounge and music bar with contemporary Thai inspired décor with piles of cushions and triangular pillows to casually lounge around on. With a DJ spinning the jazz, blues, R&B and pop discs nightly this is soft clubbing for a late 20’s to mid 30’s crowd; the new generation of single malt drinkers. Bottles of their impressive range of 29 different single malts are on display in a glass cabinet. Here the shots are poured at the bar and carried to the table by elegant waitresses; water and ice is served on the side.

The Bamboo Bar

The bamboo decorations and tiger skin print upholstery give the feel that you have stepped into “a speakeasy in the jungle" just with a load more class and sophistication. It was established by Germaine Krull as a fashionable hangout renowned for ‘sanuk’ or fun and its live jazz since 1946. It is a film noir type setting, a sort of Rick's Café of the Orient, the place to sink into the chair, exhale and relax. Single malts with a little jazz are the perfect combination. Having placed the order, the shots served in heavy bottomed glass tumblers are brought graciously to the table on a tray with a small jug of water on the side. The Macallan 18 year-old proved very enjoyable with a splash of water, while I felt with the Glenlivet 12 year-old, the taste hits the top of the palate and then drops away.

The Diplomat Bar

Walking in we felt that this was the bar to sit down and relax, a place to be for the long haul as well as to enjoy the night. A live jazz band plus singer sets the right tone to match the quality of beverages on offer. The shape of the room is like the pair of wings on a pilot’s uniform with the circular well stocked bar in the centre amid two lounge areas sprouting off on either side. As we sat down there was that comfortable sinking into the chair feeling; the mood says take your time, linger and sip. Those are just the qualities we are looking for in a single malt hang out. When the bar first opened, the list was originally small but has been built up to an impressive list of 25 single malts and four crafter whiskies. Our single malts were poured from the bottle at our table with a separate glass of ice and a small jug of water on the side.

The Glaz Bar

An elegant lobby level that gets its name due to 90% of its wall surface being glass. Once inside, it is easy to look out at what is going on in the lobby, the café or out on the street. Here we discovered some of the most comfortable seating arranged in ad-hoc clusters of armchairs and sofas around an oval table. After dark, the lights are set low and the mood is set perfectly by a three piece jazz band and singer. When the waitress comes to take the order, she brings a freestanding table light that doubles as a torch to read the drinks list. Here we discovered a selection of 10 of the most popular single malts that are more at the bar on request and brought with separate glasses of ice and water. This is the only bar in town with a bartender mixing a selection of three single malt based cocktails.