Raffles Hotel’s Long Bar launches the Matcha Sling, a drink steeped in history

SINGAPORE – The latest offering at Raffles Hotel’s storied Long Bar aims to give a sense of history while overcoming modern supply shortages due to demand for one of its key ingredients, Uji matcha.

From April 1, visitors to the bar will be able to enjoy a Matcha Sling, a green tea-inspired spin on its famed Singapore Sling, in celebration of 60 years of diplomatic relations between Japan and Singapore.

Somewhat like the mixology of the cocktail, the new drink was around one year in the making, the fruit of some experimentation and collaboration between the Embassy of Japan in Singapore and Raffles Hotel.

“Matcha is not just a tea ingredient, it also carries the history of more than a century of the Japanese tea ceremony,” said embassy counsellor and head of chancery Yukako Ito, whose team came up with the idea of sourcing high-quality, ceremonial-grade matcha.

“That spirit of welcoming guests with tea, along with omotenashi, the Japanese style of hospitality, resonated with Raffles Hotel,” she told The Straits Times on March 26, during a reception at the hotel to launch the drink.

Embassy contacts helped the hotel’s team establish Horii Shichimeien – a matcha retailer from Uji in Kyoto that has been operating for nearly 150 years – as a direct line and sustainable source for the high-grade matcha as an ingredient for the new drink.

This was important as surging demand and severe heatwaves affecting tea yields since 2024 have led to some wholesalers imposing purchase limits on matcha.

Export volumes for matcha powder rose to 8,718 tonnes in 2025, up 171 per cent from a year ago, according to figures from Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Demand in Singapore mirrored that trend, with matcha imports rising 182 per cent in 2025 to 108 tonnes, around 1.2 per cent of global matcha demand.

“(Horii) has its own tea garden, so the supply for a genuine and high-quality source can be more consistent,” said Ms Ito, in assurance that there will be enough matcha for as many Slings as needed.

A member of the bar’s mixology team said a primary challenge in mixing the new drink was balancing the matcha’s earthy and slightly bitter profile with the vibrant, fruity composition of the Singapore Sling.

“Several rounds of refinement were needed for the matcha to complement the overall flavour profile, rather than dominate it,” said the mixologist who did not wish to be named.

Hopes are high among the Raffles Hotel team for the Matcha Sling to rival other permanent offerings on the Long Bar’s menu in terms of popularity, although no sales targets have been set for now.

It is not the first time the Japanese Embassy and the hotel have worked together, having collaborated during another milestone year, SJ50 in 2016.

The result then was the Sakura Sling – a blend of Dassai Sake and the Singapore Sling – which is the Long Bar’s second bestseller.

More than a century after it was concocted by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon in 1915, the Singapore Sling remains the bar’s main draw, with visitors polishing off 800 to 1,000 glasses every day.

Early takes on the Matcha Sling by food reviewers who attended the reception were positive.

Singapore-based Japanese YouTuber Ghib Ojisan said he appreciated that the cocktail was well-balanced, with the matcha taste a pleasantly subtle inclusion. Mr Tony Boey, who posts on the Johor Kaki blog, said it was tasty and expressed a liking for its citrus notes.

“It’s progressive, it’s got one foot in history, one foot in the future,” said Mr Michael Callahan, founding bartender of lauded cocktail bar 28 HongKong Street.

“More importantly, does it taste good? Yes, it’s fantastic,” he added in between sips of his second Sling of the evening.

“Consumers’ palates have changed over the years. What we like now is not what people liked 100 years ago. What Raffles has done today with the Matcha Sling is keep the tradition alive. Move with the times.

“Just like Singapore always has.”

SJ60 offerings

The Matcha Sling ($38++) will come with a bartender’s impression of the official logo of the 60 years of Singapore-Japan diplomatic relations (SJ60) imprinted on the beverage.

Diners at the hotel’s Grand Lobby can order the cocktail at $30++ as an add-on to the seasonal Sakura Afternoon Tea ($108++ a guest) from April 6 to 12. Afternoon tea offerings include smoked salmon on tamago with tonkatsu bechamel, melon shortcakes and sakura castella cakes.

A non-alcoholic Virgin Matcha Sling and a Matcha Kaya ($16 nett at the Raffles Boutique) will also be available from April 1.

What goes into a Matcha Sling