The Writing Club is a whisky library on Orchard Road, tucked into the second floor of the stately Palais Renaissance. Behind its bar sits a collection of over 700 hand-picked whisky and spirit labels from around the world, in a 700 square-foot, elegantly designed space that seats 33 comfortably in a posh, intimate setting.
The bar is a husband-and-wife venture by Soo San and Sherin. Soo San, an avid whisky collector for more than ten years, travelled to Scotland, Japan, Taiwan and beyond in search of prized vintages, sourcing bottles from distilleries, whisky shops, and even small, run-down liquor dealers and grocery stores in remote corners of the world. When his growing collection — over 200 bottles at the time — began taking over shelves at home, Sherin's question about whether he'd ever actually drink it all led to the idea for the bar.
The name comes from the couple's own private tradition: a code name for the gang of whisky-loving friends who gathered in their living room for whisky-tasting nights, ostensibly telling their wives they were out at a "Writing Club" sharpening their literary skills. In truth, they were writing something else — tasting notes for every whisky that passed their lips, a practice that became the foundation of the bar's own beverage programme.
Beyond whisky, The Writing Club's selection extends to rum, cognac, fine wines, craft beers, and bespoke cocktails, each curated by the team to suit both whisky aficionados and newcomers alike.
Tucked into the second floor of the Palais Renaissance on Orchard Road, The Writing Club describes itself as Singapore's premier whisky library — a title backed up by a collection of over 700 hand-picked whisky and spirit labels lining the shelves of its intimate, 700 square-foot space.
The bar exists because one collector ran out of shelf space. Soo San, who co-owns The Writing Club with his wife Sherin, had been collecting whisky — what he calls 'liquid gold' — for more than ten years before opening the bar. His hunt took him to Scotland, Japan, Taiwan and countless other countries, tracking down prized vintages not just from established distilleries and whisky shops, but from small, run-down liquor dealers and grocery stores tucked away in remote parts of the world.
By the time his personal collection passed 200 bottles and had taken over the shelves at home, Sherin posed the obvious question: would he ever actually get through it all in his lifetime? That question set Soo San looking for a solution — and The Writing Club was the answer.
The bar's name has a story of its own. Before it existed, 'The Writing Club' was the code name for the group of whisky-loving friends who'd gather in Soo San and Sherin's living room for tasting nights. The name was meant to give the group's wives the impression the men were off somewhere sharpening their literary skills — though, as the story goes, nobody was ever really fooled.
The joke had a grain of truth to it, though. What the group actually wrote down during those nights were detailed tasting notes for every whisky they tried — the same discipline that now underpins The Writing Club's own beverage programme.
The Writing Club's setting matches the seriousness of its collection: an elegantly designed bar that seats 33 comfortably, built for a posh, intimate drinking experience rather than a crowded night out. Alongside its extensive whisky range, the bar also stocks rum, cognac, fine wines and craft beers, and offers bespoke cocktails crafted by its in-house team — designed to appeal to committed whisky aficionados and newer drinkers exploring the category for the first time.
The Writing Club is open from 4pm to midnight, Monday to Saturday, and closed on Sundays. It's also available for private functions, bookable by phone or email.
Getting there is straightforward from most parts of the city. Drivers can use the drop-off point and carpark entry on Claymore Drive, accessible via Claymore Road. For those on public transport, the nearest bus stop is Orchard Road, Delfi Orchard, served by a wide range of bus routes, while the nearest MRT station is Orchard on the North South Line.
For anyone serious about whisky — or simply curious to see what a 700-bottle collection looks like in person — The Writing Club offers a rare chance to explore a genuinely personal, decades-in-the-making collection in the middle of Orchard Road.