The new 4,000-square-foot Whiskey Sanctuary, complete with hand-built wooden pews and two-story Gothic windows, is set to open at noon on Saturday, December 21.
Laws says he wanted to apply a company mantra and build off the somewhat church-y feel of the distillery's old tour program “exponentially” to offer the best brand experience he can.
“It’s a place to come and figure out Laws Whiskey. It’s a very cool place, and goes along with something that we always say, which is, ‘Make it exist, and make it better,’” he notes. “My stepfather and I built the pews. It has breaker boards that come up in front of the windows where we give the [talk], ‘Here’s how you make whiskey, and here’s what Laws is about.’ It feels like a church inside. It’s very elegant.”

The bar is adorned with one of Laws's slogans, reflecting its approach to making whiskey: There are no shortcuts.
Connor Stehr
“I think the coolest part of the building is this guided tasting area,” Laws says. “It’s a dark room with underlit bottles. I think that’s the most interesting room in the place.”
After the tour tasting, or when simply visiting the sanctuary for a drink, visitors take a spiral staircase up to the second floor. The staircase is built to look like the inside of a barrel, Laws says, with the walls textured to look like char. The bar itself is “very classy, as well,” he adds. “It’s very intimate; it’s not a huge place where you can get 200 people. I think it’s 48 people max on the second floor, a place to bring your date or meet a friend before dinner or after dinner.”

The Whiskey Sanctuary features handmade wooden pews and large Gothic-style windows to lend the space a church-like atmosphere.
Connor Stehr
The distillery also has an agave spirit and an aged rum, which allows it to broaden its cocktail offerings. The bar will offer bites such as small plates of various cured meats, cheeses and nuts, as well. It’s a dramatic expansion compared to what Laws was previously able to offer: whiskey poured into a glass.
“I think it’s a big improvement from what we had before,” Laws notes. “We didn’t even have a license for ice before. Before, if you wanted to do a flight, you could do a flight. Now there’s this whole range of drinking experience with what we make.”

A spiral staircase fashioned like the inside of a whiskey barrel leads up to the bar on the sanctuary's second floor.
Connor Stehr
The Whiskey Sanctuary at Laws Whiskey is located at 80 West Arkansas Avenue and will be open from 3 to 10 p.m. Tuesday, 2 to 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 1 to 11 p.m. Friday, noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday starting December 21. Tours can be scheduled at lawswhiskeyhouse.com/the-distillery.