Welcome to Seven Grand. We encourage you to explore the international wall of whisk(e)y with selected products spanning the globe from North America to Asia.

Our seasonal cocktail menu is inspired by vintage and contemporary recipes and builds its foundation on freshly squeezed juice and house-made syrups.

We invite you to discover with us as we curate the Seven Grand Whiskey Society which meets twice a month with comparative tastings hosted by master distillers and international brand ambassadors.

Whether you’re here to enjoy your favorite whiskey, a fresh Old Fashioned, a cold craft beer, a rich cigar or a game of pool, the Seven Grand crew welcomes you to the Whiskey Bar.

Cheers!

“Real men drink whiskey.”

Welcome to Seven Grand.

By Nathan Hazard

You’ve been to Seven Grand.

Like me, you remember the first time you marveled at the deep whiskey list, laughed, and ordered a Suntory Yamazaki Single Malt because you could. You brought your Scotch-loving friends, celebrated birthdays under its taxidermy, and advised out-of-towners to check out this almost-hidden, cozy downtown gem.

But as whiskey and cocktail-forward bars in LA have multiplied exponentially over the past five years, let’s note that Seven Grand was early to both games. Wall of whisk[e]y and bourbon aside, it was one of the first bars in town to deliver a proper return-to-form handcrafted cocktail (before the boom). So in approaching Seven Grand’s newly revamped menu – both assembled and designed by lead barsmith Dustin Newsome – my eyes converged upon the “originals” cocktail section. A wicked Old-Fashioned is reliable poison, but what else does Mister Newsome & Co. have up their sleeves?

With mischief behind the eyes, I watched Newsome prepare his Rufus Fir III, a cocktail created to evoke Scotch whisky finished in rum casks. This aromatic spirit-focused composition weds Chivas 12-year-old blended Scotch whisky, Zaya aged rum, Amaro Montenegro, Cynar and a smoky Islay wash. The result is bold, elegant and approachable. Orange oil and wood smoke mingling with soft peat and caramel notes; A true palate awakening.

A wild card seasonal element adds flair to the Secret Sour, which employs house-barreled Berheim Kentucky wheat whiskey. Fresh tangerine rooibos tea syrup, lemon, egg white and a soda splash made this bright and smooth sour a little too easy to tipple.

Inspiration comes in many forms. Sometimes even as a Yankee Candle Co. scent. Newsome waxed lyrical on said candle while he mixed me a Cock and Bull, his sublime tribute to a cool midsummer eve. House-barreled Fighting Cock Bourbon and Pedro Ximinex sherry find ground in fresh mint, crowned with amaro. Sure enough, one sip conjured dewy grass, wild mint foliage, jasmine blossoms and cool night air. Well played!

It’s summer, and I’m a tiki nut. If I had one shot, I would have selected the Rye Got Lei’d, which Newsome saved for last. This inspired tiki nod blends Bulleit Rye with brown sugar, fresh orange juice, pineapple and Stone IPA. Simultaneously fruity, earthy, and malty with a healthy rye underbelly, this frothy elixir is trouble on the high seas.

“Wow, look at all of the kinds of whiskey…” A couple next to me at the bar gaped at the wall, first-timers.

“I wonder if this is the kind of place where I can order a cocktail?” The woman pondered sheepishly, watching a row of neat whiskeys being poured.

I extended my menu to her. “It certainly is.”

Read more of Nathan Hazard’s writing at The Chocolate of Meats.

Seven Grand is excited to join a growing community of cocktail bars and breweries in San Diego!

One-Two Punch – Imbibe Magazine
With its renowned beer scene and a booming cocktail culture, San Diego offers a double dose of drinking satisfaction.

Story by Brandon Hernández
Photos by Terry Manier

Stool up at the dark yet inviting Small Bar in San Diego’s quaint University Heights neighborhood, set your sights on the 42-strong beer board, and the world is your oyster stout. Everything from smoked lagers to assertive double IPAs, funky wild ales, and coffee- and vanilla-tinged porters are on draught. The best part? Many are brewed within a 30-mile radius. Not in the mood for beer? Small Bar’s cocktails pull from one of the most extensive brown spirits collections in San Diego. In many cities, this would be the finest watering hole around. But in San Diego, it’s not even the largest of owner Scot Blair’s four venues, all of which revolve around what San Diego has become known for—quality craft beverages.

Beer City, USA
Despite hailing from a locale famous for its laidback attitude, San Diego’s brewers have always been unified in their quests to be the biggest, baddest, bravest kids on the block. It’s that spirit and their collective audacity to redefine time-honored brewing styles by boosting their flavor, ABV and IBU levels through the stratosphere that allowed San Diego brewers to blaze trails early and cement the region’s spot at the top of the heap.

San Diego County is home to the nation’s reigning best large and small brewpubs of the year (crowned at Denver’s Great American Beer Festival last fall), both of which are links in the four-location Pizza Port chain of beach-adjacent pie and pint depots. Their Carlsbad location has won large brewpub of the year the past three years in a row. Two of the county’s breweries—AleSmith and Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey—have been named Best Small Brewery of the Year at the GABF. And on a global scale, Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey and San Diego’s Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits have both taken Best Small Brewery honors at recent World Beer Cup competitions.

Having so much award-winning beer available in such quantity and variety has created an ever-expanding subculture of local connoisseurs, but it wasn’t always that way. In the mid-’90s, when now celebrated breweries like Stone Brewing, AleSmith and Ballast Point were in their infancy, locals were the hardest to reach. “For a long time, the good reputation of local breweries was known more outside San Diego than in San Diego,” says Ballast Point specialty brewer Colby Chandler. “Only recently have we seen locals realizing what we have quietly been doing for many years now. Awards have always been a great way to get the word out, but I think we are all proud that locals have finally picked up on how lucky they are to be drinking world-renowned beers.”

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