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Raising the Basement Bar with Heather Manley

March 22, 2024

Crooked Water Spirits founder Heather Manley on building a dream space where she could mix with friends

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Long live the rec room. Basement bars became popularized in the post-WWII expansion into the suburbs, when neighborhoods were forming faster than main streets could build bars. The late 1960s to early 1970s may have seen the height of basement bar design — with shag carpeting, wood paneling, and captain’s swivel chairs everywhere — before the fascination began to dwindle. But of course, everything that was once cool finds the spotlight again eventually. Perhaps we can thank the growing interest in craft spirits and home mixology, but it’s clear: The basement bar is back.

“We lived here for seven years before we attempted the basement, it was that important for us to get it right,” says Heather Manley, founder of Crooked Water Spirits. “We built the rest of the house and then figured out how we would best use a basement for how we lived and entertained.”

The house sits on a secluded lot in the historic Uplands Farms area of Minnetrista. Surrounded by marshland, it backs up to Six Mile Creek, which feeds into Halstead Bay of Lake Minnetonka. Manley’s interest in craft distillations was the driving factor behind her basement bar renovation. As the owner of the award-winning distillery, founded in 2013, she is not only a curious sipper — always on the lookout to see what innovations are being employed across the distilling industry — but a prolific connector of those inside and outside of the hospitality industry. Her home, which she refers to as “the island,” is often the site of charity dinners and networking events for women.

Working with M&M Home Contractors, Manley and her partner, Rhett Ambrose, had very clear ideas about what they wanted. “The ceilings had to be tall enough so that it didn’t feel like a cave,” she says. “And we knew we wanted a huge island bar that you could sit around on all sides, so that everyone could face each other and have lots of conversation.”

The open footprint is divided into three distinct areas. There’s a comfy lounge area with a large couch and television, the main bar island and spirits wall, and a wine room. Manley decided against doing a closed-off temperature-controlled room for wine because, “then we’d have to sit in the cold. That’s not fun. Instead, we went in for these two wall coolers where we keep whites and sparkling, and since it’s generally a little cooler down here anyway, we keep the reds in the racks.” Manley says that at the end of the night, she and Ambrose often come down for a last glass while listening to music.

As you move through the space, it’s apparent that the design and function were informed by a spirits professional. Instead of choosing a fridge with ice capacity, the couple had a dedicated ice maker installed that was hard-plumbed into a reverse osmosis water system. That leads to the pure and clear looking cocktail-ice that is so popular these days.

Perhaps the most stunning aspect of this basement bar is the library. One whole wall is constructed with shelving meant to showcase not books, but the many spirits Manley has collected. Besides her own brand, she displays a wide variety of bottles — from boutique mezcal to Japanese gin, regional whiskies, small-batch rum, and of-the-moment liqueurs and bitters.

“The library is open for anyone to explore. It’s all about discovery. If you’re interested in a bottle, just take it off the shelf and bring it to the librarian (me), and we can taste it, think about how it can be made into a drink that you’d like, what it would pair with. We are always learning.”

Of course, the true beauty of the basement bar is that last call does not exist. Though, with friends in mind, and knowing that Uber sometimes has limited availability in routes to and from Minnetrista, Manley created what is known around her social circle as “The Last Resort.” Like in a Pullman car, two stacked beds with plush bedding and a little in-wall shelf for water were built in a small room just off the bar.

While the touches are elegant, and the features luxurious, make no mistake: You are meant to relax in this basement. “The whole point of this level is hospitality,” Manley notes. “The basement shouldn’t be one person’s hideout, and it shouldn’t be an afterthought. It should be a space where everyone can feel taken care of and welcomed. Like a cozy town bar where you walk in, and everyone gives a wave.”

BY STEPHANIE MARCH

PHOTOS BY CAITLIN ABRAMS

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