These Milwaukee bars are taking cocktails to the next level
It's not just a drink, it's an adventure.
At some of the city's newer bars, drinks come with something more: aromatic smoke, a comic book, a snack. One drink, at $25, might be the city's priciest.
Some cocktails have savory, vegetal notes, like celery; a bitter edge to cocktails still is popular, but drinks with sweet notes seem to be making a comeback — although, this time around, the sweet notes are light, not heavy.
A couple of these bars have flashy, retro signs; it's a joy to see the neon of the Jazz Estate on the east side and the marquee-like light-bulbed letters spelling out Hotel Madrid above Vermutería 600 in Walker's Point. A couple really have no signs to speak of — Phoenix Cocktail Club, in its stately Cream City brick building downtown, and Dock18 Cocktail Lab, tucked inside Lincoln Warehouse on the south side. Getting inside might be part of the adventure.
Note the amenities at Phoenix and Vermuteria for purse carriers and customers with dead phones or with laptops who are getting in some post-work work over a cocktail: Under the bar tops are purse hooks and outlets.
And, as serious bars do, these places serve water straightaway and keep the glasses filled. It's their way of saying, "We care about you and would rather you didn't feel like the dehydrated embodiment of regret in the morning."
I'll drink to that.
Phoenix Cocktail Club
What it's like: Elegant but chill — not stuffy in the least. Phoenix Cocktail Club opened after much anticipation in December in a 19th-century Cream City brick building downtown. (Look for the address — there's no sign, at least for now.) Inside, it's clean-lined in ivory, with comfortable seating.
The drinks: A well-made, inventive mix that includes cocktails on tap (G & Swish, gin with seasonal house tonic) and slushies (Kill Bill Vol. 3, a bourbon-sour cherry freeze inspired by a family cherry bounce recipe, with Ancho Reyes for spice and a comic book for fun). Some cocktails tap into bar leaders Adam Sarkis and Joey Houghtaling's memories, like One Armed Boxer and its house root beer tincture (with pear brandy, sherry, bitters and brown sugar cordial).
Must try: This one's so popular, the accompanying coloring book was out of stock: Rico's Last Tattoo, a mini-bottle of Sailor Jerry's spiced rum, lodged upside-down in a glass of the house cola with lime. Try the complex Orange, in the "Colors!" category: Auchentoshan American oak Scotch, peach shrub, coffee liqueur, Italian vermouth and bitters.
The food: Snacks are served, like flavored popcorn (such as apple and herbs) and kimchi pork potstickers, and so are more filling plates of comfort food — bibimbap and ramen bowls, mole and curry. The menu keeps to the same format but changes preparations weekly; food is served until 10 p.m. weekdays, midnight Friday and Saturday. Snacks are $4 to $8; bigger plates, $12 to $16.
The soundtrack: Happy hour gets things started with rock and soul oldies; at dinnertime, it's R&B and indie rock. Late at night, the beat is '90s hip-hop.
Capacity: 60, with 40 seats at tables and the bar.
Prices: $9 to $13 for Phoenix's specialty drinks. Happy hour is 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday, with $6 Daiquiris and Old Fashioneds.
Reservations: Not taken.
Hours: 5 p.m. to bar time Tuesday through Saturday.
785 N. Jefferson St. (414) 539-5918. thephoenixmke.com
Vermutería 600
What it's like: Easygoing but with luxe touches, like hefty water glasses. Vermutería 600 aims to look like the polished, modern version of Ernest Hemingway's hunting lodge: dim light, whitewashed brick, black-lacquered hunting trophies on the walls. It's the more casual side of Hotel Madrid; the other side of the first floor holds the fine-dining restaurant Bodegón. Giving the bar a separate room and separate identity smartly lets it cultivate its own bar vibe.
The drinks: Beverage director Dan Beres' cocktails have their roots in classics found in a 1934 Bates Cocktail Index, a metal, scrolling recipe guide, but they've definitely branched out. Standouts include the very lightly sweet Royal Fizz, which counts two rums, banana, a whole egg and house carbonated coconut water among its ingredients; its scent is cocoa powder, from a stencil on top. A take on the French 75, the Seventy Five builds on saffron-infused reposado tequila, mezcal and cava; it's served on slate with spiced walnuts, apricot preserves and manchego.
The drink that might turn the most heads and raise the most eyebrows is the aptly named Living the High Life, ringing up at $25. It's part theater, delivered on a slab of wood under a tall glass cloche; the cover is lifted, and out drifts what the menu calls winter harvest vapor: deliciously aromatic wisps of clove, coffee and pipe tobacco. The drink itself is based on 15-year brandy aged in sherry casks, combined with sweet vermouth and fig-infused dry curaçao, among other ingredients. It might be something of a novelty, but it's also one of the smoothest cocktails around.
Must try: This is a vermuteria, after all, so check out the house-made vermouth on tap — truly delicious. (Sangria's on tap here, too.)
The food: A moderately priced bar menu of snacks (like baked Spanish sheep's milk cheese with pickled apricot and house bread), sandwiches (such as burgers with cheddar or brie) and a couple of entree-like dishes, such as Manchego mac and cheese. (Bar menu is served until 10 p.m.)
The soundtrack: Just about everything, from oldies to indie, to fit the mood.
Capacity: 60, with seats for 35, including several large tables seating six.
