Brahms & Liszt, London

The Hackney liquor store with an enthusiasm for the hard stuff and the obscure, and a try-before-you-buy policy

For ages, the semi-secret, word-of-mouth Quiquiriqui Mezcal and 184 Hackney Road/Mezcaleria Quiquiriqui bars on East London’s Hackney Road were underground favorites for London’s liquor connoisseurs. Now the woman behind the mezcal-loving venues, Melanie Symonds, has opened a liquor shop—Brahms & Liszt—on Chatsworth Road, Clapton. At Brahms & Liszt, the focus is on the hard stuff. This is the place to come to for unusual liquor …