LB at Four Seasons Hotel Suzhou Launches Suzhou Themed Cocktails: Interpreting Suzhou Charm with Local Inspiration

Since ancient times, Suzhou has been famous for its unique waterside landscape and profound cultural heritage. William Zhang, the head bartender at Four Seasons Hotel Suzhou, explored Suzhou, immersed himself in the city's history and local customs, and drew inspiration from the local culture to specially launch a brand-new cocktail menu. He mentioned, "We hope that guests can taste the unique charm of this city in every cocktail." This cocktail menu is divided into three series according to the three parts of the character 蘇Su: 艸 (plant), 鱼 (fish), and 禾 (rice).

The 艸 (plants) series of cocktails, inspired by fruits and flowers, presents four herbal cocktails: 金（桂花） - Osmanthus, 玉（苍兰） - Freesia, 满（石榴） - Pomegranate, and 堂（海棠） - Begonia. 金（桂花） - Osmanthus is derived from the golden colour of osmanthus flowers. Osmanthus blooms abundantly in Suzhou in autumn, with a fragrance that fills the air. William paired osmanthus with beer, allowing the balanced sweet and sour taste to make the fragrance of autumn osmanthus blend and bloom in the glass. 玉（苍兰） - Freesia is inspired by the elegant charm of freesia. Freesia aroma is combined with vodka, along with the interweaving of peach fruit flavour and coffee roasted aroma, presenting a sweet and sour taste. 满（石榴） - Pomegranate combines winter mulled wine with pomegranate brandy, and the embellishment of Chinese five-spice powder and plum wine adds more Chinese style flavour to this cocktail. 堂（海棠） - Begonia is one of the iconic plants of Suzhou Gardens. It has the beautiful connotations of wealth and good fortune in Chinese culture. The aroma of Begonia blends with the flavours of persimmon and ginkgo, as if integrating the beautiful scenery of Suzhou gardens into the cocktail.

 The 鱼（Fish）series is inspired by the freshness of rivers and lakes, presenting a unique Jiangnan flavour: 蟹 - Lake Crab and 虾 - River shrimp. 蟹 - Lake Crab features the flavour of Chinese wine. Although there is no crab in the drink, it offers an umami taste on the taste buds, allowing guests to experience a unique and interesting flavour. The 虾 - River shrimp, which combines Fino and Hua Diao (Chinese yellow wine) and is paired with shrimp jelly, integrates Chinese and Western elements and interweaves a rich taste.

The "禾(rice)" series of cocktails is mainly based on Chinese rice wine, including 醴 - Li  and 醪 - Lao . According to historical records, 醴 - Li is a wine made overnight. Using rice wine as the base, it blends with rosy pomelo to create a floral and fruity fragrance, and with the addition of Thai lime gin, it gives a fresh flavour and a smooth, slightly sweet taste.  醪 - Lao is unfiltered wine containing lees. The mellow of rice wine blends with the sour taste of hawthorn, it smells slightly sour but tastes sweet, which reflects the characteristics of unfiltered lees in rice wine.

Located in Four Seasons Hotel Suzhou, the LB can be reached by walking into the hotel lobby. Built by the lake and living by the water, the skyline of Suzhou city can be seen at night. Here, encounter a new cocktail menu and enjoy the unique charm of the ancient city of Suzhou.

When night falls, LB also offers a panoramic night view of the magnificent outline of Jinji lake and Suzhou city. Indulge in LB's new themed cocktails and the unique charm of Suzhou.