The Siam Sunray: Chasing down Thailand's 'signature' cocktail

When Thailand's tourism board created a new signature cocktail earlier this year to promote travel to the Kingdom, we all scoffed. Would the 'Siam Sunray' -- referred to as "Thailand in a glass" -- catch on and represent its homeland the way the Singapore Sling and Manhattan have?

The official recipe (listed below) sounds more like a bowl of tom yum soup than a refreshing cocktail. But contrived as it may be, we were curious. Recipe in hand -- just in case the bartender hadn't been issued the government memo -- we set out to put the Siam Sunray to the test.

Our first stop was The Living Room, a jazz bar in the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit. The bartender had never heard of the Siam Sunray -- big shocker, that -- but he embraced the challenge when we handed him the recipe.

The drink was sweet. It was salty, in a non-offensive way. It packed a wallop, too. Yet it was still drinkable. And the bartender received major style points for serving the Siam Sunray with a red chili pepper perched on the rim of the glass.

Next we went across the street to the 25th floor lounge at the Westin Grande Sukhumvit. Again, the bartender greeted our request with a look of befuddlement. But he gave it a try.

This version of the Siam Sunray lacked ginger -- the waitress said the kitchen had run out -- but it was still tasty. And bracing.

The Westin bartender had a lighter hand with the syrup and chili, so the drink was less zesty than the earlier incarnation we'd sampled. Artful carving of the chili pepper, was an added bonus.

So is the Siam Sunray any good? We'll drink them. Is it headed for global cocktail domination? Let's just say Singapore's safe. For now.

Ingredients
30-40 ml. of Smirnoff vodka
30 ml. of coconut liqueur
15 ml. of syrup
¼ cm. of Thai chilli pepper
3 slices of young ginger
1 Kaffir lime leaf
3 slivers of lemon grass
3 drops of lime juice
Soda water

Preparation
Crush the small Thai chili pepper, young ginger, Kaffir lime leaf, and lemon grass together in a shaker to bring out the aroma and flavor of the Thai herbs.
Add syrup, lime juice and Smirnoff and shake well. Strain into a glass with ice; top up with soda water; garnish with chilli, lemon grass and a slice of lime.