Australian weather can be hot and steamy at this time of the year, similar to Myanmar’s which is hot and steamy for much of the year. As the mercury rises, why not take a leaf out of The Strand Yangon’s book and mix up a long cool cocktail at the end of a hot day – the same drinks enjoyed by patrons of the Hotel’s bar since colonial times.
Opened by the Armenian Sarkies brothers in 1901 and overlooking the Yangon River, The Strand Yangon is one of the most famous accommodation providers in the region, and is considered one of the finest hotels in Southeast Asia. Following extensive renovation to restore the hotel to its former colonial beauty, The Strand Yangon has recently reopened to guests, many of whom now enjoy cocktails at the renamed Sarkie’s Bar at The Strand Hotel
For over a century, The Strand Yangon’s bar has been the epicentre of social life in Yangon and gathering place for adventurers, raconteurs and explorers such as Sir Noël Coward, Orsen Welles and Rudyard Kipling. The newly opened teakwood-panelled bar has been given a glamorous club-like make-over, with luxury leather seating and a carefully crafted new menu of cocktails and single malt whiskies.
The Bagan Breeze, concocted in 1976, symbolises the friendship between Burma, the former USSR and Cuba and is a local version of a mojito combining vodka and rum with fresh mint and lime. The bar staff at The Strand Yangon muddle the mint leaves together with the stems to warm the mint and extract the oils, maximising the flavour.
Ingredients
· 25 ml vodka
· 25 ml white rum
· 5 leaves of mint
· 25 ml fresh lime juice
· 20 ml sugar syrup
Shake well with ice and serve in an old fashion glass. Garnish sprig of mint and lime wedge.
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