MANSFIELD — The viewing room at the former Schroer Family Mortuary has been resurrected with a new lease on life.
The Spirit Room at the Phoenix, a whiskey bar and private event space at 131 N. Diamond St., opens to the public on Friday at 5 p.m.
“For the last nine years, the upstairs floor at the Phoenix Brewing Company hasn’t been open to the public,” said Carmone Macfarlane, the creative and marketing director for The Phoenix.
The former Schroer Mortuary has three floors. The basement, previously the preparation room, currently houses the pilot brew house. The first-floor Phoenix taproom was formerly the chapel.
The upstairs, which served as a viewing room for the funeral home, was mainly used for storage by the Phoenix.
That changes Friday when the Spirit Room opens with an extensive whiskey catalog that offers a broad selection of bourbon, whiskey and scotch with seating for around 49 people.
The Spirit Room grand opening weekend hours will be Friday, Feb. 17, from 5 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. and Saturday from 4 p.m. until 10:30 p.m.
Beginning Feb. 23, the Spirit Room’s regular hours will be Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
For more information, visit the Spirit Room website at www.spiritroomphx.com
For private event rentals, please contact Scott Cardwell at scott@phoenixbrewing.com
“We’ve always had spirits up there,” Phoenix co-owner Steve Zigmund joked.
The new gathering space has been undergoing a renovation for the last seven months, work done by the Adena Corp. of Mansfield’s special projects division.
Macfarlane described the upstairs as a warm and intimate space.
“It offers a variety of seating, including leather couches, low and high seating areas with live-edge tables, ample bar seating, and dark blue chairs,” she said.
Eclectic furnishings fill the space, including some repurposed items: an industrial cart salvaged from the old Westinghouse building, along with questionably salvageable 6-inch butcher blocks transformed into the back bar counter.
Reclaimed beams found in the Phoenix warehouse were incorporated into the bar construction, she said.
The original brick walls are adorned with a permanent art collection including works by Sally Green, Artist 44, Ken Arthur, Melissa Compton and others.
She said unique interior features include a barrel stave-wall crafted from barrels used to age Phoenix beers.
“The bar is constructed from reclaimed wood beams, metal, and live-edge wood. Other upcycled items including grain bags from beer and whiskey production, turned into pillows and art. The backbar cabinetry is repurposed from another local restoration,” Macfarlane said. “A vintage pew offers intimate seating for guests in the hallway.”
“But the focal point is the iconic Diamond Street window. During the day, the sun casts a soft glow through the window and at night, it is lit from the interior and exterior.
“It wasn’t visible in the original plans due to strict codes and requirements. But (Mansfield architect) Dan Seckel worked hard to revise his original blueprints to include the unique feature and to maximize the space’s potential as an intimate whiskey bar open to the public, yet accessible for private events during other times,” she said.
Zigmund said he is happy to be finally provide a different answer to an oft-asked question.
“After responding to a very common question for the last nine years with, ‘I’m not sure if we’ll ever open the upstairs,’ I am now very happy to say, ‘We’re opening the upstairs, and I really think you’re going to like it up there,'” Zigmund said.
Zigmund opened the Phoenix nine years ago with partners Duncan Macfarlane and Scott Cardwell, a team that remains in place.
“The Spirit Room has been a much more hands on project with most every decision about construction being made by us,” said Cardwell, co-owner and bar manager.
The Spirit Room is open to the public. Anyone over age 21 is welcome. It features a curated menu offering a large selection of Bourbon, Scotch, Whiskey, barrel-aged beers, selected craft beers, local wine, and a limited specialty cocktail menu.
Carmone Macfarlane said reasonable prices will allow guests to sample new bourbons.
And where the brewing company offers mug club memberships with special glassware, the Spirit Room offers a Bourbon “Locker” club with lockers for members to store their customized glassware and purchased bottles onsite.
Lockers are currently sold out for 2023 with a waiting list for openings in 2024, she said.
“The bourbon and other whiskeys being stocked will be the finest legally available to us for purchase,” Cardwell said.
“We are also working directly with distilleries to do Spirit Room exclusive barrel picks. One will be available in March with a second one scheduled to be obtained within a year,” Cardwell said.
Among the many bottles available, one stands out for its local connections.
Distiller John Bassett from Iron Vault Distillery in Galion first collaborated with the brewery in 2019 to craft the Phoenix Fire Whiskey.
Iron Vault distilled wort from the brewery created with Ohio barley, before aging it in oak barrels. The whiskey was aging well before the restoration and construction began.
Both the distillery and the brewery feel the 2022 vintage will be even more popular with its notes of toffee, caramel, and vanilla, with a slightly sweet, yet bold, lingering finish.
Duncan Macfarlane, the Phoenix head brewer and co-owner, said the Phoenix suspended its barrel-program at the Phoenix in 2020.
“We reinstituted it in late 2021 and plan on having some very special barrel-aged beers available exclusively in the Spirit Room and the Phoenix taproom.
“They will complement the bourbon selection, but still push the boundaries a little for us. We have a barrel aged sour that will be introduced later this year. We also have some hard-to-find barrel-aged guest beers we are excited to share,” he said.
Special events planned
The Spirit Room partnering with different distilleries and community members.
— Valley Media and Productions will host the Sunday Songwriter Series, featuring four different touring musicians in 2023. This series will bring world class songwriters to downtown Mansfield in an intimate environment.
The lineup is an eclectic mix of writers. Abe Partridge from Alabama is a songwriter and folk artist with a gravely pension for storytelling. Phillip-Micahel Scales will bring his “Dive Bar Soul” that stems from his Chicago roots – growing up under the tutelage of B.B.King. Husband-and-wife duo Ordinary Elephant offer harmonies and a style that transports the audience to another era.
Clint Knight from Valley Media said, “When I was playing music, listening rooms and small bars were the most special — because the performer and audience are more intimate. It’s an amazing experience for everyone involved.”
— Author John Kropf will host a discussion of his latest work, Color Capital of the World, on Feb. 26, at 2 pm.
— McManes Personal Training from Lexington will offer meditation workshops in the space throughout the year.
Guests can expect additional events like distillery led tastings and educational opportunities. Information about these events can be found on the Spirit Room website and Facebook page.
