Minum-minum Malaysia
While Malaysian food has deservedly hogged the spotlight, our beverages have not enjoyed the same kind of attention. But what exactly is a truly Malaysian drink?
NASI lemak, char koay teow, asam laksa or roti canai ... ask any Malaysian what a true Malaysian dish is, and chances are you’ll get an immediate answer.
But ask them what a true Malaysian drink is, and there might be a slight pause, and maybe a little apprehension ... maybe teh tarik? Lime and sour plum? Soya cincau? Sirap bandung? Tuak? Three layer tea?
Unlike its food cousins, there are no obvious choices when it comes to a truly Malaysian drink.
That’s not surprising, as drinks tend to play second fiddle to food when it comes to a meal. We are more likely to spend more money on a dish than a drink.
After all, how many times have you ordered an expensive dish at a restaurant, but decide to have just plain water to go with it?
Shawn Chong, co-founder of cocktail bar Omakase + Appreciate and a bar consultant for several bars and restaurants around Klang Valley, said that most people do perceive drinks as more of a complement to the food.
“In Malaysia, beverages, especially the non-alcoholic ones, have always served as an accompaniment to a meal,” he said. “In that sense, the general selection of drinks like teh tarik, kopi ais, Chinese tea and so on, is part and parcel of everyday life and our daily meals.
“It’s not just in Malaysia. For example, in Italy, wine, vermouth and spritzers are local drink staples of every meal, yet pizzas and pasta get the publicity and world recognition.”
This begs the question – how important are drinks and beverages when it comes to defining the identity of a nation’s cuisine?
Think, for instance, of the lofty reputation of French wines and cognacs, which often feature in the best fine dining courses. Or how Japanese sake goes so perfectly with their food. And what about Belgian beer, which is arguably even more famous than Belgian food?
And then there’s tea, which is so synonymous with being the most-consumed beverage in Britain.
But guess what? It is also a staple drink in Malaysia, from teh tarik to three layered tea, and unlike Britain, we actually grow our own tea leaves.
So does that make it more of a Malaysian drink than a British one?
A question of culture
The question of cultural and historical influences defining a nation’s food and drink is a point brought up by Darren Teoh of Dewakan, a modern Malaysian fine-dining restaurant famous for its innovative championing of local produce, ingredients and flavours. It recently became the first Malaysian restaurant to make it into the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list.
“I think that if you want to understand what a ‘Malaysian drink’ is, you’ll have to give a definition of what is a Malaysian in the first place,” he said, adding that the answer lies within the cultural fabric of our society, which is made up of so many races and cultures, and consists of so many influences from inside and outside Malaysia.
“Take sirap bandung ,for instance. You could say it is a Malaysian drink because it is commonly found here. But it doesn’t even originate from here. These are culturally appropriated drinks, which rise from the cacophony of what we call Malaysia.”
“At the same time, can you say boba tea is still a Taiwanese drink? Some shops here use gula melaka in their boba tea, so is it still Taiwanese, or is it now Malaysian?”
To Teoh, drinks are not a priority when he puts together a dish or a menu, as he feels such pairings will occur naturally during the creative process.
“When you put a dish together, there is a tendency for flavour pairings to naturally occur. So when that happens, you will then have a general idea of what drinks would go well with the dish,” he explained.
Penang-based former bartender Ben Ng reckoned that Malaysian food and drinks should go hand in hand.
“A Malaysian drink should be one that goes well with local food. It should also be made from locally sourced ingredients and has influenced Malaysia society in some way. Of course, it must also be widely available across most parts of Malaysia,” said Ng, who is currently the managing director of local beverage distributors Drinks Alliance.
“Technically, drinks and food are intertwined. The element of drinking in food like cendol, laksa, and soya cincau is an indication how a ‘drink’ is not just a complement to food but can also be a part of it.
“We shouldn’t see drinks as just something served in a glass but rather a sensation or experience that is derived from the action of ‘drinking’. Only then can we perceive drinks on their own merit, and not just as a compliment to food,” he added.
Local flavours
One thing that is for sure, there are certain flavours that tend to be more ‘Malaysian’ than others, thanks to their association with food. Think, for instance, the limes used in teh O ais limau or kat zai suin mui (lime and sourplum), which contains yet another very ‘Malaysian’ flavour – asam boi, or sour plum.
Lyn Siew, executive director of KL restaurant and bar Ruyi & Lyn agreed that certain Malaysian flavours tend to stand out more in a drink.
“Any drink that utilises well loved Malaysian ingredients such as coconut, pandan, tuak, or even chilli padi tends to do well,” she said, adding that the asam boi cocktail at Ruyi & Lyn is a big hit among visitors from other countries as well as Malaysians, who equate the savoury citrus taste profile to the kat zai suen mui (lime and sour plum) drink at Chinese coffee shop.
When it comes to cocktails, Malaysia does have one drink that is recognised worldwide as a true classic cocktail – the Jungle Bird, created in 1978 by the late Jeffery Ong Swee Teik, former head bar
tender at the former KL Hilton’s Aviary Bar on Jalan Sultan Ismail.
While we have not had a drink that has achieved the same level of recognition since, the rise in cocktail culture in Malaysia, especially in the Klang Valley, has seen an increasing number of bars are starting to forge a Malaysian cocktail identity by highlighting local flavours, sourcing ingredients from local producers, and making drinks that are uniquely Malaysian. This includes bars like Bar Trigona, Coley, and Junglebird, three bars that made the Asia’s 50 Best Bars this year.
Veteran bartender and current beverage manager of W Kuala Lumpur, Rizal Junior (better known as Junior), said it was good that more and more bartenders are starting to highlight local flavours.
“It used to be that most bartenders were focusing more on Western products and ingredients, because it is more acceptable and familiar. But that is starting to change. Just look at the tau foo fah cocktail at Soma Cocktail Bar (in TTDI, KL), which is inspired by the tau foo fah dessert!” said Junior.
“At W Hotel’s bars (WOOBARAND Wet Deck), we try to collaborate more with producers of local ingredients, but it must also acceptable for our international clientele. But every menu that I develop will always include at least two or three drinks with home based ingredients.”
That ‘local flavour’ is also something Chong tries to incorporate whenever he creates a cocktail or consults on an outlet’s beverage menu.
“I always try to bring locality into the picture, either by using local ingredients or by adopting local everyday drink ideas. That way, I get to promote Malaysia a bit more and at the same time, offer something unique,” he explained.
“In the context of cocktails, why would you come to Malaysia just to drink something you can already get from your own country? Adding a local element to a drink always allows the guest a point of remembrance.”
While it is true that Malaysian beverages end to languish in the shadows of its food cousins, Chong doesn’t feel there is an urgent need to highlight them.
“That said, it would be nice to have the younger generation more informed about the history of the local beverages. That would build a sense of belonging to what was actually created here in Malaysia,” he concluded.
Ng agreed, adding that some initiative has to come from the authorities to recognise and promote certain drinks.
“Giving these drinks as much attention as food will definitely help it gain recognition. Imagine if a local drink can be as popular as food! Everyone takes three meals a day, but we can certainly have drinks all day long!”