Whiskey Galore...
CUSTOMERS at one of Newcastle’s newest venues are splashing up to £900 a bottle on their favourite tipple.
Lavish, £1m, gentleman’s club Whiskey Down, above Stein Bier Keller in the city’s Bigg Market, prides itself on a carefully curated menu of whiskies from around the world.
And its selection has found favour with customers, keen to sample everything from American bourbons and top Irish whiskeys to premium Japanese malts.
Among the top of the range brands displayed in specially made glass cabinets in an elegant, wood paneled lounge, are Dalmore 18yr and Dalmore King Alexander III – each matured in American white oak ex-Bourbon casks and aged Matusalem Oloroso Sherry casks
While the Macallan Rare Cask – from one of Scotland’s most popular distilleries – is widely considered one of the finest on the general market.
For a fraction less, at £800 a bottle, connoisseurs can savour Kentucky Owl; an American bourbon, first crafted in 1879 but which stopped production entirely in 1916 when US prohibition laws were introduced.
A hundred years later, a descendant of the distillery’s founder started it up again and the label has since gone on to win numerous awards.
For those with less deep pockets, these and other labels can be purchased as single measures, giving drinkers the chance to experience the finest flavours for less.
And customers’ choice is not limited to whisky, with Whiskey Down also offering a full range of top end spirits and champagnes and a bespoke champagne lounge available for private hire and corporate events.
The venue, owned by Tokyo Industries, is the latest to open following the success of sister clubs in Leeds and Manchester and also offers discreet, private rooms where lap dances are available, with a main area where girls also perform.
Rob Halliday, of Tokyo Industries, said Whiskey Down was designed to replicate the sophisticated, members’ only gentlemen’s clubs, generally frequented by the rich and privileged.
“It’s a sumptuous, relaxing and welcoming environment and an ideal haven from the city’s noisier bars and clubs,” he said.
“Everyone is welcome – men and women – just to enjoy the surroundings or try our vast selection of whiskies and gins, they don’t have to have a lap dance.”
Whiskey Down is open Sunday to Thursday, from 9pm to 3am on Fridays from 8pn and Saturdays from 7pm.
Entry is £10, with a private dance costing from £25. A membership scheme will also be introduced in the near future.
