Bottoms Up

It's happy hour every hour at this new downtown San Antonio wine bar and taproom

Drink on the cheap at Hotel Gibb's new bar.

San Antonio’s upscale bar scene is perfect when we are feeling flush, but close to payday, it can be difficult to pony up $10 or more for a single drink. But thanks to a nightlife newcomer, almost any budget can be kept in good spirits.

1909 Taproom celebrated their grand opening May 9. Located in the Hotel Gibbs at 105 N. Alamo St., the new bar is just steps away from San Antonio’s most famous mission, and — more importantly — all the drinks on the menu are only $4.

The space is a sleek remodel of the 1909 Bar & Bistro. When Albuquerque-based company TNJ Group bought Hotel Indigo in September 2017, they decided to not only rebrand the hotel, but its amenities. According to TNJ operations V.P. Pranav Patel, they made a conscious decision to move away from food.

“We’re across the River Walk and there are so many wonderful restaurants to compete with,” Patel told CultureMap, noting that hotel food doesn’t always have the best reputation.

While the new concept does offer cocktails, it specializes in craft beer and wine. With the exception of a handful of domestic and Mexican beers, all selections are regionally sourced. “We wanted to give people another reason to experience Texas and San Antonio,” said Patel.

On the tap side, the selections include Busted Sandal Brewing Company’s Slippery Rock IPA, Freetail’s Bat Outta Helles, St. Arnold Brewing’s Santo kolsch, and Texas Honey cider from Austin Eastciders.

Wines, including McPherson Cellar’s lauded Sangiovese, a crisp Sauvignon Blanc from Escondido Valley, and Fall Creek’s fruit-forward Cabernet Sauvignon Reata, come from all over the state.

In case you are thinking there’s a catch, Patel notes that the beers come in pints and the wines have a standard pour. And to make it an even bigger bargain, 1909 even offers complimentary snacks like chips, salsa, and queso.

“We want to be a place where people can have a great time,” Patel said, “whether they’re locals or visiting.”

happy-hours where-drink

The Tea About Green Tea

Free event highlights San Antonio's historic role in serving green tea

saparks.org

San Antonio's Japanese Tea Garden is an important place in the United States' history with green tea.

A free event at San Antonio's Japanese Tea Garden at Brackenridge Park is celebrating the gentle art of green tea on Thursday, April 10. A city newsletter promises history, personal stories, and more, plus a visit from Robert Hellyer, author of Green with Milk and Sugar: When Japan Filled America’s Tea Cups.

The newsletter draws attention to Eizo Jingu, a watercolor artist who lived in San Antonio and who "played a pivotal role in promoting Japanese tea." He worked on behalf of the Japanese Central Tea Association to pair Japanese tea with foods both at home and in restaurants — notably with sandwiches — to make it a normal part of dining.

The newsletter attributes the family's on-premises home-turned-restaurant, the Jingu House, with introducing green tea ice cream to the United States for the first time. Jingu's daughter, Mabel, didn't mention the date when speaking about the innovation in 2007, but it was at least before 1938 when Eizo died.

Jingu also helped design the Japanese Tea Garden starting in 1915, so he is directly responsible for much of what visitors will experience on April 10, more than 100 years later.

Green with Milk and Sugar explores some more history of the relationships between Japan and the United States that led to different tea preferences in each place. It's not as simple as what each populace likes drinking; these habits were formed by socioeconomic trends, racism, and marketing, according to the book's description via the Columbia University Press.

"Featuring lively stories of the people involved in the tea trade — including samurai turned tea farmers and Hellyer’s own ancestors — Green with Milk and Sugar offers not only a social and commodity history of tea in the United States and Japan but also new insights into how national customs have profound if often hidden international dimensions," says the description.

Tea fanatics might already know that all tea comes from one plant: Camellia sinensis. (Beverages made of steeped leaves that aren't from this plant are called herbal teas or tisanes.) The type of tea — for example, green, black, or oolong — varies by the level of oxidization the leaves undergo. The friendly green tea category is the least oxidized, making it an easy point of entry for new tea-drinkers.

Only 100 guests can attend this event, so it is important to RSVP ahead of time. The first 60 attendees to arrive will "receive a sweet treat," according to the newsletter. Although it is technically free, there is a suggested donation of $5 per person at the door.