Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants recently introduced a nightcap program that will offer guests staying at select hotels a small pour of a nighttime libation paired with a special snack. The program kicked off in early March with 17 Kimpton hotels, including the Morrison House in Alexandria, VA; the Surfcomber in South Beach, FL; the Hotel Palomar in Philadelphia; the Hotel Allegro in Chicago and several Hotel Monaco locations.
The nightcap offering takes Kimpton’s nightly Wine Hour a step further. Guests at the participating hotels are invited to sample a tasting of a traditional nightcap spirit or liqueur such as brandy, Cognac or port, paired with an accompanying bite such as a shortbread cookie, nuts or chocolate.
Nightly samplings will vary from property to property and might include tawny port and blue cheese, Scotch and shortbread, or Cognac and crystalized ginger. The hotels participating in the nightcap program are encouraged to interpret the offering in a way that makes sense for their unique clientele and locations.
For instance, the Sky Hotel in Aspen, CO, offers the nightcap tastings earlier to accommodate the après-ski crowd, while locations such as the Hotel Monacos in Denver and Philadelphia pass out “speakeasy” cards inviting guests to visit the front desk for a special pairing that evening.
The hotels will be pouring five spirits throughout the summer: Fernet Branca; which has a strong cult following in many cities and is a perennial Kimpton favorite; Branca Menta; Café Borghetti espresso liqueur; Teeling Irish whiskey; and Tequila Corralejo.
Founded in 1981 and acquired by InterContinental Hotels Group this past December, San Francisco-based Kimpton operates more than 60 boutique hotels and 70-plus restaurants, bars and lounges in 30 U.S. cities. The company plans to roll out the nightcap program to additional hotels within its portfolio during the year; it’s currently up to 23.