Asia's Top 1 Bar COA Comes to Shanghai
Winning 7th in the world and 1st in Asia in 2021, COA finally comes to Shanghai!
Video Tour of COA Shanghai
The Mexican-style three-story bar space features 200+ Tequila types and has brought over their Hong Kong bartender.
A Peek Behind the Scenes
COA Hong Kong
In 2017, Jay Khan, who grew up in Hong Kong, China, built COA, a cocktail bar featuring agave spirits, in the Central SOHO neighborhood because of his love for Mexican spirits and culture.
COA Hong Kong
In less than four years, COA has become one of the top ten bars globally and won many awards such as No. 1 among "2021 Asia's 50 Best Bars," No. 7 among "2021 World's 50 Best Bars" and more.
Jay Khan, the founder of COA
As a bartender with more than 13 years’ experience, Jay has visited Mexico numerous times over the past ten years since he tried his first Mezcal in 2010 to study the local Tequila culture in-depth.
The bar is themed after Oaxaca from Southwest Mexico. The name COA is also derived from the tool used by the locals to harvest agave.
COA Shanghai
In 2020, Eleven, a COA’s loyal guest and also a partner of COA Shanghai, suggested to open a store in Shanghai.
The entrance of COA Shanghai
It took the team almost a month to find a suitable site.
More than 200+ tequilas are available in the store, including rare kinds only found in COA Shanghai.
Resembling a Small Town in Mexico
The first floor is a bar area called La Cantina; the second floor El Salón has a lounge area and a small terrace outside. El Ático, an invite-only tasting room for spirits, is on the third floor.
The space follows the Oaxaca bar style from the Hong Kong store, with elements of wood, brick, and concrete, as well as their colored wall paintings.
Guests can see a mural of the agave goddess Mayahuel and 400 drunken rabbits, and wall paintings of different varieties of agave plants.
Every brick used in the space is dismantled from old buildings and specially treated. 15 cm cinema-grade professional sound insulation is installed in the walls.
Even the hand cream used is Tulipmania by the Swedish brand, Byredo, which shows COA’s pursuit of perfection in details.
The Space Is Like a Mexican Spirits Museum
Agave spirits are distilled spirits made from agave.
There are hundreds of agave species, and dozens of them are used in liquor making. For example, tequila is made from blue agave.
Including tequila, all agave tubers-based distilled spirits are also known as mezcal. There are also other kinds of Agave Spirits, such as raicilla and bacanora.
In COA, guests can find Del Maguey, the pioneer of modern mezcal; Curado, which includes roasted agave; and Ocho, a high-quality tequila made from traditional producing methods.
Tequila is divided into different grades, such as Blanco that has not been aged, Reposado that has been aged for at least two months, Añejo that has been aged for more than one year, and Extra Añejo that has been aged more than three years. COA also has the 21-year-aged Extra grade Fuenteseca, the longest aged spirit from the brand.
A special spirit called Montelobos Pechuga is made by re-distilling the original mezcal. After the second distillation, fruits are added and a piece of meat is hung during the third distillation to give a savory and umami flavor.
The cups here are special: Copita, the traditional clay cup from Mexico; Jicara, the tool that local winemakers commonly use; and the tequila glasses specially made by Riedel.
The unique Veladora is also there. It was originally a church item for candles and was later used as a liquor glass by the Oaxaca people.
Get a Taste of COA’s Creativity
As one of the top 10 cocktail bars in the world, you must be curious about the cocktail list here.
Robin, a veteran bartender at the brand’s Hong Kong store, is now in COA Shanghai to ensure the guests are treated to a quality COA bar experience.
AGAVE CLOVER CLUB （left）
TOMMY’S MARGARITA (right)
The cocktail menu is mainly divided into classic and innovative cocktails, which are twist versions of classic cocktails, and 8 original cocktails.
THREE SALT MARGARITA
THREE SALT MARGARITA, made with Blanco-grade tequila, is topped with regular sea salt and two kinds of exotic salt and has a strong Mexican flavor.
ANCHO HIGHBALL
ANCHO HIGHBALL, another tequila-based drink, uses Ancho Chile with salted plum and clarified guava soda.
COCONUT MILK PUNCH
COCONUT MILK PUNCH is one of COA's signature cocktails.
The drink blends coconut milk, pineapple juice, and rum and is filtered and topped with aged rum as the spirit base and dry sherry to neutralize the sweetness.
LA CHINESCA
LA CHINESCA combines Mexican and Chinese elements and is inspired by the Chinese community in northern Mexico.
COA adds jalapeño, tomato water, cilantro, ginger honey and other rich flavors to the habanero spirit, and tops it with sesame oil.
SINIESTRO
SINIESTRO combines mezcal with bourbon and has a lovely chocolate aroma.
Mexican food are also available here. Handmade nachos are fried daily and served in Chips & Guacamoles or Chips & Salsa.
The store also offers four different taco options: pork, chicken, seafood, and vegetables.
COA team
Do visit and have a drink at COA to enjoy Mexican spirits!
COA Shanghai
Address: No. 313 Jiaozhou Road (590m away from Exit 3 Changping Road Metro Station)
Business hours (during soft opening):
Tuesday-Thursday, Sunday: 19:00-24:00
Friday and Saturday: 19:00-01:00
Closed on Monday
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