Bar Sylvia

First off, there hasn't been a post in a while because the bar plans have fallen through. There aren't any current plans to open a bar in Germantown. Hopefully someday. 

Even though we don't have a bar, we do have a menu! We'll be slinging bottled 750ml cocktails from Mike's house. We've done a few pop-ups like this and offered bottles for holidays etc. We're going to try a new thing where we just always have bottles available. The menu will change seasonally and the first one goes live tomorrow. So if you would like a bottled cocktail for a Memorial Day party or to take down the shore with you, hit us up. Pickup will be from Mike's porch in Germantown. 

For menu, payment, and pickup details, send a DM to . This round is all recycled booze bottles. If u want something nicer for a gift or u just have classy parties and don't want blue tape on an old bottle, that can be arranged but will take longer and cost more.

Strawbridges - St George Green Chile Vodka, Strawberry syrup, lemon, Coconut water

Cold Brew Martini- Chopin Potato Vodka,  Cold brewed Ethiopian coffee, Kahlua

Modern Love - Blanco Tequila, Campari, Grapefruit liqueur, salt

Bolero - Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum, Banana, Falernum, Campari, Vermouth (not pictured)

Daisy Age Old Fashioned - Chamomile infused Rittenhouse Rye Whiskey, local  Spring Wildflower Honey, Baltamaro Chamomile bitter, Orange bitters.

🌿Nettles Martini🍸



The martini is perhaps the most divisive classic cocktail. People have very specific expectations for their perfect martini so its a real challenge to make a crowd pleaser martini.

A classic martini is gin, dry vermouth and orange bitters. Its basically the dry, herbal opposite of a manhattan. Some people just call Vodka up a martini. Sometimes a sweet vodka cocktail is a blank martini. Its complicated.

With respect to the original, here is a dry herbal martini with a unique and underused forest ingredient, Stinging Nettles. It grows in wet forests and meadows around here. The dry ingredient is easy to work with. The fresh ingredient hurts.

It has a unique green/ savory/ slightly sweet flavor that pairs great with a juniper forward gin. We made this drink as a ready to pour batch but rather than add water for the diluton usually achieved by stirring ice, we added a strong 3hr nettle infusion. Inspired by the martini we added a small spoonful of vinegar. We made it real local and swapped champagne vin for bitter lemon vin from .

By storing a martini in a very cold freezer, you can make it colder than physically possible by stirring or shaking with ice. And you dont waste any water.

It wont be for everyone but we would love to get some martini fans to test this soon. Its very good! 🍸🌿

Hostas are edible!
We learned that this summer and used the flowers for garnish a couple times. They are not especially delicious but flowers on a drink always feels fancy! The young shoots are eaten as a vegetable in parts of Japan. The green leaf in this pic however, is Shiso, another prolific producer in our shade garden at home.

This drink is essentially a moscow mule with a bunch of Nordic ingredients and garnishes that dont match but are in season in the yarden.

Akvavit, fermented raspberry syrup, rhubarb shrub, elderflower liqueur, ginger beer and a float of Peychauds bitters.

Made these a couple days ago and really enjoyed them. The elder/raspberry combo is excellent and the shrub helps balance the sweetness with tart cider vinegar. Ginger beer lengthens it and gives it a bit of spice. A nice refreshing summer drink highlighting ingredients from earlier in Spring and Summer.

WE BOUGHT A BUILDING!

Its still very early and there is much to be done, both to the physical space and regarding paperwork/ beauracrcy.

We are in the beginning stages of transforming maplewood nutrition and dietary food shop into a distillery tasting room.

After several locations for a bar/ restaurant fell through late into planning with landlords we decided to try to figure out a way to do it ourselves. There is a lot to say about it but basically we will be blending and making our own spirits and serving them here on Maplewood Mall in Germantown.

With the craft distilling license we can also sell beer, wine and spirits made in PA. Our offerings will be limited but there are many great producers in Pennsylvania for all of these categories and we are excited to share them with you. 😻