
Here is the story behind getting the recipe--typed up by my dad in 1959.
When Dad showed us the recipe written down for him by its originator at the Raffles, we asked him if he was going to try making one at home. He answered, “Oh, no—I can’t. Old Tom Gin isn’t available here.” (In those days the monopoly of Washington State Liquor Stores greatly limited availability and selection of all alcoholic beverages.) In fact, maybe Old Tom Gin wasn’t available anywhere in the USA.

SINGAPORE GIN SLING
1 glass Old Tom Gin (port wine glass)
1/2 a glass Heering Cherry Brandy
1/2 glass local Lime Juice (Fresh) & sugar
Add dashes of Doorn Maraschino, Curacao, Angostura Bitters & Orange Triple Sec
Cracked Ice in a shaker
(Shake well & serve)
This piece of paper the recipe is written on is almost sixty years old, and its ingredients don’t quite match the one identified online as “the original Singapore Gin Sling” recipe. Maybe this is the first time the secret is out. My dad returned to Singapore several other times and with each visit always made sure to have a Sling at the Raffles. They must have been good, but I know he never even tried to make one at home.