JAMESONS UNDERGROUND SOCIETY – BELFAST
JAMESONS UNDERGROUND SOCIETY
Project: Complete fit out and decoration.
Designed by Drinksology, Fourum & On The Square Emporium
Antiques and whiskey; two of our favourite things, come together in this fantastic project. We have worked with Drinksology for many years on smaller projects and bespoke pieces. But this time they handed Dillon Bass over to us to complete their design for Jameson whiskey’s own private hospitality club rooms. Jameson’s branding designers Fourum were also instrumental in the design, especially with the prints and lettering and wall design.
This was a ground up (or below ground up as it is in the basement) full fit out. Our building team took out walls and installed serving hatches. The place was rewired, wifi installed and security cameras and alarm system put in. With the groundwork done, the decorating team re skimmed and painted the area and then an eclectic mix of furniture and decoration went in; the end result is a truly unique place to taste a fantastic whiskey and learn about its heritage and production process.
The front room is an eccentric take on a traditional “gentleman’s club”. A fantastic high backed ox blood button back chesterfield suite sits in the centre of the room on top of a vintage rug, in the centre is a bespoke table we made from a vintage vaulting horse, it is glassed topped and houses an array of Jameson bottles. A victorian cast iron fireplace has been fitted and a water-mist real flame effect fire installed giving an elegant but cosy feel. The surrounding wall of the fireplace is painted in antique white and has a letter from John Jameson to a Belfast client superimposed in vinyl. The remaining walls are painted in a dark green that is one of Jamesons corporate colours, but also a classic Victorian colour. The recycled vintage frames of the artwork are painted to match the wall, the artwork was supplied to us digitally by Fourum and some of the pieces are digitally interactive with an app. We added some steampunk elements with the bespoke vintage stage light on theodolite legs and the section of vintage grain thresher holding bottles of Jameson Whiskey. Note our bespoke barrel stools, made from whiskey barrels, this ties the theme once more to whiskey. The scene is softened by potted plants in vintage pots and an antique milking churn.
Off the main room are two alcoves that were fitted with inbuilt bench seating like a traditional cellar pubs nock. They are furnished sparely in contrast with the main room with a custom made antique sacktruck coffee table and a traditional pub table.
The back room is again a change in tone. This is the area were the main talks and tastings happen and thus we designed it as a “Whiskey Lab”, The furniture is restored queens university lab tables and stools, the shelves we dressed with lab distilling equipment and large sample bottles filled with the different grains that go into the production. The sound system in this room was retrofitted into an old scientific radio. There is a hidden tv screen mirror on the wall for showing clips on whiskey production and we made mock blackboards with the distilation process printed on them from Fourums artwork.
The final room is the kitchen, This is a compact and functional room we created using a 1950s kitchen. The proportions were great and we gave it a more contemporary feel by painting it in a downpipe grey. The kitchen unit hides the small commercial dishwasher and houses all the glasses and accoutrements for the different drink mixes and cocktails, as every space is needed to host guests we installed some inbuilt bench seating in the kitchen
The end product is a quirky, intriguing and professional space for Jameson to promote there fantastic range of Whiskeys!
