The masterclasses keep rolling on in Saigon as there appears to be no letting up on the cocktail bar juggernaut embracing the city and bringing with it our young bartenders’ insatiable thirst to learn more about the scene in more established countries of the region.

This time the enthusiastic audience made up of some of Saigon’s best and brightest bartenders was treated to an engaging presentation and masterclass by Charles H. bar supervisor Taeeun Yoon from Seoul, South Korea.

Charles H. bar – named after the American author Charles H. Baker famous for his writings about food and cocktails – is located within the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul, South Korea.
Charles H. is a regular entry in the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list, coming in at No. 21 in 2018 and at No. 64 in the World’s 50 Best Bars list in the same year. Not bad at all!

Taeeun treated attendees to four signature cocktails regularly served at Charles H. Here they are:
Por Mi Amante

Description: A legendary classic cocktail from Charles H. Baker’s book in 1939, but rarely made with strawberry and tequila
Cocktail DNA: Old Fashioned
Tasting Notes: Fruity, spicy, boozy
Location: Mexico City, Mexico
Ingredients: Reposado tequila, fresh strawberry, Ancho Reyes, Mole chocolate
Hoffman House #2

Description: A legendary classic cocktail in Manhattan’s Hoffman House, New York 1880s. The first written record of the drink appeared in The Savoy Cocktail Book in 1930 and has been reinvented with a modern twist and local ingredients.
Cocktail DNA: Hoffman House, Gibson, Dry Martini
Tasting Notes: Fruity, boozy, aromatic
Location: New York, USA
Ingredients: Navy Strength gin, Korean dry plum wine, jasmine, orange bitters, pickled onions
Ellis Island

Description: A sour cocktail with the DNA of a Daiquiri and a touch of immigrant history of New York.
Cocktail DNA: Daiquiri
Tasting Note: Sour, tropical, fruity, bitter
Location: New York, USA
Ingredients: Plantation dark Caribbean rum, Campari, fresh lime, passionfruit, Irish stout
MA75

Description: A collaboration with Four Seasons Mexico City – Fifty Mils (No.45 World’s 50 Best Bars, 2018)
Cocktail DNA: French 75
Tasting Notes: Aromatic, fruity, refreshing
Location: Mexico City, Mexico
Ingredients: Dry gin, fresh lemon, cantaloupe seed syrup, white port, peach bitters, champagne