The Whiskey Room

brings back prohibition-era style to the island.

We may look back on that dark span of time between the 18th and 21st amendments as a long national nightmare, but that fact is that prohibition was a time of unbridled creativity and innovation. Bootleggers crafted elaborate disguises for their contraband goods, from false-bottomed freight trucks to skiffs loaded with scrap iron. In this environment of temperance, bars were hidden behind false doorways, accessible only to those who could be trusted with their secrets.

Behind the clandestine doors of these speakeasies, a new drinking culture was born. Cocktails flourished, with drinks from the whiskey sour to the bloody Mary tracing their origins to prohibition-era mixologists. And in that atmosphere of the forbidden, jazz music found fertile soil as it grew into the first truly American art form. The melding of expertly crafted drinks and live music was forged in these underground bars, a marriage of creative expression that continues to this day.

When it opens this September, The Whiskey Room will serve as testament to the cultural renaissance that was birthed in this era. Both in terms of cocktails and music, this new spot south end hotspot will echo the atmosphere of prohibition’s sophistication. In fact, it will have its own speakeasy-style entrance, through a concealed bookcase. “We’re going for an upscale saloon from the turn of the century with a prohibition-era atmosphere,” said Nick Bergelt, CEO of Hilton Head Hospitality which owns both restaurants. “But with a modern twist.”

The atmosphere nails that motif, with walls of distressed brick leading to a copper ceiling evoking the temperanceera underground bar juxtaposed against a modern backlit bourbon bar, allowing guests to see the subtle color variations between labels. The front windows will house floor-to-ceiling whiskey cases, while a stage in the front of the house will showcase stripped-down jazz acts filling the place with sound.

For Bergelt, the symbiosis between Charbar and The Whiskey Room just made the two of them a natural fit for one another. “A lot of what we do at Charbar, the smoked and grilled flavors, lend themselves well to a nice bourbon,” he said. “We want this to be a nice, low-key destination where you have dinner at Charbar and then spend the remainder of the evening next door.”

In fact, the two businesses are so intertwined that the opening of The Whiskey Room will coincide with the date of Charbar’s six-year anniversary. Although that wasn’t always the plan. Originally slated to open early this past summer, construction was delayed by a pipe that burst while Bergelt was out of town. Still, anniversary aside it proved to be a happy accident. “I always prefer to open in the off-season so there’s more of a local focus,” he said.

Behind the bar at The Whiskey Room, you’ll find more than 120 different whiskey and bourbon labels and variations, available neat or as the basis for a creatively crafted cocktail. “We’re really putting a heavy focus on the cocktail program, blending in different spice and bitters and creating some cool stuff that we think is not being done anywhere else,” said Bergelt. “But the star of the show will be the bourbon and whiskey.”

To make sure he nailed the bourbon list, Bergelt and his team took a trip on the famed “bourbon trail,” stopping at several distilleries to take a deep dive into how bourbon’s unique flavors are crafted. There are even plans to work with Virgil Kaine on a special collaboration that will only be found in The Whiskey Room. For Bergelt, who by his own admission, is “not much of a drinker,” it’s been an education. But it’s nothing he hasn’t done before. Before he opened Holy Tequila, Bergelt took a similar crash course and the result was a bar that has become the island’s destination for Mexican-style cocktails.

“People liked that aspect of tequila we presented at Holy Tequila,” said Bergelt. “We want to do something similar here, where you can explore the nuances of whiskey.”

To accomplish that, The Whiskey Room will host private pairing dinners as well as offer flights from their extensive list of hard-to-find labels. “We have a really strong list of rare stuff, but we want to put it at a price point where people can come in and say they’ve tried it. These flights will drive curiosity, plus let guests learn about the geography of bourbon country and where these different labels come from.”

Pairing with that dedication to bourbon’s rich variety and the culture of excellent cocktails that sprung up during the prohibition will be a stage for musical acts that mirror the era’s subdued jazz.

“The music is going to be a crucial part of that lounge-style feeling, where you can come in, relax and make friends, or come out on a date night,” said Bergelt. Already he’s heard from musicians all over the island who are excited to have a new venue for their art.

“We have a really great relationship with the musicians in this community,” he said. “There are a lot of guys who are excellent at their craft who’d love an opportunity to not just be one part of a group, but come out and do their own thing.”

As any live music fans familiar with the lineup at Charbar can tell you, Bergelt’s team has a knack for finding talent. With the jazz-forward vibe of a speakeasy as a backdrop, look for The Whiskey Room to be the island’s next white-hot music spot.

And even if you’re just looking for a laid-back spot to meet with friends, try a few new bourbons and slip back into an era where the whiskey flowed and the jazz music hopped, you’ll find nowhere better than The Whiskey Room.

BY BARRY KAUFMAN • PHOTOS BY ROB KAUFMAN