Berlin, Germany (Gastrosofie) If you want to see Juliette Binoche or Christian Bale live, then dress warmly. The red carpet is often glamorous, but above all it is quite cool out there, if not very cold or windy. The Berlinale is a pretty February-rusted film festival. A warm coffee is barely enough. Better a hot drink. The Vox Bar at the Grand Hyatt Hotel is only a few steps away from the Berlinale Palast on Potsdamer Platz, and the Cinemaxx is just two blocks away. With the „Sweet Harmony“, consisting of a special rum, dry vermouth, cinnamon syrup and rooibos tea, you can warm yourself up.
The drink is a specialty of the house, because it belongs to the various „Vox Team Signatures“, which are noted on the bar list accordingly. The bartenders, like Christopher here, have developed own recipes, explains Christopher Krellwitz, assistant manager of the Vox bar. What began 20 years ago as a pure whisky bar with around 300 varieties has now become one of the better, if not the best, cocktail bar addresses in Berlin. According to Christopher Krellwitz, the focus is still on whisky, but the offer has been supplemented with other spirits such as rum or mezcal. Main thing is high quality. After all, there are still around 150 whisky (and whiskey) varieties, whether single malt from Scotland or Bourbon from the United States, including many rarities such as a Strathisla from 1955 as well as single cask bottling. All of these can be tasted in a stylish atmosphere with dark wood and heavy leather armchairs.
The extensive list also contains the section „Bar Flights“, which invites you to various whisky tastings, always three times two centiliters – accompanied by chocolate from an award-winning producer that goes nicely with the drinks. Take the Highland Malts, here Tomatin, Oban, Glen Dronach, and as herb-strong the porcino-olive-chocolate with 70 per cent cocoa. Or the Island Malts, The Arran, Coal Ila and Highland Park, accompanied by salted biscuits with salted chocolate, with at least 33 per cent cocoa.
During the Berlinale, the bar is well attended by media representatives and people from the film industry. No Hollywood stars yet however the boss says. In general, especially the hotel guests find their way here. In the future, Christopher Krellwitz also wishes more variety of visitors, whether locals or tourists. The competition is growing, in the past three years the number of bars in the capital has doubled, says the owner. Feels as if there was one locality per inhabitant, he jokes. It may be due here to a certain threshold anxiety in addition to other misunderstandings, he suspects. In Germany, many do not dare to enter an upscale hotel; others falsely believe that a hotel bar would be available exclusively to guests of the house. Abroad, let it be London, that is completely different, so his experience.
Anyway, a visit to the Vox Bar is worth it, simply already because of the high quality ingredients. Like this drink we had that was as daringly as originally decorated with a roasted marshmallow. The stylish mug contains „Fat Washed Bulleit Bourbon“, Maple Syrup, Sandeman White, and Vanilla Bitters: a tart-sweet delicacy. Barty Randy made it up and its name is for sure „Potsdamer Platz“.
Vox Bar
Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 2, 10785 Berlin, Germany
Contact: Telephone: 030 25531772
Drinks menu: www.vox-restaurant.de/pdf/vox_getraenke.pdf
Remark:
Christopher Prescott based on a text by Fritz Hermann Köser.
