What's your flavour?
by: Miral Fahmy
Image by: www.thegildedfork.com
The cocktail just got personal: for a few thousand dollars, a Singaporean firm will create a drink as individual as you are.
Provocachic, owned by Singaporean marketing expert Damian Sim, specialises in creating custom-made cocktails for corporations and people seeking unique tipple to serve at special occasions.
"Taste is such a personal experience," said Sim, who prefers being called a "flavour Impressionist". "We create recipes that reflect the personality of the client and which aim to answer the question: what would your story taste like?"
Sim started Provocachic in 2002 after years of mixing cocktails to appeal to his friends.
"I like cocktails but so many people I know are put off by the bad ones they taste at bars. In Singapore and Asia, the industry is very cost-based so they often use cheap ingredients. I wanted to change that," he added.
Sim is the cocktail specialist at US-based gourmet Web site The Gilded Fork (www.gildedfork.com) and Provocachic's clients have included American Express and luxury lingerie brand La Perla, which requested custom-made cocktails to serve to clients at product launch events.
His cocktails come with a hefty price tag that starts at 1,800 Singapore dollars ($1,200) for a recipe for an individual event and 5,400 dollars ($3,600) for corporate events.
Sim, who studied psychology and the cultural connotations attached to foods, says he can take months to research an individual or a product and decide on the right combination of ingredients that best reflect their nature.
For example, his "Candle in the Wind" cocktail, dedicated to Marilyn Monroe, includes vanilla because it's the base note in her favourite perfume and grapefruit juice, which is bittersweet, to reflect her life.
Although Sim is happy to share his twist on classic cocktails, the precise recipes for his own creations remains a secret, unless you pay for it.
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