Cellar Mixology

OUR ARTICLE

Some places have been storing secrets for years. You can feel those whispers running through the walls, searching for just the perfect crack to escape through and share itself with the world.

Cellar Mixology knows a lot about secrets. In Prohibition, the basement walls hid alcohol, that illegal substance that dare not be seen in proper establishments. The other secrets of Cellar Mixology? Murder and death.

Beatrice worked in the same building as Cellar Mixology, when it was once a brothel during Prohibition, and it was here where she was murdered by a customer. It’s said her ghost still roams the halls of the bar, one of San Antonio’s most notorious underground speakeasies, as a witness to the secrets and crimes of old.

The Henry’s Old-Fashioned is a mix of bourbon, housemade simple and bitters, Woodford spiced bitters, an orange twist, smoked natural wood, and yes, Spanish ham skewered on a spike.

Today, Cellar Mixology plays into its unforgotten past. For one, it’s a speakeasy in a basement space only accessible via secrets entrances. The bar’s official symbol, a rose, is itself a symbol of secrecy throughout Western culture for centuries. The concrete floor, brick walls, low lighting, and jazz music add to the hushed exclusive vibe of the underground lair.

Creating a secretive and unique experience are the main goals of the owners, and they do that best through the cocktail menu which features sodium alginate-based “spherifications” or classic drinks like mojitos and spicy cucumber margaritas crafted into sphere shapes. Presented in a trio of spoons, these spherification drinks offer a creative take on consumption.

The rose doesn’t fall there. The menu is also home to House Infusion drinks like watermelon tequila and those with liquid nitrogen like White Russians and Carajillos. Even their specialty vices are as elaborate as their creative concoctions. The Henry’s Old-Fashioned is a mix of bourbon, housemade simple and bitters, Woodford spiced bitters, an orange twist, smoked natural wood, and yes, Spanish ham skewered on a spike.

Consider this haunt a tip from the CYTIES team. Keep it on the hush until next time you find yourself floating around the Alamo City. It’ll create a night to remember for you and the team. Let’s just hope your fate doesn’t end up like Beatrice, a permanent fixture of the bar. Well, actually, with a cocktail menu like theirs, there could be a lot worse places to spend in eternity.