COCKTAIL lovers get to enjoy an extensive new drinks menu at Up & Above at the Okura Prestige Bangkok, created with exotic local spirits, fresh ingredients and cool twist with Japanese flair.
Head up to the hotel’s 45th floor, sink into oe of the comfy cushioned sofas, and quench your thirst with some cool cocktails.
Start the evening with something crisp, unique and very Thai – the Royal Thai Sabai – with locally made Mekhong spiced rum, simple syrup, lime and bubbly. The drink is garnished with fresh basil to complement to herbaceous notes of the rum and refresh the palate.
If you like your drink a bit smoother and more fragrant, opt for Tea O’clock, with gin, egg white, honey, lemon and popular Number One Brand, the red Thai known locally as Cha Tra Mue, an excellent match for honey and lemon.
Phraya Rum, a premium blend from Nakhon Pathom, forms for a base for the Phraya Sour, a Whiskey Sour but with a twist on the classic tipple, using the deeply matured and rich gold rum. With lemon juice, sugar and Angostura bitters in the mix, the drink is very masculine, but with smoothed edge, thanks to the slightly sweet and refined rum.
If you can handle a bit of a spicy kick in your drink, get an Absolutely Spicy, with Absolut Vanilla vodka that’s been strongly infused with chilli. This vodka martini recipe also has Edinburgh Gin’s Elderflower Liqueur, lime and a bit of honey to round things out.
Also on the new menu are few selections with Japanese influences. A bold and herbaceous rendition of the classic Vesper, the Shiso Vesper Martini entices the palate with the poignant fragrance of a shiso leaf infused in gin. This stiff concoction also has Absolut vodka and Martini Bianco in the mix.
Sudachi, a Japanese citrus fruit, is the star in the Sudachi & Spices. Reminiscent of a voyage to India with the refreshing and distinctive notes of citrus, the drink is made full-bodied yet crisp with Cointreau, grapefruit juice, lime, simple syrup and Flor de Cana 7 Years Rum infused with Mariage Freres Chandernagor.
For a still bolder choice, look for Japan is Calling, made with Hibiki, Japan’s premium blended whisky.
The luminous, delicate and unmistakable Kagoshima citrus note in Hibiki Japanese Harmony, a blend of 10 malt and grain whiskies from three distilleries, aged in five different cask types, goes wonderfully well with the herbaceous Campari and Komasa No Yuzushu Shochu, the citrusy and sweet liqueur.
The Japanese version of a beloved classic American cocktail, the Kyushiki Japanese Old Fashioned, indulges those who prefer richer, flavourful cocktails. The mixture includes Suntory Hakushu Whiskey, Kuru Sato black sugar, Creme de Gingembre and Angostura bitters.
The last section of the menu contains other modified classics and new creations inspired by botanical splendours. The bar’s version of the gin and tonic, named Scottish Botanicals, is made to perfection with Caorunn, a sophisticated Speyside gin made with 11 different plants, Mediterranean Fever Tree Tonic and slices of red apple.
Journey through a garden in full bloom with Le Jardin Rouge, which is perfumed with berry and citrus notes and hints of sweet vanilla and rooibos. The light and refreshing cocktail is a mix of cranberry juice, lime, simple syrup, cherry liqueur and Mariage Freres Rouge Metis-infused gin, topped with a dash of soda.
Bangkok’s garden of paradise and oldest public park, Lumpini, inspires a cocktail creation of the same name that’s delightfully fragrant and thirst quenching. The peculiar flavour of Hendrick’s is enhanced with cooling cucumber, rose water, lime and simple syrup.
The new signature cocktails are priced from Bt475.

The Up & Above Bar is at the Okura Prestige Bangkok, adjacent to the Ploenchit BTS stop.
It’s open daily from 7am to 1am.
Find out more and make reservations at (02) 687 9000.