HOSPITALITY

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COCKTAILS & Craftsmanship

MEET BILL WISMOYO, THE SAVVY MIXOLOGIST WITH RAVISHING COCKTAIL RECIPES AND A GREAT PENCHANT FOR HISTORY

Mixing, juggling, and pouring with flair. Every day, The Lounge at The Intercontinental Hotel Jakarta Pondok Indah puts on a show with the hotel’s resident mixologist, Bill Wismoyo, in the spotlight. A storyteller at heart, Bill recounts his favourite historical tales through the cocktails he concocts.

It all started back in 2013. Bill, awestruck by flair bartenders in the years prior, decided to enter his first national mixology competition. Successfully bagging the top 8th place, while also being the youngest of all the contestants, it was clear as day to Bill that cocktails and craftsmanship were what he was destined for.

Within his seven years of professional experience as a mixologist, Bill has picked up all the secrets to an extraordinary cocktail. “Two things: preferred cocktail style and favourite spirits,” Bill remarked. “Once I know the flavours my customers are inclined towards, whether it be sweet, sour, earthy, or floral, and the cocktail style they favour, may it be straightforward or complex, I can pretty much concoct anything their taste buds desire,” Bill revealed.

A master of metamorphosis, Bill has a knack for reincarnating bits of history into his cocktails with traditional herbs and spices. During Negroni Week in September 2022, Bill presented the Negroni Mirabilis, a cocktail inspired by Aqua Mirabilis or ‘miraculous water’. In the 1600s, the essence Aqua Mirabilis was an antiseptic. In later years, thanks to a perfumer, the Aqua Mirabilis was transformed into a light perfume with a fruity and light scent. Now, thanks to Bill, it has metamorphosed into a Negroni cleverly concocted to be sipped like one, yet with the sublime scents of a perfume—with citrus notes from Campari, light bitterness from dry vermouth, earthy notes from vetiver, and the floral hints of rose petals.

Bill’s culinary education and his finesse in cocktail concoctions lay the foundation for

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his brilliant bona fide creations. The Marie Vernet, a deconstructed black forest cake in cocktail form is admittedly one of Bill’s proudest inventions. He experimented with different ingredients and base spirits for one and a half months. The result? A thick-textured, luscious black forest indulgence crafted from the rich bitterness of dark chocolate and delicately sweet and sour flavours of spiked Italian cherry. The cocktail is served in a gown-shaped glass, a wink to the first-ever fashion model in the early 1850s—the iconic muse that is Marie Vernet herself.

The connoisseur does not hold back when it comes to fashioning extravagant cocktails with stories to tell from behind the bar. Inspired by the Genoese province in Italy best known as the place where denim was born in the 1500s, The Genova is a sight to behold as it flaunts its stylish translucent blue hue and a “denim leather” as top garnish. “The drink is sustainable. There is no waste in production as the edible dehydrated blue chip placed on top— the denim leather—is made from the remains of the premixed cocktail.” Bill explained. The cocktail tastes old-fashioned and mild with fusions of grappa and floral notes from rose, citrus, blossom tea, and milk. Undeniably, The Genova is a creation that beautifully depicts Bill’s calibre of cocktail craftsmanship.

Other than toying with herbs and spirits, Bill enjoys spending time inside the pages of history books. “Historical tales are the source of my cocktail inspirations,” Bill professed. In 1667, Run Island, one of the smallest islands of the Bandan Islands, was traded with Manhattan by the English to the Dutch. Rich in nutmeg, a commodity more valuable than gold at that time, Run Island bestowed The Dutch with a worldwide monopoly on the prized commodity. The tale birthed Zamrud Khatulistiwa, a cocktail Bill pioneered as a nod to Indonesia’s rich culture and abundant natural resources. Bill fused the cocktail with aged Indonesian rum and nutmeg. “Through this cocktail, I wanted to convey that Indonesia is incredibly rich. It is where rum has its roots, and where the sought-after nutmeg resides.” he proudly stated.

Bill Wismoyo’s assorted cocktail inventions are bewitchingly beautiful, complex-tasting, and cleverly chronicled. The suave mixologist revealed that his favourite cocktails to make are his favourite to enjoy. Indeed, Bill’s excep-

tional taste in cocktail crafts and plenteous archival stories will guarantee that an evening at The Lounge at The Intercontinental Hotel will make for a tale memorable enough for a second visit and perhaps, many, many more.

1. Bill Wismoyo, resident mixologist of The

Intercontinental Hotel Jakarta Pondok Indah

2. The Lobby Lounge at The Intercontinental Hotel

Jakarta Pondok Indah

3. Negroni Mirabilis 4. The Marie Vernet