House of Bols
To say that
a visit to the fabulous House of Bols is something truly special is a great
understatement. This place won the prestigious Dutch Design Award for Best
Exhibition and Experience of 2007, thus proving that it is well-able to bring
the best of both worlds – the past – rich in history and tradition, and the
present – abounding with innovation and state-of-the-art ideas. This place is
not only a museum or an exhibition, it is an interactive experience aimed at
stimulating all of your senses, with the main theme of bright and colorful
drinks and bartending. As you can imagine, the fun is addressed at 18+
audience, so make sure to have your ID with you to make you able to discover
the amazing world of vivid colors, intense fragrances and remarkable tastes!
The area
Moving to
the south-west you’ll eventually cross the picturesque Canal Belt and reach the
fantastic area of the Museumplein – the mecca of culture of the Venice of the
North. Here you’ll find places like the Rijksmuseum dedicated to arts, crafts
and history, Stedelijk Museum focusing on the contemporary aspect of art, or
Van Gogh Museum concentrating on the works by the famous artist. Among these
there lies the House of Bols – a perfect combination of a regular exhibition
and a more modern approach to displaying objects of general interest. What’s
more, in the closest vicinity you’ll also come across a range of great cafés
and bars or restaurants with menus filled with finger-licking dishes. Apart
from that, you’ll also get a great chance to catch a breath of tranquility in
one of the most astonishing green areas of the city – the nearby Vondelpark,
welcoming you with its fresh and peaceful setting. All in all, the neighborhood
surrounding the House of Bols hides many additional attractions which you’ll be
able to take full advantage of after you’ve finished your one-hour-or-so trip
to this exotic beverage heaven.
The history
The House
of Bols is, as you might rightly assume, a place dedicated to Lucas Bols – the
oldest distilled spirit brand in the world. The Bols family started their
initial business – liquor distillation – in Amsterdam in 1575, in the area of
Rozengracht. Lucas Bols, the founder of and the name-giver to the brand, was
the one who kept on developing the then-family-run company, enriching its offer
and expanding its scope of marketed specialties. However, with the arrival of
2000, long after the last of the Bols’ heirs’ death (1816), the company was
acquired by R
é
my Cointreau – a French alcohol
manufacturer, but in 2006 was bought out by Huub van Doorne, a former member of
the Board of Directors of Rémy Cointreau, thus returning to Amsterdam. To
commemorate this comeback, as well as to assert the brand’s position on the
market, the owners opened the House of Bols in spring of 2007. The place won an
important award in the area of design, thus becoming a very exciting attraction
to see, and a place of historical significance to the enthusiasts of the brand
and the values of quality it stands for.
The place
Offering a
fresh approach and an exciting way of exhibiting the various secrets of the art
of bartending and blending most diverse types of top-quality alcoholic
beverages, the House of Bols is a home to all the finest items you can find in
the brand’s offer – 36 types of liqueurs, many kinds of genever (Dutch gin) and
Bols Corenwyn (a mix of vat-ripened distillates), to name a few, await to be
discovered. And to make things even more interesting, everything is provided in
a state-of-the-art setting boasting ultra-contemporary environment and a set of
astonishing features, more on which below.
A visit to
the House of Bols is a true feast for all the senses. It is of self-guided
character and takes about an hour to let you enjoy all the available
excitements – but that does not mean you have to finish
that quickly, does it? Anyway, this unique experience offers rich
all-sensory stimulation, so let us just hint briefly at each ‘section’ devoted
to each of your senses – the sight, the touch, the smell, the hearing and the
taste.
SEE
Lucas Bols’
Delft Blue collection should be a real treat to your eyes. Since the 50s, KLM
airlines have been rewarding their business class passengers with a gift in the
form of a little Delft Blue house. Delft Blue is world-famous earthenware,
produced in the city of Delft since the 17th century. The miniatures
handed to KLM’s business travelers are scaled replicas of famous buildings
found throughout the Netherlands. The deal is that each year a new design is
developed in cooperation between Bols and KLM – there are 88 of them as for
now. At first, they were filled with Bols liqueur, but since the 80s Bols has
been supplying their young genever as the ‘filling’. A very rare sight – and
remarkable, too!
TOUCH
Inside this
breathtaking place you’ll get an opportunity to come into contact with the
original ingredients of Bols’ genevers and liqueurs. You can do that in the
rainbow-colored Hall of Taste, where you’ll find ingredients like juniper
berries or lemon peels, among others. Another interesting thing is the welcome
addition of many touch screens to make your experience far more interactive.
SMELL
If you can
smell your favorite food from miles away, then this section is just for you. The
exhibition with 36 chic scent dispensers allows you to try to guess the
different aromas put inside the bottles. Ranging from sweet peach and creamy
strawberries to intense coffee and refreshing mint, the palette of smells is
bound to make your nostrils dance in joy and confusion!
HEAR
What is
your first association when you think of cocktails and other drinks? Most will
probably say ‘clubbing’ or ‘partying’ and this would be a good guess, for the
House of Bols comes with a 280o Projection Room with a screen where
a video displaying various faces of nightlife – the domain of adult beverages –
is played. This video clip has been developed especially for the House of Bols
and features some energetic 4×4 electronic music, thus creating a consistent
whole to reflect the friendly nature of the clubbing environment, stressing the
aspect of good fun.
TASTE
If you
think that the way a particular dish or drink tastes is determined by your
sense of taste, you’re quite far from the truth, actually. With two amazing
taste-tests offered to be taken in the House of Bols you’ll be able to find out
how your brain reacts to different incentives – colors, images or smells. The
results will give you a deeper insight into your sensory weaponry; of course,
we don’t want to spoil all the fun, but let’s just note that even around 95% of
the taste depends on the smell! Surprising, isn’t it? The rest is for you to
discover alone.
Moreover,
the tour ends in the section called the ‘Mirror Bar’ – a spectacular space
where the décor is just as amazing as the attraction it serves. Select your own
genever cocktail or your favorite type of liquor and allow the skilled
bartender to mix it in front of your very eyes. Enjoy!
*BONUS*
If you’re
still craving for excitement, check out the Flair Booth, where you’ll get the
opportunity to use Bols’ special flair bottles and deliver a show like a real
professional bartender – and have all that recorded as a video clip which you
can share later with your friends!
Another
attraction is the Bols Shop – the only place in the world selling a complete
range of Bols Genever and all of the 36 types of Bols liqueur.
TICKETS AND OPENING HOURS
The House
of Bols is found at the following address: Paulus Potterstraat 14; it is open according
to the following schedule:
Monday to
Thursday – 12:00 – 18:30
Friday –
12:00 to 22:00
Saturday –
12:00 to 20:00
The entrance fee is € 14.50 per person and
includes a cocktail of own choice. The place is also accessible to people
moving using a wheelchair. However, the access is limited to those over 18
only! Find out more at
www.bols.com.
