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Wine and Spirits

Wine and Spirits
News and trends in luxury wine and spirits
highlights from
100 Top Tables 2025 Restaurant Directory
100 Top Tables 2025 Restaurant Directory
At Mesa by José Avillez, the restaurant’s namesake chef (left) works closely with head chef Herlander Fernandes to craft a menu that reinterprets Portuguese cuisine for international diners in Macau.

Mesa by José Avillez celebrates artistry of Portuguese cuisine in Macau

In partnership with:SJM Resorts
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Terrible Baby at Eaton HK is throwing a Back to the Future party on New Year’s Eve. Photo: Handout

The best New Year’s Eve countdown parties in Hong Kong for ringing in 2026

Beloved Hong Kong bar The Daily Tot, one day after its closure this month. Photo: Jocelyn Tam

Looking back on a bruising year for Hong Kong’s bar industry

Enjoy a classic Christmas turkey at Regent Hong Kong this festive season. Photo: Handout

Where to enjoy Christmas dinner in Hong Kong this festive season

rench onion soup gratinated with Salers, Comté and Gruyère cheese at Somm. Photo: Handout

Dish in Focus: French onion soup at Somm

More from 100 top tables
Content from SCMP's Specialist Publications
Today’s bartenders are making a big deal about ice. Photo: Handout
Singapore

Cooler cubes: how artisan ice became part of the cocktail experience

Singapore’s Night Hawk and Last Word bars approach the subject of ice as another differentiator in a crowded marketplace.

Hong Kong economy

Can Hong Kong mature as a wine hub? French vineyard owner calls for new focus

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Food and Drinks

Dish in Focus: French onion soup at Somm

Food and Drinks

3 festive drink recipes to try at home, from Hong Kong’s bartenders

Festive drinks for your New Year’s Eve celebrations, from showpiece pours to minimal effort mixes.

‘Tis the season for cocktails. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
What to do in Hong Kong

The best New Year’s Eve countdown parties in Hong Kong for ringing in 2026

Highlights include DJ Willer at The Aubrey, DJ Anil Ahuja at The Trilogy, and South Korea’s DJ Drako at Gossip.

Food and Drinks

Maximalist cocktails are back, but not the garish ones of yesteryear

From Seoul to London to New York, bars buck the minimalist trend with boldly flavoured, classy drinks that create a multisensory experience.

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Food and Drinks

Looking back on a bruising year for Hong Kong’s bar industry

Poignant closures included Stockton, The Daily Tot and Foxglove, but 2025 was also the year of the neighbourhood bar, from Mius and Oasis to Sugar King.

Beloved Hong Kong bar The Daily Tot, one day after its closure this month. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
Food and Drinks

Drink in Focus: Tomatoberry Tree at Gokan

Built on a split base of gin and shochu, this nuanced cocktail was created to mimic the architecture of a tomato tree, from trunk to leaf.

Food and Drinks

Your 2025 guide to the best Christmas cocktails in Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s bars are upping the ante with their festive cocktails, from exciting takes on mulled wine and eggnog, to gin ‘prescriptions’ and a cheesy pisco sour.

Food and Drinks

‘Crazy cocktail menu’ at Macau bar honours bartender’s travels in Asia

At Wynn Palace’s Wing Lei Bar, Scottish cocktail maestro Mark Lloyd pours his spirit into tipples inspired by places from Seoul to Singapore.

Scotland-born Mark Lloyd is the head mixologist at Wing Lei Bar in Wynn Palace, in Cotai, Macau. His new menu features twists on classic cocktails inspired by his trips to places from Singapore to Seoul. Photo: Wing Lei Bar
Food and Drinks

3 Hong Kong bars serving festive cocktails with a twist for Christmas

From Bar Q88’s Jingle Bird to DarkSide’s The New Century and Rajasthan Rifles’ spiked masala chai, here are the hottest tipples to spice up your holidays.

Inspired winter cocktails from some of Hong Kong’s top bars. Photo: Handout
Food and Drinks

What to eat on Peng Chau, food-filled Hong Kong island great for day trips

Peng Chau is full of spots serving everything from old-school dim sum to pizza. Be sure to visit at weekends when most restaurants are open.

