BEHIND THE BAR

Sit outside this summer and sip on creative cocktails at StoneWater Golf Club and Rustic Grill.

UNFOREGETTABLE Cocktails

There’s a lot on the menu at StoneWater Golf Club besides golf.

With a full restaurant, a separate outdoor bar, an events room, and a top-notch golf course, the three sisters who own StoneWater Golf Club and Rustic Grill restaurant in the east-side Cleveland suburb of Highland Heights are a long drive ahead of most golf course’s 19th-hole offerings.

But there’s more, especially for spirits lovers. Kathryn, Lindsey, and Whitney Neidus, the owners who invested in StoneWater in 2015, also offer cocktailmaking classes, spirits-themed dinners, and separate cocktail menus in their dining locations throughout the year.

For instance, StoneWater held a Pork & Bourbon event in February, a fivecourse dinner that executive chef Kathryn Neidus prepared with pork provided by farmer James Hamilton of nearby Lenox Township. Bourbon pours, curated by local spirits expert Lorilei Bailey, included offerings from Jefferson’s Ocean, Rabbit Hole, Willett, Eagle Rare, and Augusta Distillery Buckner’s Limited Edition.

The $150 menu included hors d’oeuvres, a pre-dinner cocktail, and a take-home treat. The 30-some customers were able to ask in-depth questions of their hosts and the vendors.

“We like to keep these events smaller and exclusive,” said Whitney Neidus, StoneWater’s general manager. “A lot of times people who come to these have a passion for whatever the spirit is. So, we want to have them talk to the spirits expert and the chef.”

“The regular diner might not know it, but Kathryn and whomever is pouring the spirits go on this journey all night with them,” said Lindsey Neidus, StoneWater’s marketing director.

Check the calendar often. StoneWater schedules special cocktail classes and events as the schedule allows and the popular events fill up quickly.

Spirits-paired dinners and cocktail classes are held in The Venue, StoneWater’s events space. Although StoneWater is a semiprivate golf club, the course is open to some public play, and the public is always welcome at the club’s Rustic Grill restaurant and its outdoor bar, The Yard. StoneWater also has a publicly available club-fitting and player development facility called the Linksman House.

Last year, StoneWater introduced The Yard, a large, outdoor gathering space separate from the main dining room. Located off StoneWater’s 10th tee, The Yard is open from Memorial Day and into the fall.

It has a fully stocked bar that offers its own cocktail menu as well as pre-made drinks from Duck Island Cocktails. On Fridays and Saturdays from Memorial Day through the fall, The Yard also features live music in the evening, and guests are

Kathryn Neidus offers bites to go with their cocktails.

Tasting events are popular at StoneWater.

End your meal with the popular tequila lime cheesecake made with a salted caramel crust and topped with agave syrup.

The Cedar Fire Old Fashioned is a favorite of guests. permitted to order from the restaurant in a carryout capacity and, on select nights, from food trucks or the Rustic Grille Stand.

“We wanted it to be like you were going to your best friend’s backyard,” Lindsey Neidus said. “There are no reservations — it’s very casual.”

She said The Yard encourages families to explore the open space, and customers are welcome to bring their dogs and let them roam as well.

The sisters have even branched out into production, bottling Spiked Apple Cider in the fall and a mulled wine, which they call Cleveland Glogg, around the Christmas holiday. And they’re always keeping an eye out for new features to add.

One of StoneWater’s most-requested cocktails is the Cedar Fire Old Fashion. The bartender smokes the glass with wood chips before adding bourbon flavored with sugar and bitters. The ice cube has an orange slice and Luxardo cherry inside, and the garnish is a piece of house-cured bacon.

“My sisters and I have traveled a lot, and we continue to go out to places and eat, whether it’s fine dining or a local dive bar,” said Lindsey Neidus. “We make cocktails approachable but with layers of flavor, without trying to be something we’re not.”

Thoughtfully crafted itineraries incorporate three cities for a perfect bourbon excursion—distinctive distilleries, mouth-watering culinary offerings, and bourbon-centric attractions & lodging.

ComeFindBourbon.com

Come Find Bourbon is a partnership between meetNKY, Visit Frankfort, and Visit Bardstown. COME TO COVINGTON

FIND IT IN FRANKFORT

BOURBON COMES FROM BARDSTOWN

ON THE Menu

Cool down this summer with this fresh vodka cocktail that will be served at The Yard.

BLUEBERRY LEMON FIZZ

11/2 oz. blueberry vodka 1/2 oz. limoncello 1/2 oz. blueberry simple syrup 2 oz. lemonade Sparkling water Ice cubes 1 lemon wheel Blueberries for garnish

Pour the first four ingredients into a rocks glass over ice. Fill the remaining glass with sparkling water. Add lemon wheel and blueberries for garnish.