Try Compendium Spirits cocktails, craft your own barrel-aged spirit and rest your legs at the exclusive Chartered private lounge at Anthology.
I recall having a great time exploring Compendium Spirits’ barrel-ageing service last year. But there was one minor hiccup – the inaccessible Mandai location. Well, it seems I wasn’t the only one who thought the same ‘cos the local craft master has now set up shop right in the heart of Singapore’s nightlife mecca.
Taking over a three-story heritage shophouse along Circular Road, Anthology by Compendium Spirits is your passport to the local spirit brand’s world. The first floor boasts a lively gastrobar, while the second houses the exclusive Chartered Private Lounge. Up on the third floor, the barrel cellar awaits.
For the uninitiated, Compendium Spirits was made from the idea of introducing meads – a relatively unusual choice in Asia – to Singapore. During their experimentation, co-founder Simon Zhao and his team stumbled upon the alchemy of distilling mead. The brand soon produced exceptional spirits like the beloved Rojak gin, Chendol gin, Straits vodka, Melaka arrack, a range of rum, and local-inspired soju flavours.
Anthology by Compendium Spirits: Cocktail creations with a Southeast Asian twist
If you’re an ardent fan who’s keen to try zhuzh’d up cocktail creations, you’re in capable hands. Brand and beverage director Dannon Har has curated a menu that elevates the classics and celebrates the base spirits.
Case in point: Teh-groni ($21) is a playful twist on the classic negroni infused with Compendium Spirits Teh-O liqueur, Campari, Earl Grey tincture, and a spritz of lavender citrus. Chendol gin shines in the Chendol Gimlet ($24) which also features pandan, coconut water and attap chee. Meanwhile, the Rojaktini ($24) dazzles with Rojak gin, bianco vermouth, a zesty pink peppercorn infusion, and a dash of orange bitters.
Other must-faves include the Nutslide ($24), a dessert cocktail blending dark rum, cream, peanut butter, and a drizzle of olive oil, and the Meadmosa ($20), a refreshing apricot tea mead and orange juice delight topped with bubbles from Brut champagne. For a more hands-on experience, try the Anthology Somaek ($18), a DIY-style option to mix fermented alcoholic bev with your choice of soju.
Class in session: The evolution of spirits
The class continues through the informative vertical and horizontal tasting flights (from $22), unveiling the evolution of ingredients like rice, honey, coconut, and sugarcane from wine to new-make spirit and two forms of aged whiskey. Explore themes like Fermentation ($15), Distillation (pure spirits and infused spirits, from $35), and Aged spirits ($40), each offering a journey through flavour and craftsmanship.
All that booze making you hungry? You don’t need to move a muscle as the Southeast Asian-inspired dishes will fill you up nicely. Think along the likes of appetisers such as braised duck rillettes with croutons ($18) and crab salad with ginger crisps ($24), to hearty mains like beef short ribs char siu ($38) and a vegetarian chicken ‘rice’ ($28).
Built your spirits from scratch: From rice to whiskey, molasses to rum
The journey’s not over. Ascend to the Chartered Private Lounge on the second level, an exclusive haven for Chartered members to craft their bespoke barrel-aged spirits. Here, you’re the creator. In an engaging introductory workshop and tasting session, you’ll savour and handpick your base spirit’s key ingredient (rum, arrack, honey or rice).
Watch as your creation takes shape, maturing to perfection in the temperature and humidity-controlled Chartered Cellar on level three. Just note that only four-litre barrels are aged here. The bigger barrels (up to 32 litres) will still be aged at the Mandai location. The talented mixologists at the Private Lounge can also extract your spirit from its barrel and craft personalised cocktails right before your eyes. Of course, if you want someone to do all the work for you, you can always purchase a bottle of Compendium Spirits’ original right here too.
So, whether you’re a cocktail explorer or a seasoned enthusiast, Anthology is your portal to exceptional creations and endless good times.
Anthology, 10 Circular Road, Singapore 049366
