Bar Trigona’s beverage manager Rohan Matmary I Photo by Star Sabroso
For the next installment of our series “Ingredients,” where we explore different flavors from across Asia, we’re shining a spotlight on the popular “Kampot Pepper” from Cambodia. This time, we traveled to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to visit the award-winning Bar Trigona (ranked No. 36 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024). We challenged Trigona’s beverage manager, Rohan Matmary, to craft a unique drink celebrating the prized Kampot pepper.
Watch the video below for the recipe:
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If you visit Kuala Lumpur to explore its dynamic bar scene, one of your first stops should be the opulent Bar Trigona. Recognized as Malaysia’s best bar on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list from 2020 to 2023, it also won the Best Cocktail Menu in Asia in 2022 and the Best International Hotel Bar in Asia by Tales of the Cocktail Foundation in 2022 and 2024.
Located inside the Four Seasons Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Bar Trigona is named after Trigona bees, a type of stingless bee that produces the prized kelulut honey. Their drink program highlights Malaysia’s rich terroir, celebrates local produce and sustainability, and shares some of its drink sales toward the revitalization of local bee habitats. The bar also offers guests programs such as adopting a Malaysian beehive to help preserve Trigona bee farms and support safe honeybee habitats. Additionally, guests can participate in educational experiences like exclusive masterclasses, where they can learn the art of cocktail making.
For this episode, Rohan brought forward the flavors of Kampot pepper in a drink that has the Bar Trigona DNA, and used another star ingredient, the kelulut honey. Dubbed the “King of Pepper,” the peppercorns grown in Kampot, located on the southernmost tip of Cambodia, are considered the finest in the world and highly regarded by chefs worldwide for their unique qualities. It is aromatic and comes in various colors, with flavor profiles ranging from spicy to mildly sweet, with floral and citrus notes.
The unique flavor of Kampot pepper is attributed to the mineral-rich soil of the area located between the mountains and the sea. The fresh green peppers are often found in Cambodian markets, are vegetal and zesty, with delicate peppery heat that adds freshness to salads and stir-fry dishes.
The white dried peppercorns are floral, eucalyptus, lemony, with an intense spicy flavour that pairs well with seafood, white meat, and can be used to flavor sauces and stocks. The red one, on the other hand, is fruity, plummy, with notes of sweetness, making it great for compotes or sauces for white and game meats, and seafood. The black peppers are the strongest, intense spicy kick, slightly sweet with botanical, as well as woody and earthy notes. It works well with savory dishes, like steak, or Cambodian dishes like beef lok lak, a stir-fried beef marinated in a sauce with Kampot pepper.
In this episode, Rohan crafted a mezcal-based Old Fashioned that highlights Kampot pepper complemented by kelulut honey—and it’s a drink worth making at home.
Kampot Pepper Old Fashioned
Ingredients:
60 ml Mezcal
1 tbsp Red Kampot Peppercorns
2 tbsp Kelulut Honey
5 ml Fernet Hunter
3 dashes of Cardamom Bitters
How to prepare the pepper-infused honey:
1) In a glass, combine 1 tablespoon of red Kampot peppercorns and torch them for a few seconds to crisp them up.
2) Muddle the peppers before adding at least 2 tablespoons of kelulut honey.
3) Let it infuse for 1 to 2 minutes.
How to make the cocktail:
1) In a glass, mix 60 ml of mezcal with 20 ml of the Kampot pepper-infused honey and set aside.
2) In a mixing glass, combine the mezcal, pepper-infused honey, 3 dashes of cardamom bitters, and ice. Stir until well chilled.
3) Pour the mixture into a rocks glass filled with a block of ice.
4) Garnish with a honeycomb block and at least three peppercorns for a punch of Kampot pepper flavor. Serve.
“The drink is a bit cloudy, because the fun part about Trigona honey is that, since it’s raw, it turns a bit cloudy as soon as it touches water—unlike regular honey, which stays clear,” shares Rohan. “The aroma is dominated by honey at the top and the peppers, but the mezcal has taken a back seat, allowing the peppers to shine through more. In terms of flavor, it has lovely earthy notes from the mezcal, making it very easy to drink and quite tropical. It’s not as strong as a classic Old Fashioned; the heat from the peppers and the sweetness from the honey complement each other, working hand in hand,” he adds.
Watch this space for a new recipe and episode from a different city!
Bar Trigona is located at Four Seasons Hotel Kuala Lumpur, 145 Jalan Ampang, Golden Triangle, Kuala Lumpur, and is open daily from 5pm to 1am. Follow them on Instagram @bartrigona and visit fourseasons.com for more info.
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