#5 | Chemistry & Botanic's, Brussels, Belgium
Visit: Spring/Summer 2022
My stay in Brussels at the end of spring this year started a bit disappointing and exhausting concerning the preperation for my little bar tour. After I had worked my way through all the lists, rankings and many tips online, examined menus, compared photos, etc., I realized only a week before my trip that I will not be there during the weekend, but at the beginning of the week. My fears then came true when I checked again, as, of course (as in many other major cities), the majority of the most interesting bars were closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
So I had to go with "the best of the rest" (slightly exaggerated, one favorite of mine was open), all of which fittingly were opened either only Monday or only Tuesday.
The start of the tour immediately took me to one of the two most promising, at least as far as the online menu (please, every bar on this planet, just put your menu online or you obviously have something to hide) was concerned, Chemistry & Botanic's, in the middle of Brussels, between the world-famous Grand Place and Palais de Bruxelles.
The view down the bar from the entrance
Situated in a business district with a nice mix of classic city palaces and modern office/apartment buildings in between &and some high-quality stores, not as touristy as just 2 streets further west, where the old city center begins. An ideal location for a modern city bar and this is exactly what the C&B is, both the menu, as well as the aesthetics, fit well in this setting.
This can be seen both positively and negatively: You won't find a real sense of a nocturnal speakeasy or classy gentlemen's club atmosphere here, I would even claim for some fans of more classic bars this one is simply too bright. At first glance, with its openness, green accents (and ceiling, see photos) and brightness, it looks like a slightly upscale design café & bistro chain, to exaggerate a bit. But it is really a pure cocktail bar opening at 5.30 p.m.. Almost a pity, with the design and fresh look it would make a lot of sense, in my humble opinion, to offer a small food selection & cold plates, as well as low-ABV & No-ABV drinks and already start with that during lunch breaks, switching the menu in the evening to your actual bar menu.
The view back to the street
At the end of the single, long room is the small and also rather simple, modern bar counter with your typical solid, but not great, city bar spirit selection. As someone looking for rare spirits to enjoy neat this is surely not your ideal place to come to, but with the exciting menu this is also not at all necessary if you are open to new experiences. I was served quickly, very politely and with English skills you should expect in the EU capital.
Here is the full menu:
Chemistry & Botanic's Menu 2022
Same stylistic choices here: Modern, rather simple but at the same time not boring in terms of design, everything is coherent and well coordinated, it definitely makes you want to test your way through the menu and that is how it should be, right?
"This Is Not A Cuba Libre"
The menu even sounded nice enough to lead me to a decision that really happens quite rarely: A long drink (!) was ordered as a starter, the "This is not a Cuba Libre".
Appleton and Smith & Cross, maybe not the most exquisite rums but still a perfect base especially for long drinks. Angostura and Black Walnut Bitters promise a nice depth together with the rums in this Rum & Coke/Cuba Libre Riff. Then there is the reason for my order, "American Oak Barrel Soda". When I later asked, I was told that it is actually barrel-aged on site, which surprised me. I would have already found it interesting enough to try a finished, bottled, barrel aged soda (there are some in the U.S., my guess beforehand was they imported some) in a Cuba Libre twist.
Well, the presentation in the chemistry glass is really something that for at least a decade you are used to seeing, but in this case it does fit the bar or, even better, the logo and name of it. Otherwise simple and nice to look at, the drink also has a great, deep color, maple with a golden luster and fine perlage. The taste though is where it really hit home, in the nose dried lime, the oak comes right through, molasses, vanilla and roasted nuts. Taking your first sip, you get the Jamaica funk but nicely covered by nuts and the oak, chestnut, fine smoke, malt, some licorice even in the finish. Top 10 long drinks the last few years, no questions asked.
"Assam Aleykoum"
After I knew now that the menu does not promise too much, I was really spoilt for choice with the second drink. Since I had to visit another bar and was in Brussels for business reasons, I could not drink my way through the night, otherwise I would probably have tried half the menu.
It was the "Assam Aleykoum" in the end. After a long drink it had to be at least the classic whisky-OF twist as a conclusion.
J.W. Black Label, Calvados, Angostura, orange blossom water and Assam tea syrup promised an aromatic, elegant and yet, through the Black Label, also characterful and slightly smoky drink and that promise was kept. A nice body yet polished edges, an even more minimalist Japanese-style presentation than on the first cocktail, nice thin glass, classy ice, great stuff.
Right at the start, by the way, I was also given a special menu for "Chartreuse Week" (probably happening in the entire French-speaking world), it’s also a cool thing to have these little special events. But since I stopped by for the Signatures, unfortunately uninteresting for me. What I did need to know was what was hidden behind two interesting and mysterious items on the menu, "Random Batch Bottom" & "Exclusive Cocktail Limited Edition". He forgot to explain the former and had to ask the bar chef specifically for the latter since it changes every few weeks. The Batch Bottom will probably be the idea to get almost empty bottles out or drinks which are going to be cut from the menu for 2-3€ less (10€ then), that is at least my guess. The Limited Edition this time was something you see a lot: A vintage Negroni with 1970s Campari & gin. Nothing for me, but in itself a nice idea.
In conclusion, I was really glad to have chosen the C&B as my start to the Brussels tour. After the fear of not being able to visit my top picks due to the weekly opening hours, the bar surprised me very positively and I would have liked to test 2-3 more drinks from the menu. A clear recommendation, should you not have a complete dislike for the rather bright, open and perhaps somewhat simple design of the bar.
