tanglin club

1 oz Gin (Beefeater)
1 oz Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Passion Fruit Syrup (BG Reynolds)
1/2 oz Lime Juice
2 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

For Thursday Drink Night last week, the theme was "Gin and Juice." When I contemplated the two ingredients, my thoughts roamed over to the Pegu Club which was one of the first cocktails that made me appreciate and enjoy gin. Riffing off of the Pegu, I used the classic Scofflaw as a scaffold. With gin and lime instead of whiskey and lemon, I kept the dry vermouth but changed the grenadine to passion fruit syrup. In paying tribute to the Pegu Club, I selected another prominent gentleman's social club started in the 19th century to serve the British -- namely the Tanglin Club in Singapore.
The Tanglin Club greeted the senses with fresh orange oils. The lime and passion fruit interacted with the Angostura Bitters to offer up an orange- and grapefruit-like sip. Finally, the drink concluded with a gin swallow and a pithy lime tang on the finish. Indeed, the Tanglin Club's passion fruit syrup and dry vermouth took the drink in a different direction than the Pegu's orange liqueur.