This is the smallest whisky bar in the world
In a little side street in the tiny village of Santa Maria in Switzerland’s Val Müstair, you’ll find the smallest whisky bar in the world. It only has room for five bar stools, but the menu features a dizzying collection of more than three hundred beautiful bottles and rare blends.
A few times a year, owner Lord Gunter Sommer gets in his Škoda to pick up slabs of peat, whisky barrels and special Scottish spring water in Scotland. ‘At the border, they look at me strangely,’ says Sommer. ‘They think I’m smuggling hashish or something. When I explain what I’m doing, the border guards always say: what’s wrong with the water in Switzerland? But I need it for my own experiment: blending whisky myself.’
Standing room for thirty
The mini-bar isn’t always open. It’s open on weekends anyway, and sometimes by request. Sommer only has five bar stools, but if people remain standing, around thirty people fit into the smallest whisky bar. Even more in summer, because guests can also enjoy a glass of whisky outside. A practical problem: Sommer only has ninety whisky glasses. ‘When someone orders something, do I have to ask: did you see anyone outside with an empty glass? If you bring it in, I can wash it and pour your whisky.’
Cellar treasures
Sommer has quite a few cellar treasures hidden in his bar. During private tastings, he sometimes opens the first 12-year-old Auchentoshan, bottled in 1966 for the cruise ship Queen Elisabeth. A Sommer bargain. ‘The ship was retired and I really wanted that whisky. The seller made me choose: everything or nothing. So I bought the entire stock, which amounted to 167 bottles with a signature. They’re now worth three thousand dollars per bottle, so you can do the math.’
A bit far?
Is Santa Maria a bit too far away for a beautiful glass of whisky? Mr. Sommer also has a website where you can order online.
Source: Food & Wine.
