Katrin Figge

The Doggerized and Sensual Rose are Decanter’s latest creations. (Photo courtesy of Decanter)

Jakarta’s Decanter Bar Captures Taste of Tropics in a Glass

To celebrate its first anniversary on Saturday, the team at Decanter Wine House in Kuningan, South Jakarta, have come up with some fun and frivolous drinks.

The restaurant-bar’s most striking new cocktail, called Doggerized, was inspired by the Indonesian dessert es doger .

The drink mixes the traditional local ingredients of fermented sticky rice and cassava with the tropical flavors of Jamaican rum and Malibu. To this combination, Decanter then adds coconut ice cream, chocolate sprinkles and a sprig of rosemary.

“After playing around with food and drinks for a year now, we wanted to toy with something new,” Yohan Handoyo, the general manager and wine director of Decanter said.

“This has actually been the result of long discussions after midnight — and after too much alcohol — with Lee, who is one of our regular customers at Decanter.”

Victoria Lee, originally from Korea, but born and raised in Indonesia and now working in the mining industry, developed a fondness for cocktails while working as a bartender when studying in England.

“I love the fact that [Decanter] has character. The amount of effort they put into their service and presentation is exceptional, always inventing and experimenting,” she said.

“I was a regular customer who turned into a fan, and now I am a groupie,” she added with a laugh.

Yohan abandoned a career in information technology to dedicate himself to the wine business. His book “Rahasia Wine” (“The Secret of Wine”) was named the World’s Best Book on Wine Education last year by Gourmand International in London.

“I fell in love with wine when I was studying in Australia,” he said. “And I am sure that I want to do this for the rest of my life. I meet new people every day and have good wine and food.”

Yohan and Lee developed a new concept for Decanter, as they wanted to create something unique and unusual.

“Lee came up with the idea of creating cocktails using exotic ingredients, combined with things typically Indonesian,” Yohan said.

Together with Decanter’s chef, Johannes Pratiwanggana, they didn’t just extend the drinks menu with six signature cocktails, but also paired additions with new dishes — snacks that would complement the cocktails.

Promising pairs include Sensual Rose, a sweet cocktail of rose wine, basic spirits and syrup, together with a snack of baked tomatoes topped with chopped garlic, and Kentucky Tea, which is made of bourbon, lemon and cranberry juice, served with prawn satay.

To celebrate its anniversary and launch the new drinks, Decanter will hold a special event on Saturday.

The theme for the night is Tropical Illusion, which will see the venue decorated with bright colors like red, orange and yellow. There will also be a tropical dress code for attendees.

“It’s going to be a great party,” Yohan said. “Saturday night — let’s all get drunk together!”


Tropical Illusions
Decanter Wine House Anniversary
With DJ’s Joyo and Fari
Saturday starting at 9 p.m.
Plaza Kuningan, Menara Utara
Jl. Rasuna Said Kav. C11-14
South Jakarta
Tel. 021 5296 3888
Dress code: ladies should wear floral or animal prints, while gentlemen should dress as if they were vacationing in Havana

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