Oklahoma City is a freaking crazy place right now. We’ve got bridges falling down, we can’t afford to pay school teachers, but hot damn we are getting some fun new places to eat and drink. Every month it seems like we’ve got a new, super hip restaurant opening up which is great because eating things is awesome, but less frequent are bars that kill it in the beer or Bourbon game. Luckily, thanks to an invite from Territory OKC , we got to attend a spirit tasting last night at a new bar that proved to be right up our alley.

After dodging the bizarre tree that spews mist upon the valets at the front door, we headed into Mary Eddy’s Kitchen and Lounge on the ground floor of the soon-to-open 21c Museum Hotel located on the west end of Film Row. The first thing that caught my eye was the bar (naturally) and I immediately saw some beautiful glass silhouettes that I recognized and longed-for. The pair of tall, slender BTAC bottles seemed to glow as I approached them, and as I got closer I could see that they were none other than 2015 George T. Stagg (one of my all time favorites) and 2015 Thomas H. Handy Sazerac. As my eyes darted around the collection surrounding those bottles, good things kept coming into sight like Elijah Craig Barrel Proof, 1792 Single Barrel, and Blanton’s (which is not super easy to find around here). The rest of the collection, while not made up of super allocated whales, is really well rounded with around 50 unique pours to choose from. So, I got me a healthy pour of Thomas H. Handy ($20, which isn’t crazy), Kate went with a 1792 Single Barrel ($9), and we took in the sights of what will most likely become a new favorite hangout.

As we sat sipping on our fantastic barrel juice and talking to Max, the bartender that we knew from our trivia days at The Garage in Edmond, we were offered a tour of the hotel which we graciously accepted. So, with whiskey-in-hand, we strolled around the place. It’s awesome. The ground floor hosts a free, 24/7 art museum full of cool modern-y things like motion-activated penguins (a theme of the hotel), and some killer photography. The rooms are super modern and minimal with each floor housing a unique art centerpiece. I would post some sweet pics of the things, but they asked that we didn’t since they are still applying the finishing touches before the hotel opens later this month.

So we obviously dig the place, but what is also very bad ass is who owns it: Laura Lee Brown. You might not know that name, we didn’t know the whole thing either, but if you pay attention that last name might stand out and give a hint as to why I would even mention it. Laura Lee Brown is the great-grandaughter of George Garvin Brown, founder of Brown-Forman, the parent company of brands like Woodford Reserve, Old Forester, and Jack Daniels. Cool, right!?

Anyways, make sure to check this place out for a whiskey or two, and if you have a special occasion coming up it may not be a bad idea to snag one of the rooms around the “Light Well” too for a fancy little touch that is sure to impress your significant other. We’ll see you at the bar!