Lowcountry has been the most challenging London bar review for me. Not because it has problems or weird quirks, but because whenever I go I have such a good time talking about whisky that I forget to take the notes I need. 

Named after the Georgia / South Carolina coastline, this bar is all about Southern hospitality and the drinks to match. It’s the downstairs cocktail sibling of Counter71, a modern British restaurant with very few sittings that’s raved about on the London food scene. Both are small venues, but Lowcountry is the only one you can rock up to – and rock up I did on several occasions.

Down a small and unassuming staircase is the bar, also small and unassuming. You couldn’t comfortably fit much more than two dozen people in here. The lighting is low and warm, what you’d expect from a London basement bar, and there’s a bit of work going on with textures and colours around the space. However all your attention will be drawn to the backlit line-up of bottles at the bar.

When I first visited Lowcountry in the summer of 2024 there were just shy of 100 bottles behind the bar. At my most recent visit there were well over 150. There’s more to pick from down the road at Odyssey Bar but what’s here feels more curated. ‘Curation’ is often a polite by-word for ‘small’ but here we mean it in the literal sense of the thought and organization that’s gone into these bottles. It’s not an inherited collection like Odyssey’s but one that’s being built up by owner Ryan Sheenan. 

Ryan is the soul of Lowcountry, welcoming, generous and knowledgeable. On my first visit, when I was just a stranger off of the street, Ryan poured me some interesting free samples alongside the bourbons I ordered, just to get a feel for what I enjoyed and what my thoughts were on certain distilleries. So for bourbon nerds, just being here is a good time but let’s tackle the big question: What is Lowcountry pouring?

Take a gander at the back of the bar and you’ll see a lot of the usual suspects as well as many things you might not recognize. Listing all the bottles would be insanity so instead you can browse the pictures above and look for yourselves at just a part of what’s on offer because there’s more bottles stashed on shelves nearby and under the bar too.

On my first visit I enjoyed some Weller and Yellowstone bottlings but on more recent ones I’ve been focused on the Canadian selection with pours of Found North. This Canadian independent bottler has releases of very old grain whiskey that are hard to get ahold of in Canada, let alone over here. I had the Found North Batch 11 which is almost entirely very old corn whiskey, mellow cereals and vanilla on the nose but red grapes and toffee apples on the palate. I also tried the more adventurous Second Summit with a higher rye content and malbec casks. This was a masterclass in blending with a perfect balance of sweetness from the corn, rye spice and wine tannins.  These pours weren’t cheap but that’s because they’re hard to get. For more common but quality pours like a Weller 12 or Yellowstone Single Barrel you’re looking at comfortably under £10 still. On par with the bourbon neighbours like Odyssey Bar and The Lexington.

Are the cocktails good? It took me a long time to get around to them when there’s so much rare whiskey to be found. I’ve tried two, a Fat Washed Buffalo Trace Old Fashioned and their prestigious Sazerac Royale.

The Old Fashioned has only a hint of bacon, it adds a thickness to the mouthfeel and an umami note rather than anything smoky. This is a good example of the classic cocktail for £14, which is at the mid-lower end of the average price for one in London. The Sazerac Royale is the premium offering of this creative menu but not one of those silly £100+ ones you might find at other bars. This £30 drink uses Thomas H. Handy Rye and Courvoisier XO Royal Cognac as the base spirits. If you are a fan of the Sazerac it is worth trying at least once. This is a complex cocktail where all the ingredients are layered and identifiable in each sip. You can certainly savour it whilst your companions have two of the cheaper ones.

Lowcountry also does food and I’ve had a chance to try two dishes across our visits. The burger is the star of the show. It’s petite, but for £12 in a London bar you can’t complain. This was a proper cheeseburger. Ridiculously rich and juicy just scaled down somewhat versus your usual fare. The Woven whisky in the sauce adds an edge that elevated it overall. By contrast the fried popcorn chicken and chips didn’t stand out when it came to flavour. Nothing wrong with the dish of course, it’s just in very good company. 

Is there anything I don’t like about Lowcountry? Not really. If I had to nitpick then I’d say the decor, as an extension of Counter71, is a little uninspiring and cold for a snug basement bar. With the lights so low the effort put into colour and texture that we mentioned above just doesn’t pop.  However, the bits of design that matter are spot on. The seating is comfortable and the restrooms are well presented with Le Labo products and fresh hand towels. Fellow London cocktail fans will be able to name at least one bar where the drinks are fancy and the toilets are grim. 

If you want to get your fill of Bourbon in London then Lowcountry is the place to start. At the time of writing it is our favourite whisky bar in London, full stop. Whilst the competition close by might tempt you away with their own broad menus, Lowcountry has the hospitality and warm atmosphere that’ll keep you coming back.