For that truly authentic glass of refreshment, you don’t get more Maldivian than screw pine (I’ve even add a “Screw Pine” tag now for the various tree treats). Amilla Fushi offers its own Screw Pine Soda for guests who want to slake their thirst with something straight out of their own island in paradise.
For short lattes or long, LUX South Ari Atoll offers eco-friendly coffee cups that allow you to have your coffee and take it away too…
We all can embrace the ocean with more sustainable choices in what we consume and discard. One of the areas getting lots of scrutiny these days is plastic use. Bottles and bags have already been targeted, but a more recent opportunity is to cut down the use of plastic drinking straws. Carpe Diem (note: the resort is not yet open, but the Carpe Diem cruising yacht is in operation) is not just taking a bite out of plastic use, but is introducing straws you can take a bite out of yourself:
Someone who needs no straw in the Maldives is the legendary whale shark. It cruises the ocean with it’s up to 5 foot wide mouth completely open actively sucking in seawater which it runs across filter pads on its gills which sift out plankton, fish eggs, baby shrimp, etc.
At St. Regis Vommuli, you can get sucked into the mouth of the aquatic beast to quaff your own liquid nourishment at their award winning “Whale Bar”…
The whole concept reminded me of a tradition I read about when I first visited the Maldives for coming-of-age young men. Boys, often no more than 13 years old, would jump off a boat with a rope in hand, free dive into the water where a whale shark was swimming, SWIM INTO THE WHALE SHARKS MOUTH, and then OUT ITS GILLS, hence lassoing the fish. Young boys were the just small enough to pull off this crazy feat. I would certainly consider someone to have proven their “manhood” if they did such a thing. Not surprisingly, the government prohibited this practice years ago because too many young lads were drowning in the effort.
I would much rather toast my arrival at manhood at the Whale Bar, methinks.
(With this post, I’ve added the new topic tag of “Design”.)
Beer with curry, Tequilla with lime and salt, a ‘boilermaker’ of bourbon and beer, Jagerbombs, Oyster with sweet wasabi with Prosecco, Bel Star, Brut, DOC, Veneto, Italy NV chaser.
Classic shot combos that have inspired Huvafenfushi gastronomic line-up of degustation and decantation.
We adore the variety of a tasting menu, but usually aren’t hungry enough to make through such an extensive line up. Huva’s “tasting” menu is literally “a taste”.
“A taste of the gastro mixed with the mixology. Plated shots to include food and beverage paired together in small bites and shots. Please choose from the selection to mix and match your palate.”
When we visited, we did the following rounds of shots…
To toast World Oceans Day today, how about venturing onto the ocean itself to raise a glass? Barefoot resort’s “Black Pearl” is the Maldives only boat bar serving refreshments floating freely on the water.
Barefoot is situated on an inhabited island which means it is not allowed to serve alcohol on its premises in accordance with the respect for its Islamic co-residents. But most non-Islamic guests welcome a drink as a part of their holiday and so Barefoot has secured an alcohol license for its sailing schooner anchored offshore. The resort provides guests with shuttle services to and from.
The boat is charmingly classic with an eerily resemblance to the TV show Lost’s “Black Rock”. And if you know the series, then you will know that it is a great place for a blow out and having a blast.
Welcome drinks range from refreshing tropical fruit drinks to some more creative concoctions, but Anantara Kihavah Villas greeting features a liberal range of libations. They set up a cocktail bar at the welcome area where they will serve you a tropical cocktail of your choosing.
Greetings with a twist!
Champagne seems to be the consummate tipple for both celebrating and for romance. So with the Maldives being the honeymoon capital of the world, champagne does flow as copiously as the azure lagoons. Some might say that in the Maldives, every day is “Champagne Day”, but today that decadence is shared around the world.
If you want to pop a little extra diversity into your brut bubbly banquet, then head over to Conrad Rangali who offers a variety of champers pampers…
“With an extensive wine cellar of over 20,000 bottles, Conrad Maldives Rangali Island further enhances its guests’ wine experience this year with the introduction of three new ways of enjoying champagne at this luxury resort: ‘Bubbles on the Beach’, ‘Sparkling Hour’ and ‘The Perfect Sundowner’…Food and beverage director Wolfgang Brandl explains: “Of course there’s never a wrong way to enjoy champagne, but relaxing in the privacy of your own private villa while taking in the beauty of a breathtaking Maldivian sunset with a glass of your favourite champagne in your hand has to be one of the most spectacular ways to do it.’”
Warning: Brrrrain freeze may result from over enthusiastic appreciation.
One of the most important characteristics in a drink for me is the temperature. I ask for my Starbucks latte’s to be made extra hot. And I like my tropical pina coladas to be extra cold. It is always a disappointment sitting in the toasty sun and being served a lukewarm pina colada. The pina colada is my favourite drink when I am in the Maldives and I have had one at every resort I have visited. The quality and presentation varies as much as the resorts themselves.
It might be a bit of a stretch to say that it was the “best” pina colada I had ever had there, but the Constance Halaveli rendition certainly excelled in a one area – coldness. The drink sent shivers down my throat as I sipped it. It also nicely balanced the sweet pineapple juice and coconut milk with a satisfying kick (I worried that maybe the coldness might come from so much ice that the drink would taste watered down).
As it happens, my wife Lori is a fan of ice coffees. Most are lacklustre efforts of simply dowsing some brew over a pile of ice. But Lori too couldn’t help being struck that the Halaveli was not just the best she had had in the Maldives, but better than any in London that she frequently samples.
Chillingly good.
Ruby anniversary of the Maldives tourism industry continue through the year with the latest tribute being a fine piece by my friend and fellow Maldive chronicler Adrian in the Telegraph – “The History of Tourism in the Maldives”.
Adrian is always a good source of new ‘Best of the Maldives’ candidates and I often run suggestions by him as a double check. His article featured another resort distinction of Constance Halaveli’s cocktail trailblazing…
“Rooms became villas, food became cuisine. Soneva Fushi put in the first wine cellar (quite a feat in shallow coral sand) and soon all the top resorts had sommeliers. Now they have mixologists, too (the Constance Halaveli resort was the first).”