Your Perfect Week

Your cheat sheet for what to do in Hong Kong from December 13-19

Discover how Labubu creator Kasing Lung’s Monsters came to be, and hunt for interesting gifts at China Hong Kong City’s Christmas market.

On Our Radar

What to do in Hong Kong this Christmas, from feasts to circus acts

Our guide to some of the events lighting up the city this holiday season – plus the best takeaway menus for Christmas dinner at home.

The Ting Koo-ki Mad Skills Battle, part of the “Circus Plays” event, returns to Tai Kwun in Hong Kong this month. Photo: Visual Voices
What to do in Hong Kong

5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, December 12-14

Watch Hong Kong Ballet’s The Nutcracker, head to a beach beer festival, donate and shop at a festive thrifting event and more this weekend.

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Photo: Instagram/yardleybrothers
Food and Drinks

Word on the StrEAT: Hong Kong’s F&B gurus on the highs and lows of 2025

Bar Leone’s Lorenzo Antinori, Mius’ Shelley Tai, Tate Dining Room’s Vicky Lau and more share their experiences – beyond the World’s 50 Best Bars.

Food and Drinks

Your Hong Kong weekend drinks guide for December 12-14

Sample champagne and caviar at New World Millennium Hong Kong Hotel, celebrate Dead Poets’ second birthday, and drink wild sour craft beer at Blue Supreme.

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Luxury Hotels

Is Hoiana Resort & Golf Vietnam’s ultimate seaside escape?

The luxury resort along the central Vietnam coast boasts over 20 F&B establishments, golf, a casino and endless activities for both grown-ups and children.

One of Hoiana Resort & Golf’s several pools. Photo: Handout
Food and Drinks

Why are so many Hong Kong bars closing? Industry insiders explain

High rents, a drop in international tourists, changing tastes and the Shenzhen effect are taking their toll, experts say. But there’s hope.

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New Openings

Hong Kong’s hottest new openings, from a quiet coffee shop to Yunnan cuisine

Jija by Vicky Lau brings Yunnan province flavours to Tsim Sha Tsui, minimalist cafe Moonary serves espresso-based drinks and matcha lattes, and Carmela offers a Mediterranean touch.

Food and Drinks

Drink in Focus: Bancha & Chestnut Alexander at Madara

A creamy, earthy, tea-infused twist on the classic brandy Alexander, this cocktail evokes Hong Kong’s famous winter chestnut carts.

Bancha & Chestnut Alexander, at Hong Kong’s Madara cocktail bar. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
Food and Drinks

Your Hong Kong weekend drinks guide for December 5-7

Molecular mixology OG Quinary launches a menu that takes cues from local flavours, speakeasy 001 – now at Tai Kwun – celebrates 15 years, and we say goodbye to Foxglove.

A cocktail from the new menu at Quinary in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout
China consumption

Pursuit of hoppiness: how China’s cash-conscious drinkers embraced craft beers

As discerning alcohol consumers seek ‘wallet-friendly’ products, premium beers are winning out over higher-end options.

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Wealth: Alternative Investments

Vetting collectibles, such as whiskies and watches, is a serious business

The market is growing briskly, but vigilance is vital to ensure that assets are authenticated and carefully protected ahead of a sale.

Supported by
BNP Paribas Wealth Management
Food and Drinks

Your Hong Kong weekend drinks guide for November 28-30 – plus December 1

Say farewell to rum bastion The Daily Tot and enjoy Glass Gardener’s farm-to-glass, tea-inspired cocktails at Hexa in Harbour City.

The Daily Tot is closing its doors in Hong Kong on December 2. Photo: Handout
China consumption

After peaking, decline of China’s European wine imports worries makers

Chinese drinkers are spending less amid an economic slowdown, diluting the profits of Europe’s fine wine producers.

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Illustration: Brian Wang
China consumption

China’s liquor capital faces long march to rebirth as ‘liquid gold’ glory wanes

In Maotai town, baijiu producers diversify offerings while expanding to markets such as Hong Kong and Southeast Asia amid a culture shift and economic challenges.

Food and Drinks

Hong Kong bartenders spill the tea on putting together a guest shift

From Socio to Regent Hong Kong’s Qura Bar, a guest shift takes months of planning and painstaking work – here’s how bartenders do it.

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