Monkey Shoulder Takes Center Stage at Asia's 50 Best Bars as Modernhaus Wins Best Bar in Indonesia

Brand partnerships in the bar world are easy to announce and hard to make matter. Monkey Shoulder's showing at Asia's 50 Best Bars 2026 is a lesson in how to do it right: not a logo on a step-and-repeat, but a menu of bartender-built cocktails that put local talent front and center.

On Tuesday, 28 July 2026, the Scotch whisky brand marked the first year of a two-year global partnership as the Official Scotch Whisky Partner of The World's 50 Best Bars, celebrating the Asia's 50 Best Bars ceremony at Wynn Palace, Macau. The evening also crowned a new regional standout — and offered operators a clear read on where premium bar culture is heading.

Modernhaus Named Best Bar in Indonesia

Jakarta's Modernhaus was named The Best Bar in Indonesia, an award sponsored by Monkey Shoulder. What makes the win worth studying is the concept behind it: an ingredients-first, zero-waste program built to showcase Indonesia's biodiversity.

Modernhaus organizes its cocktail menu into four categories inspired by the anatomy of a plant — roots, fruits, leaves and flowers — with each serve crafted around local botanicals. The approach reads like a blueprint for sustainable beverage programs everywhere:

• Fermentation techniques including homemade makgeolli and fruit wines made with local berries
• Regional spirits such as sopi and arrack woven into the menu
• Upcycled ingredients used to minimize the menu's environmental impact

It's local sourcing and waste reduction dressed up as hospitality — proof that sustainability and a compelling guest experience aren't at odds.

Old Fashioned Twists Spotlight Local Bartending Talent

Rather than pouring the same serve everywhere, Monkey Shoulder collaborated with leading bartenders across the 50 Best community to create locally inspired twists on the Old Fashioned for major events in North America, Europe and now Asia.

At Wynn Palace's Wing Lei Bar, renowned bartender Mark Lloyd served the Bubble Tea Old Fashioned — a playful local twist made with Monkey Shoulder, black sugar tea syrup and a milk-washed finish. Served over a large ice cube and finished with boba pearls, it brought a distinctly Macau perspective to the classic format.

The wider Old Fashioned series showcased the range of the global bartending community:

• Ian McPhearson of Panda & Sons, Edinburgh — Boilermaker Old Fashioned, made with Monkey Shoulder using a "switched" technique with NOAM Beer and demerara syrup
• Nick Vrielink of Fitz Bar, Amsterdam — BSB Old Fashioned, made with Monkey Shoulder, air-distilled Guinness hydrolate, barley malt and toasted rye bread
• Mark Lloyd of Wing Lei Bar, Macau — Bubble Tea Old Fashioned, made with Monkey Shoulder, black sugar tea syrup and a milk-washed finish

At the Bartenders' Feast, guests were served the Rooted Monkey, created by Wynn Palace's own bartending team with Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, Back To The Roots Root Beer Liqueur and black walnut. The cocktail returned at the closing party, this time courtesy of Bangkok's Dry Wave Cocktail Studio.

"The World's 50 Best Bars partnership gives Monkey Shoulder a powerful platform to celebrate bar excellence and support the bartenders driving culture forward across the globe — the people and places that truly inspire our brand," said Joe Petch, Global Brand Ambassador, Monkey Shoulder.

Why It Matters

For bar operators, beverage directors and procurement teams, this campaign is a working template on two fronts.

First, the Old Fashioned strategy shows how a single flagship serve can be localized without diluting brand identity — a low-cost, high-impact play any multi-unit operator can borrow. One recognizable format, endlessly reinterpreted around regional ingredients, drives menu innovation and social buzz while keeping training simple.

Second, Modernhaus's win signals where premium bar programs are earning recognition: local sourcing, fermentation, upcycled ingredients and zero-waste operations. For buyers and beverage managers, that's a demand cue to prioritize regional spirits, house ferments and waste-reduction systems — increasingly the difference between a good list and an award-winning one.

The takeaway for spirits brands is equally clear. Sponsorship that hands the spotlight to bartenders, rather than the label, builds far deeper credibility with the trade than traditional advertising ever will.

Explore More Bar and Beverage Coverage

Wynn's Macau properties continue to anchor Asia's premium bar scene — see our coverage of Wynn Macau and Wynn Palace hosting Asia's 50 Best Bars 2026, and read how buyer-led recognition is reshaping the drinks trade in the PR%F Awards 2026.

Are you localizing a signature serve or leaning into zero-waste bar programs? Tell us what's working behind your bar in the comments.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” for founding American Wholesale Floral. Politz is also the founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.