The Best Whiskey Bar You Never Heard Of

There’s the bait, and then there’s the hook.

The bait that Reserve 101 is dangling this summer is its collection of house-made push-up pops. If you go in for these, I suspect you will subsequently fall for the hook: an immense selection of whiskeys like I have seen nowhere else.

Don’t get me wrong. The frozen pops ($7 each) are a fun adult treat for fighting Houston’s heat. They are not booze-heavy at all (and they really can’t be, as too much alcohol keeps ice cream from freezing). The salted bacon, caramel and Buffalo Trace pop is pretty much perfect, a little salty and very creamy. The Scotch Colada version, made with Monkey Shoulder whiskey, has the luscious tropical sweetness of pineapple.

I see these pops as a gateway to the vast whiskey selection. Once you’ve cooled down with a pop, you’ll want to start asking questions. Just don’t get fixated on the back counter, where there is a dizzying array of whiskeys – more than 220, in fact. It would be far too easy to be intimidated and run away.

A friendly staff and the printed list are both good tools for navigating the selection. The list is painstakingly organized by region and includes some parts of the world that made me raise my eyebrows. Welsh Whiskey? Indian Whiskey? I had no idea those existed.

A friendly, knowledgeable bartender named Cassidy guided me towards a good value of a 12-year Irish whisky called Knappogue Castle. It was an easy, friendly selection and only $8. Our photographer went with the more exotic Glenmorangie 12-year Quinta Ruban, a selection finished in port barrels.

Co-owner Mike Raymond is passionate about his trade and what Reserve 101 offers Houston. Brands such as Texas’ own Garrison Brothers have chosen Reserve 101 to debut products in Houston. In fact, Yellow Rose Distillery from Tomball, the first legal distillery in the Houston area, will debut their product here in October.

Interested in going deeper into the whiskey world? “For those of us selling a specialty product, it is our responsibility to educate our customers,” said Raymond. Indeed for a $10 membership fee, you can join the Whiskey Society, which garners invitations to tastings as well as a monthly newsletter. There is also a rewards program in place based on the number of whiskeys customers have tried.

Reserve 101 straddles the line between a “nice” bar and a “down and dirty” bar. It’s a decent place, with a rather sizeable second room, but you won’t find anyone with the title of “mixologist” here. Indeed, Raymond says its time for “mixologists to learn to be bartenders.”

“Serve the customer who is in front of you,” he recommends.

Conversely, though, Raymond believes that more bartenders need to learn mixology, and there is some of that at work here. Reserve 101 has a list of their regular cocktails hanging on the wall, but there are seasonal offerings, too. (Ask if you don’t see a list of them.)

For those who just want a quiet drink and aren’t really looking to expand their horizons, don’t think you’ll be lectured to. “Jack and Coke is the number-two-selling drink in the nation. Who am I to decide that people shouldn’t have that here?”

On the downside, parking is annoying. Street parking is limited due to construction, and I found myself $10 lighter after parking in the lot next door. Raymond acknowledges that parking is an issue. Hopefully, the situation will improve when the street work is done.

If you call yourself a whiskey lover, and you haven’t been to Reserve 101 yet, I have to seriously question your commitment. For those who do love the world of whiskey, a grand adventure – actually, more than 220 of them – await.

Reserve 101 is located at 1201 Caroline, next door to Dirt Bar and across the street from House of Blues. Their number is 713-655-7101 and you can visit the website at www.reserve101.com.