Ever watch a “Harry Potter” movie and think that you’d be wayyy better at Potions class than Harry and Ron? (Not Hermione, though, don’t go getting arrogant.) This spooky season, The Cauldron Pub is letting you put that to the test in a new mixology class that comes complete with a working wand and Gryffindor-esque robe.
The class works as a fairly self-led experience for you to brew -- literally -- your own cocktail. Equipped with enough supplies for three “molecular potions,” each witch or wizard hovers over their respective cauldrons and gets down to business.
While The Cauldron isn’t affiliated with the Harry Potter franchise, there are definitely some Diagon Alley vibes all over the place, from the wands that “choose” the mixologist and trolls that watch over each potion station. At least we can say with a good amount of absolute certainty that Severus Snape won’t be stalking the premises.
Three drink recipes are available for concocting: Nectar of the Gods, or “Poetic Mead,” made with honey wine popular from mythology; Transfiguration Toniq (another Harry Potter reference), made with gin and lavender and color changes; and Lost Time, a rum cocktail infused with chai that gets bubbled together in a legitimate cauldron. All cocktails are promised to bubble and smoke, because authenticity.
The Cauldron was first introduced as a pop-up in London (why are we not surprised?) founded by Matthew Cortland and Dave Duckworth. After the class sold out pretty much immediately, Cortland and Duckworth brought it to the city that never sleeps.
"We're creating an environment where you feel like the fantasy world could be real," Cortland told "Good Morning America." "We would like our patrons to leave here with a feeling of nostalgia."
As if make-your-own cocktails weren’t enticing enough, The Cauldron gets even more interactive with their brewing environment -- the wands will control certain parts of their mixing stations, like a tap and doors to where the ingredients are kept. Just make sure you get that swish and flick method down pat.
Tickets for the two-hour, 21+ class run $45 ($55 during peak seatings, aka weekends) and include mead, ingredients for two cocktails and your robe and wand. The pop-up will run through January 2019 at the Bavaria Bierhaus in the Financial Distract of Manhattan. What a way to kick off October, right?