Ben Handicott - 50 Bars to Blow Your Mind

The best bars are much more than the sum of their parts. The various components, like great service, smart design, spectacular views and perfect cocktails, merge to create one joyous drinking experience. Its not always easy to put your finger on the moment when mind-blowing is achieved, but you sure know when it happens. Mid-quaff, you realise youre happy. You look around you and realise youre having the kind of time you just know youll be telling people about. Probably while youre still there.

But how have we whittled down this list? Well, some bars have earned their spot by playing up their obvious assets, whether its an interesting urban location or a stunning natural setting. Others are champions of the basics, be they cocktails or single liquors, while still others do something dramatically unusual or fun; some are so quirky its impossible not to marvel over a custom-made cocktail. But perhaps the secret sauce in all this is genuine desire to delight each drinker, guest or customer who walks through the door. (Or crawls through a tunnel, takes a glass lift or lounges on a deck chair.) Its a love of hospitality and an enthusiasm for the precious drop.

Whether youre a fan of barefoot, surfside imbibing or you prefer sophisticated cocktails in stylish surrounds, its time to plan your list. Life is short. Cheers, salut, bottoms up. See you at the bar.

Sigurjn Ragnar

BAB AL SHAMS, AL QUDRA RD,
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
WWW.MEYDANHOTELS.COM/BABALSHAMS

THIS IS NOT THE DESERT.

Maybe not, but youre surrounded by it. As is the exclusive Bab Al Shams Desert Resort and Spa, which is exactly where you are right now.

WHY GO HERE? WERE AFTER A DRINK

Its true that UAE is a dry country but inside the walls of this luxury resort there are exceptions, and one important exception is the Al Sarab. Consider it your very own oasis.

IM GUESSING THAT THIS ISNT GOING TO BE A DIVE BAR.

You guessed right. Dubai is renowned for luxury and extravagance and the Al Sarab doesnt disappoint. This two-storey rooftop bar overlooks the Arabian Desert and is spotted with semi-private banquettes, laden with cushions and lit by soft lantern light. Therell be a gentle breeze coming in from the desert and, to complete the scene, melodious oud music playing softly in the background. You are now set for a very memorable evening.

IT SOUNDS LIKE A TRANSCENDENT EXPERIENCE.

A couple of the bars signature Desert Classic cocktails ordered to the table and a few puffs of the tableside shisha (a gamut of fruit-inspired varieties available) can pretty much guarantee it.

Feroz Khan ALAMY

COCKATOO ISLAND,
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
WWW.THEISLANDBAR.COM.AU

IM GUESSING THIS IS MORE THAN A BIG BENCH IN THE MIDDLE OF A ROOM?

Spot on. Cockatoo Island is the location, smack bang in the middle of Sydneys harbour.

THE VIEW MUST BE SPECIAL.

Its views are everything you want to see when in Sydney. Plus, you can take it all in on a deck chair under a striped beach umbrella with a cocktail and a slice of wood-fired pizza.

SOUNDS PRETTY IDYLLIC.

It does now but it wasnt always so rosy on Cockatoo Island; in the 19th century the island was used to house convicts who had reoffended in the colony.

IM INNOCENT!

Luckily for modern patrons the island is a short ferry ride to and from the mainland and is decidedly more comfortable than it once was. That said, the island is still at the mercy of the elements the bar is sometimes forced to close when the sea is too threatening and shuts in winter. The rest of the time the converted-shipping-container bar pumps out tropically themed cocktail creations like the Captain Thunderbolt Mai Tai (named after the only prisoner to escape the island).

John Simmons ALAMY

NESJAVELLIR VID THINGVALLAVATN,
801 SELFOSS, ICELAND
WWW.IONICELAND.IS

A CHRISTMAS-THEMED BAR?

Not a chance. This is Nordic uber-cool boutique bar action, about 45 minutes drive from Reykjavik.

WILL I SEE THE AURORA BOREALIS?

May to October is the best time for some dazzling light shows. The double-height windows look out across the ice-worn rocks and barren ground with a full sky backdrop. If your vision was up to it, you could probably see forever.

THAT SOUNDS PRETTY SPECIAL.

Theres no question, this place is all about location, location, location. As a part of the Ion Luxury Adventure Hotel, youll find a quality drink (though you may have to call for service in this minimalist-in-all-ways establishment).

SO IVE SEEN THE LIGHTS. NOW WHAT?

If it can be called adventure, you can do it here: hiking volcanoes, horse riding on black-sand beaches, super-jeeping to glaciers and waterfalls. And more: rafting, fissure diving, ice climbing. Youll be seeing stars. Or lights, anyway.

DO I HAVE TO DO ALL THAT?

Yes. Yes, you do.

ION Luxury Adventure Hotel, Reykjavik

118TH FL, INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE CENTRE,
1 AUSTIN ROAD WEST, HONG KONG, CHINA
WWW.RITZCARLTON.COM/EN

FUNNY NAME FOR A BAR.

Well, there are many contenders for that title, surely! And when youre on the 118th floor looking down, youll feel like youre somewhere in the ozone layer 15km up.

ISNT OZONE BAD FOR ME?

Youll be fine, you wont be breathing it! Instead youll be drinking some of the finest cocktails in Asia.

HMMM. REALLY? A HOTEL BAR?

If youre in Hong Kong, youd be crazy not to pay a visit, if only for the view. Factor in seriously well-made, unique house-devised wonders in a luxe, stylish cloud in the sky and itll be the best $30 you spend!

$30 FOR A DRINK!!!

A trip to the buildings observation deck is about $20, so depending on your priorities, this is potentially a bargain. You can spend less than that, but why not spoil yourself?

OK, IM IN. WHAT DO I ORDER?

Have a Dragontiniyou might see Drogon flying by. Its a vodka-based cocktail with raspberry, yuzu and basil accents its sure to help with your urge to soar.

The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong/ Chris Cypert

63RD FL, STATE TOWER,
1055 TH SILOM, BANGKOK, THAILAND
WWW.LEBUA.COM/SKY-BAR

SO WHERE IS THIS PLACE?

Halfway between Bangkok and earths exosphere, 63 floors up on the roof of the luxury Lebua State Tower.

WHY AM I HERE?

Pollution-free alfresco cocktails with Bangkoks style-set and a 360 view of the frenetic, sprawling beast of a city below.