The Rummer says:

The Rummer Hotel Bar is open from 10am until late. We boast the largest selection of quality spirits in the region and a team of professional bartenders who know how to mix them. We have an extensive cocktail list, using the finest and most authentic of ingredients.If you can’t see your favourite cocktail on the list, just ask one of the team. If you are feeling daring we have a selection of exclusive Forbidden Cocktails including the Zombie Exclusiva and the Killah Sangria, which are limited to one per customer per day (you will thank us for this limit in the morning).

Social and Cocktail says:

Nestled in St. Nicholas Market, down a little cobbled street, The Rummer Hotel manages to be a little oasis of calm in what is a bustling shopping area by day and a revellers dream of clubs and bars by night.

Not actually a hotel at all, The Rummer is a building steeped in history, including the pub quiz winning fact that the first ever item of Royal Mail post was delivered there. This, and much else about the building can be found on the first page of their extensive menus. As one might expect in a venue that boasts the largest backbar in Bristol, where many of the spirits can only be accessed by ladder, the staff have an almost encyclopedic knowledge of their products, and this is reflected in the clever flavour combinations in the drinks menu, and again where they have matched cocktails with food created by their award winning head chef.

While there are tables and chairs put outside in summer, the warm decor, comfortable leather furniture and huge fireplace make this a perfect winter bar, the tables by the fire being the most desirable in the city during the cold winter months.It was one of these selfsame winter evenings that I visited The Rummer, and while the sofas by the fire were taken, the warmth from the fire had permeated the entire building so despite being sat fairly near the front door I was toasty warm throughout.

The head bartender Chelsie Bailey was our server for the evening and seated us with a smile, handing us some weighty drinks menus, and bringing over an elegant bottle of chilled water.There was a fantastic atmosphere in the room, with people clearly enjoying themselves seated at tables or milling around at the bar, and a few admiring the sculptures adorning the walls. Despite the freezing weather outside, I fancied something fairly fresh, so selected the “Tarragone Sour” (Green and Yellow Chartreuses, lemon, egg white) from the menu and it certainly delivered; light, complex, with a real bite and a beautifully foamy texture. My friend was in a similar mood, and chose the “Mahon Gin Fizz” which included lavender syrup, giving it a lovely floral softness.

Almost as soon as we had finished our server returned, topping up our water and taking our order. I opted for one of their vast selections of rums, and a mint tea, while my friend selected a beer (Innis and Gunn) from their array of interesting bottles, which arrived foaming out of the top of a frozen, handled beer mug. The Rummer Hotel is a very enjoyable place to be at any time of day, whether spending a Sunday afternoon with a newspaper by the fire, or out celebrating with friends.

Annie Mason

@BrisCocktailWk

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