Prices: The $25 cocktail is an outlier; other mixed drinks in the index are $10 to $15. There are good deals to be had in the specials: $5 gin and tonics on Tuesday, half-price whiskey pours on Wednesday, an Estrella draft with a shot of house vermouth and a Lucky Strike on Thursday, half off the drink and bar food menus all night Sunday. Daily happy hour, from 5 to 6 p.m., is the same deal — half off the bar food and drink menus.
Reservations: Not taken.
Hours: 5 p.m. until bar time Tuesday to Sunday.
600 S. 6th St. (414) 488-9146. hotelmadridmke.com/bar
Dock18 Cocktail Lab
What it's like: Elbow-rubbingly intimate. This tasting room of Twisted Path Distillery, operated by Bittercube, has to be one of the tiniest bars in Milwaukee. Jam-packed with delicious drinks and happy vibes, though. It's like a treasure hunt: Go to Lincoln Warehouse, look for the glass door past Dock 17; the metal box with the buzzer is the only sign that a cocktail den stands within. Press the button and be greeted with a cheery "Welcome to Dock18" as you're buzzed in. The warehouse has all the warmth of, well, a warehouse, but it's cozy and welcoming in the tasting room.
The drinks: State law says the distillery's own liquors are the only spirits that can be poured, so Dock18 hopped to it: Aside from Twisted Path's organic vodka, gin and white and dark rum, the staff produces everything — liqueurs, tinctures, juices. (Bittercube bitters also are made at Lincoln Warehouse.) Drinks on the menu, which changes weekly, were the epitome of balance.
Must try: The latest, but some of the excellent ones in the recent past included Aunt Beast, gin with cocoa nib-saffron liqueur and citrus notes, lightened with seltzer; Strange Magic, a verdant mix of vodka with celery syrup, lime, amaro and bitters; and The Cake Is a Lie, chocolate-frosting-washed vodka with chocolate cream, seltzer and bitters, served in a miniature glass milk bottle with a straw.
The food: No-fuss snacks such as spiced pecans from Treat Bake Shop, cheese curds and pretzels, $3 to $6.
The soundtrack: Played from an eclectic collection of vinyl, with something for every pace — funk or dance when it's busy, maybe Miles Davis when it's quieter.
Capacity: Around 24, with seats for about 16.
Prices: Cocktails are $9; Lab Tastes, a half-ounce pour of four or so liqueurs made at Dock18, is $8. A cocktail tasting (four half-cocktails and a liqueur sample) is $25. The cocktail grand tour, likened by Dock18 to omakase service at a sushi restaurant (six half-cocktails, a sample of a liqueur and another of a reserve liqueur), over the span of two hours, is $40. A new happy hour is 5 to 7 p.m. Thursdays, with $7 classic cocktails, $9 for a classic with pretzels.
Reservations: Recommended 24 hours or more in advance, especially Friday and Saturday, but walk-ins are welcome; dock18mke.com/reservations.
Hours: 5 p.m. to midnight Thursday and Friday, 1 p.m. to midnight Saturday, with distillery tours until 9 p.m. Parking at the north end of the building and, after 5 p.m., at loading docks not marked "no parking."
2018 S. 1st St., in Lincoln Warehouse (through the glass door, past Dock 17). (414) 737-0692. dock18mke.com
The Jazz Estate
What it's like: The kind of dark bar you can disappear into for a while, with a backdrop of live jazz or music on vinyl. John Dye bought the venerable jazz club and reopened it in the fall (his other bar is Bryant's Cocktail Lounge on the south side). Like Bryant's, the Jazz Estate strikes a retro vibe under updates that include new carpeting, lighting and wallpaper. Take a seat at the intimate banquettes at the back, in front of the stage when musicians play, or at the more hubbub-y bar up front.
The drinks: The 1970s are tastefully brought into the 2010s, much like the club itself. A number of drinks lean sweet but not so sweet; they're more complex. The menu's resurrected classics section includes the Duke, a Harvey Wallbanger that swaps orange curaçao and simple syrup for orange juice. Highballs might contain a bitter note to balance things out; the bar's original drinks lean toward fruitier flavors. A new menu starting Feb. 26 adds several updated classics, including a Grasshopper with amaro.
Must try: Earthly Delights, a potent, delicious blueberry cocktail that builds on rum with ginger and anise notes and is garnished with basil.
The food: A garnish is the closest you'll get to a snack inside the Jazz Estate; outside, though, restaurants are just a short stroll away.
The soundtrack: Jazz, baby. National and local musicians take the stage Thursdays and Saturdays, and occasionally other days. Vinyl spins Tuesdays and sometimes other days, and jam sessions are the first Monday of the month; March 20 is the start of Latin jazz on Mondays mid-month.
Capacity: 62 people, with about 50 seats.
Prices: Specialty drinks, $8 to $11. Cover charge for live music varies, but typically $5 weeknights or $8 to $10 Saturdays. Monday Manhattan specials are $7 for rail drinks, $1 off call whiskeys; happy hour specials start Feb. 26, 5 to 7 p.m. nightly.
Reservations: Not taken.
Hours: Open 5 p.m. until bar time daily.
2423 N. Murray Ave. (414) 964-9923. jazzestate.com
Contact Carol Deptolla at carol.deptolla@jrn.com or on Twitter, @mkediner.