In the basement at 15 Dormer Place in Leamington Spa, the clink of cava glasses will soon be heard, and guests will stand at the zinc counter as in Catalan xampanyerías. Ross and Hannah Forshaw are opening Brut & Barrel — a place where the tradition of drinking sparkling wine at the bar meets the atmosphere of a speakeasy and the format of a counter-restaurant.
Here cava is not merely a drink but the result of a specific terroir in Penedès: three private labels from a single estate — a brut, a rosé and a Malanit aged 40 months on the lees. No other bar in Britain pours these wines. Alongside them come pintxos and small plates: charred sobrasada, beef tartare, manchego and smoked boquerones, and for dessert a Basque cheesecake with sherry and saffron. Each dish receives a precise pairing — a wine or a cocktail that is not listed on the menu.
Ross and Hannah Forshaw, a married couple from Leamington Spa, have devised an establishment that "needs no explanation." On the door there is only a brass letter B, and the method of entry changes every month: a word, an object or a rule. "We wanted a bar that needs no explaining," says Ross. "It turned out that requires quite a lot of explaining." The basement holds 60 people, mostly standing room, with terracotta walls, old barrels and high stools — no chairs.
The xampanyería format, in which cava is drunk standing at the bar, appears in the Midlands for the first time. Its combination with elements of a speakeasy and a counter-restaurant makes the place unique: here they do not simply pour wine but create an evening in which the guest works out the rules of entry and receives pairings that must be asked for.
At a time when many establishments strive for spectacle and explanation, Brut & Barrel takes the opposite path — through restraint and precision. Exclusive wines from Penedès, the standing format and the hidden entrance preserve the connection to Catalan tradition while adapting it to an English basement without unnecessary words.
Brut & Barrel operates walk-in: Wednesday and Thursday from 15:00 to 23:00, Friday and Saturday from 12:00 to 01:00, Sunday from 12:00 to 22:00. The address is 15 Dormer Place, Leamington Spa. The website brutandbarrel.co.uk gives minimal information, just as intended.
In this basement, cava from a specific Penedès estate and standing at the zinc counter remind us that some tastes and rituals remain tied to a place and to the people who carefully carry them on.
