South Indian Flavours Are Rewriting India’s Cocktail Playbook

At Sidecar in Delhi, the bestselling Kaapi Time is no shy pour – it blends milk-washed Paul John Nirvana whisky, Subko coffee, and passion fruit jelly into a bold, South Indian-inspired serve.

In Mumbai, The Bombay Canteen stirs up Waiting List, a fizzy highball of coconut fat-washed tequila and curry leaf soda, cheekily tipping its hat to Matunga’s legendary Udupi queues.

Across India, bartenders are stirring, shaking, and fat-washing their way through the flavours of the south. At Comorin Mumbai, the tangy Neer More 2.0 turns Neer, the humble south Indian buttermilk, into a cocktail with swagger – chilli-infused tequila, housemade velvet falernum, ajwain liqueur, and coriander foam bring the heat and the drama.

Hyderabad’s Aidu delivers flair with Guntur Karam – a sweet-spicy blast of tequila, mango, chilli liqueur, citrus, and mango caviar that pops like confetti on your tongue. Prefer a softer cocktail? The MograTini leans floral, with blue pea tea and mogra syrup bottling up a jasmine-scented night.

At ITC Maurya’s Avartana in Delhi, the Alappuzha Nariyal Boulevardier is fat-washed with coconut oil, mustard seeds, red chillies and curry leaves. There's also Guntur Imli Highball – tequila reposado clarified with milk, topped with jeera foam.

“It’s not a trend but a movement,” highlights Minakshi Singh, CEO and Co-founder at Sidecar. “Just like restaurants began celebrating regional stories, cocktails are now telling their own.”

Bold Flavours, Cultural Heft

Not too long ago, ‘South Indian’ behind the bar meant a splash of coconut water or a token swirl of tamarind. But today’s bartenders are going deeper, raiding kitchen shelves for kokum, jaggery, toddy, curry leaves, and strong, syrupy filter kaapi. These aren’t just flavour bombs; they are cultural powerhouses.

“There’s real excitement around bold, expressive Indian flavours,” says Varun Sharma, Head of Bars at EHV International, which runs Comorin in Gurugram and Mumbai, and Hosa in Goa. “That sense of discovery is what’s driving the shift.”

But this isn’t about throwing in ‘ethnic’ garnishes for novelty. It’s about mixing with meaning. “South Indian cocktails offer spice, tang and memory,” says Priyansha Jain, Co-founder of Vellam, which serves elevated Southern cuisine. “It’s not trend-chasing, it’s reclamation.”

Today’s cocktail programmes focus on liquid flavour experiences, and South Indian ingredients naturally lend themselves to that approach.

“Flavour profiles like tart tamarind, umami-rich coffee, nutty coconut, and peppery curry leaves are now being recognised as versatile and bold elements in cocktails,” shares Harish Chhimwal, Lead Mixologist, Olive Group of Restaurants at Monkey Bar.

There’s also a growing appreciation for lesser-known ingredients such as Nannari (Indian sarsaparilla root), traditionally consumed as a cooling summer drink in parts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. “Its earthy, slightly sweet flavour works beautifully in cocktails, especially when layered with Indian botanicals or citrus,” says Prantik Haldar, Beverage Innovations Head at The Bombay Canteen. “This kind of ingredient, once seen as too niche, is now celebrated for exactly that reason.”

Memory, Identity, And The Glass 

Guests today are chasing more than novelty; they are chasing memory. “From tangy rasam to spiced pickles and tropical fruits, there’s a whole sensory world waiting to be reimagined,” says Virendra Singh, Head Mixologist at IDYLLL Bengaluru. “The appeal isn’t just flavour, it’s storytelling.”

And that story hits close to home: the smell of roasting curry leaves, the hum of a phin, or the tangy bite of tamarind-smeared raw mango. South Indian flavours pack emotional muscle, and bartenders are learning how to flex it. 

A decade ago, most bar programmes stuck to safe global templates with the occasional ‘masala twist.’ South Indian ingredients were considered too bold, too savoury, too kitchen-oriented. Not anymore!

“They are no longer side notes,” says Sharma. “We are reimagining kokum, tamarind, mustard seeds, and filter coffee with balance and intent, through fat-washing, syrups, and infusions.”

Now, filter kaapi is shaken into flips and martinis; black jaggery sweetens smoky Old Fashioneds, and curry leaves are torched tableside for a herbaceous hit. At Hosa in Goa, the Rum Kokum Cola – a house-made kokum cola and white rum highball tastes like a Goan sunset: light, citrusy, and unmistakably coastal.

