Bar review: Signature Reserve offers whisky omakase and 500+ whiskies by the glass

Whisky has long been dubbed liquid gold, but in today’s boom of whisky collecting and investing , the nickname is getting a little too literal. 

The last decade has a surge of investment funds dedicated to hoarding and selling rare single malts, bottles auctioning for record-smashing millions, and the rise of whisky’s status as a luxury asset for collectors. The end result? No one is actually, well, drinking the good stuff – not unless you have the deep pockets for it.

That’s where Singapore’s latest whisky bar Signature Reserve comes in. Set in The Fullerton Hotel Singapore, this is the fourth drink-in concept by whisky bar pioneer Quaich Bar, in collaboration with Benjamin Tan of online tasting club Whisky Butler.

While it’s got as impressive a stash of premium whiskies as you might expect, Signature Reserve is all about making the liquid gold accessible to anyone who wants to savour it. That means making even rare and limited-edition bottles available by the glass, putting a sip within reach of any whisky lover. In other words: imbibe, then invest.

ALSO READ: Origin Bar launches third edition of neighbourhood-inspired tipples

It’s hard to miss Signature Reserve on the hotel’s first floor, with a bright red postbox and larger-than-life plush bear fronting the space – holdovers from what used to be Post Bar.

Sprawling over 4,000 square feet, the space gleams with floor-to-ceiling shelves of whisky bottles everywhere you turn, with a lounge area, a cocktail bar, and a more intimate bar for whisky tastings tucked within.

Their whisky stash clocks in at over a thousand expressions, with old bottlings, small-batch collector’s gems, and boutique distilleries in the mix. Most impressively, over 500 whiskies by the glass are on offer, starting from a pocket-friendly $11 for 20ml and $18 for 45ml.

Think limited-edition drams like the Springbank Local Barley 9 Year Old ($18 for 20ml, $36 for 45ml), whose 9,700-bottle release in 2018 vanished swiftly from the shelves. Made with optic barley from nearby High Cattadale Farm, this Campbeltown single malt is honeyed and fresh with peaches, with an undercurrent of oyster brine.

As with most whisky bars, you can opt for tasting flights starting from $53 here. Signature Reserve, though, ups the tasting experience with their Whisky Omakase concept. This five-course menu ($138++) features a whisky cocktail and a flight of four whiskies at 20ml each, paired with Asian-inspired bites that are whipped up in-house.

When we visited pre-Phase 2 (Heightened Alert), our welcome cocktail involved a White Chrysanthemum Whisky Sour – a local, floral riff shaken up with Glencadam single malt and local beer reduction.

Among the nibbles you might expect are palate-ticklers like the Lumpfish Caviar – a cube of cold tofu bathed in bonito syrup, heaped with herbed tomato compote, and crowned with lumpfish caviar for a medley of sweet, sour, and salty.

We’re told to hold a bite of food in our mouths, then sip the paired whisky – in this case, the Glencadam 13 Year Old Whisky Journey Exclusive 2007 ($300 on The Whisky Store). Bottled for Singapore’s first Whisky Journey, this single-cask release has only 368 bottles of its kind. The briny caviar rounds out the Scotch’s fruity, lemongrass-bright notes nicely.

A skewer of lime-glazed teriyaki chicken and leek follows, matched with the Deanston 18 Year Old ($271). Finished in first-fill Kentucky bourbon casks, its peachy sweetness and creamy caramel profile is played up by the tangy teriyaki.

Another skewer of spicy, smoke-kissed Xinjiang-style lamb fans the flames of the peated Ledaig 18 Year Old ($309), a small-batch single malt that smokes with black pepper, dried fruit, and whiffs of sea salt.

For a dark, sweet finish, there’s the Single Malt Tiramisu splendidly soaked in Bunnahabhain Toiteach A Dhà. This smoky single malt comes matured in bourbon and sherry casks, amping up the coffee with delicate peat and a peppery touch. And if you find there’s a whisky lingering in your mind, head over to the retail section to pick up a bottle or three.

Signature Reserve is located at 1 Fullerton Square, The Fullerton Hotel Singapore,
Singapore 049178, p. +65 8181 0838. Open Mon-Sat 4pm–11pm. Closed Sun.

**During Singapore’s Phase 3 (Heightened Alert), you can order whisky bottlings and tasting sets from Signature Reserve’s online sister concept, The Whisky Store.

This article was first published in City Nomads.