Why this 'Split Drinks' serve is the next big thing in cocktail culture around the world

What if your next cocktail came with its own hydration station? That’s the thinking behind Split Drinks, a new concept from Pernod Ricard that serves water right alongside your cocktail – literally.

The idea is simple: take one glass and divide it into two equal compartments. One holds your cocktail; the other holds water. You can alternate between the two as you drink, making hydration part of the experience rather than the thing you remember only after the last call.

The concept builds on Pernod Ricard’s global Drink More Water initiative, launched in 2021, which encourages moderation, awareness and informed choices while drinking. And with bartenders across some of Asia’s most exciting cocktail bars putting their own spin on the format, the message is becoming something you might actually want to order.

Meet the glass designed for a more balanced night 

The dual-chamber glass gives you two identical-looking serves side by side, making it easy to alternate between your cocktail and water as you drink. And it’s not a one-glass-fits-all situation, either – the special vessel comes in Cosmo, Whisky and Coup formats, each designed to suit different cocktail styles. 

But the clever bit is what happens once the glass hits the bar. At Coolie’s Union in Singapore, bartender Marlon Aseoche says having water built into the serve has noticeably improved drink pacing, with guests drinking more slowly and potentially ordering again because they’re enjoying the experience rather than rushing it.

When water becomes part of the cocktail experience

With Split Drinks, water isn’t just a sidekick. It becomes part of the drinking ritual, sitting right there alongside a cocktail that still gets all the attention you’d expect from a premium bar: thoughtful ingredients, considered techniques and plenty of visual appeal.

At Coolie’s Union, that idea goes a step further. Marlon Aseoche designed The Split Straits Cosmos to be enjoyed in cycles of “sip, pause, water, and return”, with the water resetting the palate so different layers of the drink emerge with each sip.

That rhythm is echoed in Kuala Lumpur, where Neo Bar KL’s Giovanni Andrea Magliaro says the presence of water allowed him to build The Split Fire around clear, expressive flavours without making the drink overly sweet or heavy. Alternating between cocktail and water creates a rhythm that makes the serve feel like a complete experience rather than simply a cocktail with a glass of water on the side.

And the hydration doesn’t have to be plain H2O. At Reka, Anna Koh pairs its whisky sour-inspired Split Barrel and Palm with coconut water, drawing on coconut’s longstanding place in Malaysian cuisine and beverages. “It kind of reminds the guests that we should be as hydrated as we enjoy our cocktails,” she says. The idea is also as much about mindfulness as flavour – giving the body “a break and a reason not to have a hangover”.

From Singapore to Seoul, bartenders are splitting things their way 

The same glass might be doing the rounds across Asia, but the drinks inside it are distinctly local. In Singapore, Coolie’s Union serves The Split Straits Cosmos, a modern riff on the Singapore Sling and Cosmopolitan blending Monkey 47 Gin with passion fruit, pineapple, coconut, pandan and lime. Marlon Aseoche says the drink was inspired by the city’s migrant labourers, bringing together local flavours and the two cocktail traditions in a single glass. 

Over at Side Door, The Split Between Moments takes a more minimalist route, combining Chivas Crystal Gold with kumquat dry vermouth in a Martini-inspired serve.

In Kuala Lumpur, Neo Bar KL’s The Split Fire is the result of Andrea Magliaro wanting a whisky cocktail that felt bright and refreshing in Malaysia’s climate, pairing the richness of Chivas 12 with Sauvignon Blanc, peach liqueur and clarified calamansi vanilla. 

Reka’s Split Barrel and Palm brings together a Jameson Black Barrel-forward whisky sour with coconut water.

Seoul’s bartenders take the concept in an even more experimental direction. At Gong Gan, co-founder Evan’s The Split Geo Myang pairs Redbreast 12 with a vermouth made using quince and omija, a traditional Korean berry with five distinct flavour profiles. He tells us that the idea was to create something that could be enjoyed alongside a familiar Korean drinking ritual – the chaser – rather than treating water as a simple palate cleanser. That makes the water almost another ingredient in the experience: the cocktail’s flavour and finish are designed to continue when followed by the chaser.

Meanwhile, over at Bar Cham, water is already something of a given in Korean bar culture, where it’s usually served without guests having to ask. The difference here is visibility: putting it directly into the same glass makes guests more mindful of how quickly and how much they were drinking.

Its Cosmopolitan in Season puts a Korean spin on the classic with Beefeater Gin and winter ingredients including goheung yuza, pomegranate, burdock, cardamom, pink pepper and kombucha. And because clear water sits directly beside the cocktail, owner-bartender Lim Byung-jin initially focused on creating bright, vivid colours before naturally lowering the alcohol level to make the drink feel lighter.

The takeaway

So, could Split Drinks become a bigger part of cocktail culture? The bartenders aren’t unanimous – and perhaps that’s what makes the concept interesting. Neo Bar KL sees it reflecting a shift towards “more thoughtful drinking, better pacing and greater attention to the overall guest experience”, while Reka’s Anna Koh is more succinct: “Perhaps, if more bars pick up on the trend!” 

The glass may be split down the middle, but the thinking behind it is anything but. From Singapore’s migrant history and Malaysia’s tropical flavours to Korea’s omija and seasonal ingredients, bartenders are using the format as another canvas for local storytelling – while encouraging drinkers to slow down and pay attention. 

As Byung-jin puts it, people today don’t drink cocktails simply to get drunk, and while one concept can’t represent an entire culture, Split Drinks offers a snapshot of where cocktail culture could be heading. And perhaps that’s the point: good drinks are worth savouring, not devouring. 

Experience the Split Drinks cocktails at selected bars across Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul and Bangkok from October onwards. Find out more here. Enjoy responsibly.