3 Ways Consumers Can Choose To Drink Sustainably — Says Malaysian Mixologist And Sustainability Champion, Angel Ji Of Bar Triptyk
A first-hand look at how bar-goers and cocktail drinkers can help the green cause with simple, actionable tips.
08 March 2024
Share this exclusive content from Saladplate
Photo caption: Angel Ji, owner of sustainability-focused bar Triptyk in Kuala Lumpur. | Photo credit: Triptyk
At the age of 27, Angel Ji came face-to-face with what she labels a “quarter-life crisis”. Sitting behind a desk all day was simply not her calling, and she had just realised it. She soon left her corporate job and took up a part-time bartending gig to pay the bills. Twelve years on, the spirited, Malaysian mother of two is now an accomplished mixologist running one of Malaysia’s leading sustainably minded bars — Triptyk in Kuala Lumpur, which stands proud as a trailblazer of the region’s cocktail scene.
Photo caption: Triptyk is Angel Ji’s sustainability-focused brainchild. | Photo credit: Triptyk
Angel’s commitment to sustainable living has remained steadfast, rooted in a pivotal educational experience at the age of 12. During a school excursion in 1997 to a waste incinerator plant in Singapore, she was captivated by the transformation of waste into red building bricks. This profound encounter sparked a lifelong dedication to waste management and sustainable living.
Now a prominent advocate for sustainable drinking in her region, Angel offers three actionable ways for bar-goers to contribute to a more conscious future.
1. The Closer To Home, The Better
When it comes to ordering drinks at your favourite bar, one easily-adoptable way to lower your carbon footprint is to simply understand where the ingredients originate from. Simply put, the farther away an ingredient hails from, the higher its toll on the environment in terms of its carbon footprint in the importation process, such as fuel consumption. Ordering drinks made using locally sourced ingredients is the best way to go.
Operating in Malaysia, a predominantly Muslim country, poses challenges for Angel’s Triptyk in sourcing local spirits due to stringent alcohol regulations.
Photo caption: PaperKite is one of the few locally-sourced alcoholic beverages Malaysia has to offer. | Photo credit: PaperKite
“While challenging, we are committed to sourcing products locally in Malaysia to reduce our importing footprint. Certain limitations apply – tequila, mezcal, cognac, and bourbon must originate from specific regions. However, we make extra efforts to source everything else closer to home. We carry many regionally sourced spirits like Lady Trieu Gin from Vietnam and Nusa Cana rum from Bali. Most recently, we started a partnership with Paper Kite, a locally-produced and legal-to-sell beer in Malaysia.”
Photo caption: Triptyk’s record-low weekly wet waste weight is an impressive 226 grams. | Photo credit: ASphotostudio via Envato Elements
2. Doing our part with the basics
The 3 R’s —reduce, reuse, recycle, are probably the most basic rules in green living but it plays a major part in sustainable drinking. As a consumer, choosing to patronise establishments that actively partake in the 3Rs is an easy way to directly support green-minded bars. Triptyk’s commitment to reducing waste is admirable. Wet waste is weighed every week to keep themselves in check. Their record low for waste in a week is a measly 226g. A fraction of the weight a standard bar would produce on a nightly basis, which goes to show what is possible for the industry to achieve.
It takes work, though.
“My manager often complains about the ‘extra’ work,” Angel chuckles, albeit sheepishly. “We diligently separate our recyclables and reuse all necessary paper. Pineapple leftovers from cocktails go to a partner bar for Tepache. Citrus peels for garnish are sourced from another partner bar. Anything that can be, gets pickled. The leftover fruit pulp is repurposed for roll-ups and garnish dustings. Everything here has a second, maybe even a third life.”
Photo caption: Triptyk was deliberately designed to preserve its original architecture. | Photo credit: Triptyk
Apart from operations, Angel’s choice of location for Triptyk was also guided by the 3 R’s. Aptly located in a historic pre-war shophouse, Triptyk’s architect Ahmed Zareh deliberately opted for a minimalist approach with preservation at the forefront of his concept. “The less construction work, the better. It only made sense to use what was already there.”
Photo caption: Angel is doing all she can for a greener future, and hopes consumers will come around sooner rather than later. | Photo credit:Triptyk
3. A Lifestyle Choice
Angel’s final tip on drinking sustainably extends to looking at the big picture. Consumers must come to terms with the fact that sustainable living is neither a mere industry trend nor a lifestyle choice, but instead the reality of the near future. Despite more establishments shifting to greener operations, Angel hasn’t always felt consumer support. Triptyk is indeed a sustainability-focused bar, but it is a business nonetheless, and in business, the dollars speak louder.
“Environmentally conscious Consumers are really impressed with us and it is very validating. In general, though, I don’t think sustainable drinking is prioritised high up the list by the average consumer,” admits Angel.
Photo caption: “It just makes sense” – Angel Ji, on her commitment to sustainability. | Photo credit: Triptyk
Fortunately, Angel’s unwavering dedication to sustainability assures us of her continued persistence. With time and education, we can hope that the average consumer’s perceptions will shift towards greener practices. “When I returned to the nightlife industry after my corporate stint, I always knew I would open my own bar with a full commitment to sustainability. Why? Because it just makes sense,” she proudly proclaimed. “We’re only here for a short time, yet we’re destroying the only place we have to live. I sound like a tree hugger, but it’s true. Our earth is exhausted from the excessive production, and the F&B industry ranks as the third-highest food-waste producing industry,” Angel passionately expressed.
The onus of course lies with the establishments to provide a value-for-money proposition for consumers, and bars like Triptyk offer consumers the opportunity to “buy” some environmental goodwill with that money. Perhaps it is time for the average consumer to rethink what kind of value can be bought with their dollar.
Photo Caption: Triptyk Cocktail | Photo credit: Triptyk
Author: Julianna Hedger
Julianna is a seasoned content specialist who started her writing career in unscripted television production and broadcast news at FOX Sports Asia and the Associated Press. She has since added various writing skills to her repertoire, such as long-from articles, SEO-driven blogs and social media copywriting. She is driven by her personal passions in content creation, food and sports media.
