Leisure Collective
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The Singleton and Nafasi brought their fifth A Taste of Expression to Como in Tigoni — a curated afternoon of food, art, music and whisky that felt like culture at its most intentional.
There are events you attend and events you experience. The fifth edition of A Taste of Expression, held at Como in Tigoni, Limuru, was firmly the latter. Nestled in the cool, green quiet of the Limuru highlands, the afternoon unfolded as a genuinely curated celebration of creativity in its most human forms: food, art, jewellery and live music, anchored by The Singleton single malt whisky and brought to life by an entirely female lineup of some of Kenya's most compelling creative voices.
The Singleton has been partnering with Nafasi since its second edition, and five editions in, the format has found its confidence. This was not a sponsored event with creative dressing. It was a creative event with whisky at its centre, and the difference is significant.
Como is the kind of venue that makes you wonder why you do not spend more weekends in Tigoni. Chef Stephanie Kiragu, popularly known as Steph the Chef, owns and runs the property, and her sensibility is visible in every corner of it. The garden setting added a natural intimacy to an afternoon that could easily have felt performative in a different space. Here, everything breathed.
Steph the Chef's five-course menu was the structural backbone of the afternoon and the most ambitious element of the day. Her approach combines locally sourced ingredients with global culinary influences, and the whisky pairings were designed to reveal rather than dominate, drawing out flavour dimensions in both the food and the spirit that neither would achieve independently.
The afternoon opened with The Orchard Prelude, a bright combination of The Singleton 12-Year-Old, crisp apple and rhubarb, served with Limuru Camembert. It was a considered opening gambit, using a locally produced cheese to ground the pairing in the landscape the guests were sitting in.
What followed demonstrated the range of The Singleton's flavour profile across its expressions. Malindi Harmony elevated the delicate flavours of Malindi cod, while Smoked Harvest, whose notes of roasted beetroot and tangerine, complemented the smoky richness of Ruaraka duck.
The pairings worked because Steph the Chef approached them with the same precision she applies to her cooking generally. These were not afterthoughts. They were arguments for how well-crafted whisky and well-sourced food belong in conversation.
The Highland Ember arrived as the evening moved toward its close. A whisky-forward cocktail built on The Singleton 18-Year-Old, rich sherry and subtle cocoa spice, paired with aged beef fillet. The 18-Year-Old's depth and complexity made this the most memorable pairing of the afternoon, a combination where the richness of the spirit and the richness of the meat found a middle ground that felt genuinely earned.
To close: Ugandan cacao pudding served with Singleton 18-infused gelato. A smooth, unhurried finish that mirrored The Singleton's own character perfectly. Nobody left the table in a hurry.
Angela Wambui, a contemporary Kenyan artist, brought a different kind of expression to the garden. Her work explores emotion, identity and the stories that connect people, and the combination of expressive paintings and elaborate beadwork created a space for reflection and conversation that sat naturally alongside the food and whisky. In a garden setting, surrounded by the Tigoni landscape, her work felt entirely at home. The kind of art that invites you to sit with it rather than simply look at it and move on.
Christine Wambui's live set was the welcome the afternoon deserved. Performing as guests arrived and settled in with their welcome cocktails, her soulful, warm sound set the tone before a single course had been served — creating the kind of unhurried, present atmosphere that a seated tasting experience needs from its very first moment. By the time guests moved to the table, the room was already exactly where it needed to be.
Pardis Khozoei, founder of Sculpt Wear, completed the creative showcase with a collection of handcrafted jewellery pieces influenced by architecture, form and contemporary design. The pieces illustrated how personal experience and emotion can be translated into wearable art, which is a concept that aligned naturally with the afternoon's broader theme. Guests who engaged with the collection left with a different understanding of what jewellery can communicate beyond decoration.
The Singleton is a single malt Scotch whisky produced at Glendullan Distillery in Speyside, Scotland, one of the most celebrated whisky-producing regions in the world. Its character is built around approachability without sacrificing complexity, a balance of sweetness, fruit and oak that makes it genuinely versatile across food pairings in a way that heavier, more peated expressions cannot match.
The 12-Year-Old is the entry point, offering a smooth, honeyed profile with fresh fruit notes. The 18-Year-Old deepens and darkens, adding dried fruit, sherry richness and a long, warming finish that earns its place at the end of a meal rather than the beginning.
The Singleton's partnership with Nafasi and A Taste of Expression reflects a consistent philosophy: that the most meaningful brand presence is built not through advertising but through shared experience.
"At The Singleton, we believe that the most memorable moments are those that bring people together through shared experiences," said Simon Lapyem, Brand Manager. "This edition was special, as it showcased an extraordinary group of women who are shaping culture through food, art, music, and design."
Five editions in, A Taste of Expression has become exactly that: not an annual event on a calendar but a growing body of work, adding to itself with each iteration.
The afternoon in Tigoni made a case for something that premium lifestyle events in Nairobi often attempt but rarely achieve: genuine integration. The food informed the whisky. The whisky informed the pairings. The art informed the atmosphere. The music informed the mood. And the setting, a garden in the Limuru highlands in July's cool air, informed everything.
A Taste of Expression has found its format. We look forward to the sixth edition.
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