Mandarin Oriental celebrates 60 years with spirit launch

Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong has announced the launch of The Mandarin, a limited-edition spirit curated in partnership with Two Moons Distillery to celebrate the hotel’s 60th anniversary.

The Mandarin, which is the name of the new spirit being launched by the Kong Kong hotel, includes a combination of osmanthus and grapefruit, which can be found in the hotel’s signature room fragrance.

Two Asian spices are also incorporated in the spirit, ginger which is renowned for its culinary and medicinal benefits, and Oolong Tea, tying The Mandarin Oriental spirit back to Hong Kong’s tea culture. The Mandarin also incorporated coriander seed and kaffir lime leaf.

Two Moons is Hong Kong’s first gin distillery founded in 2019. The distillery also runs on a zero-waste ethos, and is equipped with its own composting machine. Waste products wampee leaf (sourced from wampee fruit) and lychee skin have also been used in the spirit, adding to its sustainability credentials.

Using The Mandarin as a base spirit, the hotel’s beverage manager Devender Sehgal has created a cocktail to toast to the hotel’s 60th anniversary. The Mandarin Gimlet will be available from 16 October onwards for guests to try at The Aubrey, Captain’s Bar and Chinnery, priced at HK$160.

Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong is home to a collection of nine restaurants and bars, including two which hold Michelin stars — Mandarin Grill + Bar and Cantonese fine dining restaurant Man Wah.

In other news, Sotheby’s is to sell one of the largest and most valuable wine collections to ever come to market, from the cellar of Taiwanese art collector Pierre Chen, comprising 25,000 bottles of rare and exceptional wine, whose pre-sale estimates total US$50 million.

The first sale will take place in Hong Kong at the culmination of a three-day festival of food and wine at the Hong Kong Mandarin Oriental hotel and leading restaurants around the city on 23-25 November. Read more here.