“Whether it’s a rasam‑infused Bloody Mary or a ghee-washed Old Fashioned, we’re remixing classics with ingredients that speak to where we come from,” says Deepak Jiyal, Head Mixologist at The Piano Man, Delhi. 

At a recent collaboration with Spotify Echo at The Piano Man, Eldeco Centre, the jazz club unveiled a bespoke cocktail menu, headlined by the hot-selling Filter Coffee Old Fashioned. A blend of whisky, jaggery syrup, and bold filter kaapi over ice, the drink stole the show.

Hyper-regional menus

What makes these flavours cocktail-ready is the technique. Fat-washing tequila in coconut oil mimics the satiny texture of Kerala payasam while milk-clarifying whisky with filter coffee strips tannins but preserves aroma. Kokum and nannari syrups add acidity and body without overpowering the spirit.

“For a long time, Indian flavour in cocktails meant generic spice blends, masala chai infusions, or chaat-inspired rims,” says Haldar. “Now, there’s deeper interest in hyper-local traditions – from the smoky spice of Chettinad to the coastal funk of Malabari dishes.

At Avartana Delhi, ingredients like Guntur imli, Anantpura bajra, and Salem chilli surprise and delight. “Their popularity has helped shift perceptions, showcasing the richness of South Indian flavours in mixology,” says Ravi Batra, Assistant F&B Manager at ITC Maurya, New Delhi.

Vellam leans unapologetically southern. The Madrasi Sour gives the whisky sour a desi spin–tamarind instead of simple syrup, lime for old-school soul. Equally loved is the Mangai Picante: raw mango, tequila, a whisper of chilli, and a podi-rimmed glass that drinks like a street snack. 

At Monkey Bar, it’s all about tomato rasam. Their Rasam ki Kasam shakes up curry-leaf-infused tequila with rasam water, agave spirit, and asafoetida saline, finished with a habañero shrub. “Earthy, tangy, distinctly South Indian,” Chhimwal. 

IDYLLL’s cocktail list reads like a travelogue. The Amla Picante pairs tequila with Mathania chilli, elderflower, zesty amla, and cilantro — “a sip that crackles,” says Singh.

The Kerala Mango Pachadi blends house-made pachadi with tequila, ginger, cardamom, and chilli — tropical yet grounding, like a breeze off the backwaters.

Harmonising plate and pour

At Hyderabad’s Aidu, food and drink are designed “in rhythm,” says Managing Director Aman Chainani. Cocktails mirror or contrast flavours on the plate, turning dinner into a sensory duet.

“Our food and drink programmes are designed to echo one another, with cocktails that highlight, contrast, or enhance the South Indian flavours on the plate,” he adds. 

Sharma finds this most exciting. “Using shared ingredients like coconut, curry leaves, and tamarind creates a seamless experience where food and drink speak the same language.”

At Hosa, a smoked-tamarind Old Fashioned pairs with grilled meats, while coconut-fat-washed rum sits beside fermented rice dishes.

Currently, Vellam collaborates with regional chefs who are familiar with the core flavours of South Indian cuisine. The plan ahead is to invite multidisciplinary chefs to bring in fresh perspectives to push the bar menu forward. “For us, it's about staying rooted while evolving with curiosity and intent,” says Jain. 

The Road Ahead 

South India may be the starting point, but the ripple is nationwide. As bartenders turn local, loud, and layered, Indian drinking culture itself is being rewritten. Menus are no longer defined by one-size-fits-all ‘desi’ cues – they are diving into micro-regions, seasonal produce, and forgotten staples. 

Singh of Sidecar sees it as part of a broader cultural shift. “We’re digging into history, archives and our grandmothers’ tales. So many stories were untapped while we looked West. Now it’s back to basics, geographically and culturally.”

Ingredients once dismissed as ‘too savoury’ or ‘too niche’ are centre-stage. From kokum highballs to jaggery Old Fashioneds, these are not exotic drinks – they are the spine of the new narrative.

Back at Sidecar, Kaapi Time still tops the charts. The cocktail bottles a feeling of stainless-steel tumblers clinking at 6 am or of train journeys scented with roasted chicory. Guests sense that, even if they can’t name it.

That, ultimately, is the promise of the South Indian cocktail movement: drinks that speak fluent nostalgia while pouring the future. Glasses, where spice and story, tang and technique, all come home to toast a bold new chapter in Indian mixology.