New cocktail class venue, Liquor Lab, opens in Louisville's NuLu Marketplace

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new venue in Louisville is teaching people how to make world-class cocktails.

Liquor Lab held a soft opening at NuLu Marketplace in late October. Since then, the venue that can accommodate around 40 people has hosted four public classes.

Owen Meyer, founder and CEO of Liquor Lab, says classes are designed to teach someone how to make cocktails at home. The concept started in New York City, and has a location in Nashville.

"We're living in a world where people enjoy experiences, the ideation of Liquor Lab as a whole really is rooted in that, and that is combined with home bartending," Meyer said. "The whole idea about Liquor Lab is to have a super unique and high-end experience, and the instructor is the most important thing."

Meyer calls the instructors who teach the class the "highlight" of Liquor Lab. Instructors share with attendees how to make variations of margaritas, old-fashioneds, seasonal cocktails and other popular drinks.

"All of our instructors are world-class bartenders," Meyer said. "They're funny, they're engaging, they keep it top-level, but if you have an interesting question, they can also answer that."

The classes that teach patrons how to make three full cocktails also are paired with small bites from local restaurants. Meyer used Royals Hot Chicken, a nearby NuLu restaurant, as an example of food offered at the classes.

"We cater all that from local partners, not only does that support the community and highlight those businesses, but it's also effective in giving our clientele a two-for-one punch," Meyer said.

Liquor Lab takes around 10 minutes in between drinks for attendees to socialize and eat food.

"If you go to a whiskey tasting or whiskey dinner, often times you'll find yourself listening to someone talk for two hours," Meyer said. "I want to talk to my friend here, I don't want to sit here for two hours and listen, so that makes it very approachable."

Beyond attendees having to be 21 years and older, Meyer said Liquor Lab has hosted a wide variety of people.

"You have everything from older couples to some middle-aged guys on their birthday to parents and their (adult) kids, it's not just a date night," Meyer said. "There is a perception that it's a date night activity, you can bring small groups, we seat everyone together."

While the classes teach attendees how to make liquor-based cocktails, Meyer said the experience can be equally enjoyed by someone who doesn't drink alcohol as they'll learn to make high-end mocktails.

With an entrance that opens up into the courtyard of NuLu Marketplace, Liquor Lab is adjacent to West Sixth Brewery and looks to Main Street. There's a retail space in the front of the venue that has cocktail mixes, syrups and other items for sale.

Liquor Lab has seasonal cocktail events scheduled on Friday and Saturday evenings. To see a list of events, click here.

Liquor Lab also hosts virtual classes and on-demand cocktail instructional videos.