A guided descent : by candlelight
The Tour
descend with us
Not a walk through a bar: a tasting journey through the underneath of Bath. We take your group by the unmarked door, down the stairs, into the vault and the secret room beyond it, pouring as we go. Five stations. One slow surrender of the world above.
the menu, by candle votiveThe order of the evening
Five stations, one direction: down
you could walk past it a hundred timesStation I : The Threshold
An unmarked door
There is no awning, no chalkboard, no queue spilling onto the pavement. The tour begins where most evenings in Bath would simply continue: a plain door beneath Grove Street that gives nothing away. Knock, or know. Either way, the city is about to fall quiet behind you.
let your eyes adjustStation II : The Descent
Down, and warmer with every step
A narrow stair folds you underground. The light thickens to amber, the air takes on candle smoke and old velvet, and the noise of the street thins to nothing. By the final tread you have changed register entirely: this is no longer a night out, it is a confidence shared.
the room that should not existStation III : The Main Vault
Stone arches, gilt and a watchful stag
The vault opens around you: barrel-vaulted stone, antique gold, crushed velvet and a stag who has seen far worse than you. Your guide settles the group, pours the first welcome, and begins to tell the room's history the way it deserves: in low tones, between sips.
for fifteen souls onlyStation IV : The Secret Room
Behind the bar, behind the curtain
Past the main vault waits the part of the tour few outsiders ever reach: a lower, darker chamber for up to fifteen, built for the kind of privacy money rarely buys in Bath. Here the candles burn closer and the conversation loosens. Here the night becomes a secret worth keeping.
Station V : The Flight
Three serves, dealt in sequence
one regret apiece
The tour ends as it should: with a flight from Opium's Own, poured and narrated one after another. Each is built in front of you, each carries its own small confession. Linger. There is no last train down here.
Lavender Haze
£12a haze worth losing yourself in
Tequila, raspberry liqueur, cranberry juice, lime, raspberry syrup
Poison Ivy
£12green, and not to be trusted
Vodka, Midori, cranberry juice, lime, raspberry syrup
Lychee Long Island
£13four spirits, one regret
Vodka, gin, rum, tequila, lychee liqueur, lemon, lemonade, grenadine
Before you descend
The tour, arranged in confidence
The descent is run as a private booking for your group, built around the occasion: a birthday, a hen do, a gathering that wants more than a table. Tell us your vices and the number in your party, and we will hold a corner of the dark and a guide to lead you through it.
- Where
- Beneath Grove Street, Bath
- When
- Friday & Saturday, 5pm til 2am
- For whom
- Private groups, by arrangement
when you are ready to go down
Secure Your Passage
Send word with your date and your number, and we will arrange the descent: door, stairs, vault, secret room and a flight to finish. Tell us your vices.
