{"id":178370,"date":"2021-02-12T23:37:12","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T20:37:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/nj-whiskey-lover-transforms-basement-into-swanky-speakeasy\/"},"modified":"2021-02-12T23:37:12","modified_gmt":"2021-02-12T20:37:12","slug":"nj-whiskey-lover-transforms-basement-into-swanky-speakeasy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/nj-whiskey-lover-transforms-basement-into-swanky-speakeasy\/","title":{"rendered":"#NJ whiskey lover transforms basement into swanky speakeasy"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#NJ whiskey lover transforms basement into swanky speakeasy<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n

It\u2019s the roaring \u201920s \u2013 in Jersey.<\/p>\n

Two months ago, frustrated whiskey lover Philip Alongi could see that his 800-bottle collection of bourbon, scotch and rye was spilling over. And, with three increasingly curious kids under 5 at home, he knew that he needed to find a safer storage solution for his private stock fast.<\/p>\n

Then a snootful of inspiration flashed: his quintessential suburban basement in Westfield, NJ \u2013 a \u201cdungeon\u201d studded with laundry accoutrements, cobwebs and an old boxing bag \u2013 was the perfect bling tiger.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was literally just trying to find a place where I can hide the goods from my three little monsters \u2014 something discreet and secure, like a speakeasy,\u201d said Alongi, 41, a news<\/a> veteran, two-time Emmy Award winner and amateur opera singer, who runs a production TV company. \u201cI figured what better time than now while I\u2019m trapp<\/a>ed at home?\u201d<\/p>\n

With his wife\u2019s blessing, Alongi rolled up his sleeves and joined the ranks of the nation\u2019s pandemic home improvement hobbyists. He began to design and build a Prohibition-inspired bar in the 22-by-13 room with a \u201c1920s speakeasy feel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Relying on photos of his favorite whiskey bars and drawing on his own experiences at dozens of tasting rooms he visited in Scotland, Alongi began to conjure up a space authentic enough to transport any 21st-century hooch hound back to the rat-a-tat-tat old days.<\/p>\n

But the all-consuming project was no easy sip. Alongi toiled for three hours every single day over six weeks to realize his dream hideaway.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u00a0just got obsessed,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u201cAnd there\u2019s literally nothing else to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

He sourced lumber down on the Jersey Shore, driving home on the parkway with an 8 \u00bd-foot golden cedar slab that he somehow shoved into his minivan. He sanded that piece down 100 times and meticulously scraped the bark to create the live edge of his new bar.<\/p>\n

The subterranean room now boasts a 20-foot-long wall lined with five shelves of scotch, as well as 12 feet of built-in cabinets that house his bourbons, ryes and international whiskies (including Japanese, Irish, Taiwanese and Indian varieties) including his cherished bottle of Craigellachie 33, worth $3,000.<\/p>\n

\""I
\u201cI was literally just trying to find a place where I can hide the goods from my three little monsters,\u201d Philip Alongi said of his kids.
\n<\/figcaption>
Courtesy of Philip Alongi<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Charming touches include a tin ceiling, tufted velvet couches in deep shades, backlit stained glass, framed photos from his last trip<\/a> to Scotland and a lion\u2019s head door knocker and peep door.<\/p>\n

The result: a swanky speakeasy that could easily pass for a fancy members-only club.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to build it, otherwise I wouldn\u2019t be able to experience it,\u201d he said, adding that the project only set him back about $6,000. \u201cThis project has been great for both my physical and mental health and is a bright spot in an otherwise bleak time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Philip
Philip Alongi built a Prohibition-inspired bar in the 22-by-13 room (seen here before) with a \u201c1920s speakeasy feel.\u201d
\n<\/figcaption>
Courtesy of Philip Alongi<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now, Alongi added that he\u2019s finding all sorts of excuses to spend time downstairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI try to do as many of my Zoom meetings as possible down there,\u201d he said, adding that clients assume it\u2019s a virtual background. \u201cThey say, \u2018Is that real?\u2019 I got more [Facebook<\/a>] likes on this than when my kids were born.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n

The project has even inspired him to start a new tradition.<\/p>\n

\"Philip
Philip Alongi relied on photos of his favorite whiskey bars and drew on his own experiences at dozens of tasting rooms he visited in Scotland.<\/figcaption>
Courtesy of Philip Alongi<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cEvery time I open a new bottle, I seal the first two ounces into a lab vial,\u201d he said. \u201cThey serve as both a time capsule of whiskies I\u2019ve tried, but also are designed to be opened and shared with my kids when they reach the appropriate age.\u201d<\/p>\n

The proud dad pointed out that his 5-year-old daughter is already a little whiskey lover in the making. When the project was completed, she pointed to the racks of bottles and explained to her younger siblings: \u201cThese are mine when I grow up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Naturally, thirsty friends are dying to visit. But, at least for now, Alongi isn\u2019t letting just anybody down a dram in his speakeasy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll need the secret password,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Phil
Alongi conjured up a space authentic enough to transport any 21st-century hooch hound back to the rat-a-tat-tat old days.<\/figcaption>
Courtesy of Phil Alongi<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

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Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“#NJ whiskey lover transforms basement into swanky speakeasy” It\u2019s the roaring \u201920s \u2013 in Jersey. Two months ago, frustrated whiskey lover Philip Alongi could see that his 800-bottle collection of bourbon, scotch and rye was spilling over. And, with three increasingly curious kids under 5 at home, he knew that he needed to find a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":178371,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/02\/basement-speakeasy-16.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[67127,92929,71155,28264,93345],"class_list":["post-178370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-home-improvement","tag-2-12-21","tag-bars","tag-new-jersey","tag-whiskey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=178370"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178370\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/178371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=178370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=178370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=178370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}