DrinkManila’s The Bar Takeover Turned Boogie Manila into a Gin Joint for a Night

The final leg of DrinkManila’s The Bar Takeover took place at the hip and happening Boogie Manila in Poblacion on the cool evening of December 13. For DrinkManila’s last event for the year, we turned the hip-hop bar into a gin joint for a night, laying out plants and botanicals to give the bar a fresh and garden feel. The smell of fresh cut fruits and herbs filled the bar primed guests to a have a ‘gin-credible’ time.

The place was filled to the gills, even if it was a Thursday night. People were in the mood to get their drink on. Some guests were admittedly apprehensive to try gin drinks, but they gave it a shot and came back for seconds (and thirds). DJs played hip-hop and R&B classics mixed with covers and remixes, which spurred people to get on their feet and groove to the music.

The bar takeover started with drink-all-you can G&T for only P350, where guests got to enjoy and explore six G&T recipes made especially for the three variants of The Bar, plus they got to take home a free balloon glass from The Bar Gin.

Click here to check out the G&T recipes we served up for The Bar Takeover on our episode on The Bar Gins from our DrinkManila Tastings segment. 

Our resident mixologist, Icy Mariñas, went behind the stick to whip our three fun cocktails with The Bar Gins. You can make them at home and wow your guests at a Christmas gathering, or make them for yourself as a treat for the holidays. Either way, these gin cocktails will be the stars of any drinking session.

Pink Sky Mind

Berrylicious, sweet, and looks like a posh version of the local shaved ice ‘ice scramble.’

Ingredients:

45 ml The Bar Pink Gin
30 ml Monin Strawberry Puree
3 large Basil leaves
15 ml lemon juice
30 ml ginger ale (or to top)

Directions:

Add all ingredients except ginger ale in a shaker.
Shake vigorously and strain into highball glass with crushed ice.
Top with ginger ale and raspberry foam (made with raspberry puree in soda siphon).
Garnish with basil leaves and Potchi candy.

Cosmic Boom

A tart cocktail that is fun to look at and fun to drink, as it not only changes color from green to purple but also changes flavor as the popsicle garnish melts.

Ingredients:

45 ml The Bar Lime Gin
15 ml Monin Green Apple Syrup
15 ml cucumber juice
15 ml lime juice

Directions:

Add all ingredients in a shaker.
Shake and strain into a balloon glass.
Garnish with a popsicle (lemon, elderflower, sour tape bits, blue pea infused popsicle)

Prudence Night

A spirit-forward cocktail that doesn’t take itself too seriously and is best enjoyed with the choco-orange garnish that brings another dimension to the potent cocktail.

Ingredients:

45 ml The Bar Premium Gin
30 ml Campari
15 ml Aperol
2 dash orange bitters
2 dash choco bitters
Fresh sage leaves
Squeeze orange peel before serving

Garnish: choco orange garnish or dehydrated orange
Ice: large cube ice

Directions:

Burn sage leaves and cover with chilled old-fashioned glass.
In a mixing glass, pour all ingredients.
Add ice and stir.
Pour into old-fashioned glass with a large ice cube.
Garnish with choco-orange garnish.

It was a fun night that capped off our three-leg series of The Bar Takeover in Poblacion. We’re looking forward to more boozy gin nights next year.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @DrinkManila and the hashtags #DrinkManila, and #TheBarPremiumGin for our coverage of The Bar Takeover in Poblacion.

Special thanks to Monin Philippines for the syrups used during the bar shift. Monin syrups are available at liquor.ph.

Photos by Star Sabroso