The Cradle of Liberty

Liza Weisstuch take us round her home town.

Scotland, Kentucky, Cognac, the Caribbean and Jalisco, Mexico are just a few of the planet's spiritually rich regions I've visited in the name of research. Every time I return home to Boston, however, I'm faced with a niggling decision: which local bar should I visit to assuage my jetlag? (Full disclosure: this conundrum arises even when jetlag is not a factor.) Despite being a small city compared to New York, Chicago or London, Boston is an embarrassment of riches for a whisky hound. Yes, New England's boozy heritage dates back to when the early colonists turned out rum by the boatload. But you could easily make the argument that colonial history lessons are best soaked up over a dram or a mind-blowing cocktail.

CITIZEN PUBLIC HOUSE & OYSTER BAR
1310 Boylston Street Tel: (617) 450-9000 www.citizenpub.com

On a busy thoroughfare behind Fenway Park, Boston's legendary baseball stadium, shabby petrol stations and new apartment and office buildings side by side. At street level of one of the gleaming, boxy buildings hangs the sign: “Citizen Public House & Oyster Bar.” It's easy to walk past, dismissing Citizen as another just another new bar with a disingenuous name. Don't.

The cosy, dark space has a patchwork of Persian rugs, a dark wood horseshoe bar, and a blackboard covered with whiskey lists organised by country of origin. A chef in an apron shucks oysters behind the bar; a bartender is often ladling fresh punch from a heavy vintage crystal bowl set on the bar.

Th...

• By : Liza Weisstuch
• In : Drinker's guide
• Issue : 98
• Page : 46
• Words : 1,331