Tucked away on the edge of Brighton’s Laines is a little bar that in my mind defines what a modern whisky spot should be. If Cut Your Wolf Loose is the future of whisky bars then things are looking pretty fucking bright.

I was a little sceptical at first. No bar survives being open for three years without prompting a less than five-star review somewhere. Yet at the time of my two visits, Cut Your Wolf Loose had perfect scores on Google, Facebook and Tripadvisor and I was eager to see if this was earned.

So what do we have here? Cut Your Wolf Loose sets out to be “not stuffy and red trousery”. When you walk in and see the tube train fabric on the seats, thousands of stickers and street art covering the walls, and a massive cartoon wolf logo dominating the window, you’ll have no doubt they’ve nailed this mission. The bottles lining the walls are the highlight of the space and these are largely (but not exclusively) from independent distilleries and bottlers. Someone only familiar with supermarket brands would struggle to recognize much on the shelves but whisky nerds will find many talked about bottles ready to try.

The whisky offering focuses on Single Malt Scotch with America, Ireland, Japan, etc relegated to the literal fringes. It’s a small venue so there’s no shame in that and in these smaller ranges what was present represented the best of that region with well reviewed bottlings or those from smaller distributors which is all you can ask for.

One of the big draws of Cut Your Wolf Loose is that there are things here you literally can’t try anywhere else. Being a bottler/retailer as well as a bar they have their Cask Samples Range taking up one section of the wall. This is a selection of 40-ish bottles drawn from their barrels in a work-in-progress form. They may not be where the team wants them for final bottling, but they sure are delicious. From their range I tried a sweet yet slightly tannic Cameronbridge for £6.50 as well as a deep and rich Macduff with an intense toffee nose for £9.

Pricing is like any other bar – there will be great value pours and not-so-great-value pours. However, nothing at Cut Your Wolf Loose was priced unfairly and everything was cheaper than in London despite Brighton being an expensive place too. The cost is displayed on a tag around each bottle too, and servings are sized at 25ml. Whilst I know some whisky fans would prefer 35ml this keeps things more accessible to the curious. Many bars seem ashamed of their pricing and tuck it away in a menu or hide it entirely and that’s not the case here. By having every bottle on display with price when you walk around you’ll soon see something that grabs your attention at a number that feels right too. The online menu lists all drams and whilst it seems out of date it paints an accurate overall of range and pricing. The cocktail menu deserves a mention too. It focuses on twists of classic cocktails. I tried the Autumn Breeze, a slightly sweeter take on the boulevardier that went down well on a warm afternoon.

Let’s talk service. The team at Cut Your Wolf Loose were the highlight of each visit. They were both welcoming and knowledgeable, happy to chat in detail about the store, their products and whisky overall. As a non-local they even gave great recommendations for food and drinks nearby too. I was able to tell them my tastes and let them lead me through what they would recommend with the budget I had. Whilst not everything provided was exactly my preference, it was all well-crafted and with an interesting background. Everything I tried I would either buy myself or at least recommend to other whisky fans. After we got into a discussion about New-Make, one of the team brought me several to try free of charge as they were left over tasting samples that couldn’t be sold.

I have no doubt that if I wanted to be left alone to enjoy the music and read a book the staff would have obliged, however, Cut Your Wolf Loose is designed to be interacted with. The space is set up for walking around. Customers are encouraged to study the walls, ask questions and plot their next drink as they go. Whisky conversation is the end goal. It makes a refreshing change versus other small bars that design the space around packing people in whilst keeping them separate from others. The focus on conversation extends to the tunes too. Whilst there are DJ nights the music during these daytime visits was coffee-house acoustic fare. Chillness throughout.

If you skipped to the bottom and missed the glowing review above then here’s the TL;DR: Cut Your Wolf Loose nails everything a modern whisky bar should have. A casual atmosphere but incredible service. A massive dram list but delicious cocktails and non-whisky drinks too. This isn’t just a recommendation that extends to Sussex either. Cut Your Wolf Loose is a must visit for any whisky fan holidaying in Brighton. Fans will find plenty to explore and for anyone just starting out I cannot think of a more welcoming place to test the waters.