Inside Hong Kong’s first closed-loop cocktail bar, Penicillin

Tong Van

Tong Van

Inspired by the farm-to-bar movement taking the culinary world by storm, Penicillin marks Hong Kong’s first sustainable bar to introduce a closed-loop cycle system, with a focus on either locally sourced or up-cycled food and drink ingredients. 

Inside Hong Kong’s first closed-loop cocktail bar, Penicillin

Located on Hollywood Road in Central, Penicillin was launched by Agung Prabowo and Roman Ghale last November, when most bars were still struggling in the middle of the pandemic. Named after the group of mould-derived antibiotics discovered by Alexander Fleming in the 1940s, Penicillin was created in the hope to become Hong Kong’s first “scrap-less” bar – in other words, a bar that produces minimal waste by the end of the night. 

Spanning 1520sqm, Penicillin is surrounded by four key elements – The Penicillin Lab, main bar, the kitchen and The Fermentation Chamber by Collective. 

“With these four elements, we are able to do recycling and upcycling at the same time,” said Prabowo. 

Inside Hong Kong’s first closed-loop cocktail bar, Penicillin

Since its launch, the eco-conscious bar has recycled and upcycled common waste or kitchen by-products, while simultaneously self-brewing, fermenting, growing, and re-using ingredients to be used in cocktails. For example, one of its signature cocktails is created with fermented pickled cabbage and upcycled vermouth made from the oxidised wine, leftover wine and added with local botanical.

The bar also turns potato peels into bar snacks and recycles used papers and leftover ingredients into bottle labels. 

To repurpose cocktail ingredients, Penicillin partners with EcoSpirits (ES), the world’s first closed-loop spirits technology that strives to eliminate single-use glass bottles and dramatically reduce carbon impact.

“Guests will be pleased to know that each Penicillin cocktail accompanied by the “ES” logo saves an average of 150g in CO2 emissions,” the bar says on its website. 

In addition, Penicillin and EcoSpritis have also joined hands with Green Step Group to launch the ‘One Tree One Penicillin’ project, whereby a tree is planted for every one of these cocktails purchased.

Tong Van

Tong Van

Tong Van is a graduate of Ho Chi Minh City Law School majoring in Legal English and has been a content writer and researcher specialising in the retail sector for several years. Her interests include fashion, travel, health & beauty and food.

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