A specialist whisky bar owner wants to extend the opening hours and change restrictions to the off-sales licence.
Brighton and Hove City Council put strict conditions on alcohol sales at Cut Your Wolf Loose in Trafalgar Street in 2020, after neighbours raised concerns about the “saturation” of licensed businesses in the North Laine.
Now the business’s owner Sebastian Woolf has applied to extend drinking hours from 10pm until 11.30pm.
Mr Woolf also wants to extend off-sales to allow customers to buy craft beers in multipacks of four cans, and potentially sell miniatures as part of pre-boxed cocktail making sets.
The current licence restricts off-sales to whisky only. There would be no change to off-sales hours which would end at 10pm.
Whisky is the only spirit sold for consumption on-site.
Mr Woolf also wants to remove a restriction that prevents the bar area from opening during whisky tastings and to extend the back garden smoking area use for up to 15 people with drinks until 9.30pm.
Currently, the garden closes at 6pm with two smokers allowed outside at any time during opening hours.
The application includes expanding smokers to four in the garden after 9.30pm.
In his application, Mr Woolf said: “Since September 2021 we have been open and licensed from 11am till 10pm every day as a whisky shop and tasting bar with whisky cocktails, craft beers, fine wine and soft drinks for those guests who don’t drink neat whisky.
“In this time we have not, to my knowledge, generated any upheld complaints from local residents.
“We have received notification of a couple of noise complaints directed at us but have shown that we were closed and empty at the time of each of these complaints.
“Many of our guests wish to come for a digestive/night-cap after dinner but our current closing time of 10pm is proving prohibitive for them as they often finish their meals at at least 9.30pm and cannot get to us before our licensed hours end.
“We are therefore looking to extend on-sales of alcohol until midnight each night to allow after-dinner drinkers to come to us for a couple of drinks.”
Sussex Police has opposed the variation because Trafalgar Street is in a busy part of Brighton where there are restrictions on new licences and variations.
Inspector Mark Redbourn said: “The applicant did not pre-consult with Sussex Police prior to the submission of this variation application and no specific reference to potential cumulative impact issues has been made.
“Local concerns and issues that the area of Trafalgar Street attracts as a main thoroughfare to the train station remain and no alternative provisions or conditions have been offered to mitigate that potential harm.”
Brighton and Hove City Council licensing team has also opposed the application because it would breach council icensing policy.
A panel of three councillors is due to decide the application at a virtual hearing at 10am tomorrow (Thursday 16 November).
The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the council’s website.
“Oh show us the way to the next whisky bar, no don’t ask why, no don’t ask why. For if we don’t find the next whisky bar I tell you we must die….”
And this is how small independent businesses get crushed, while big powerful groups operating in the local area even manage to reopen a door on West Street of all places, which we all know sane people must stay away from in the evenings.
Molly Malone got their license back and the Oculist (old Boutique m) has now got an entry/exit point directly on West Street. Can’t drive past it South bound without having to stop to let smokers and drinkers holding glass get back on the pavement, plus getting abuse or kicks to the car from them with security just staring doing nothing.
CYWL is a place of liquore education and information. A small, local independent just asking to make a living. Experienced staff and older clientele posing no threats.
Disgusting
How can it be ‘disgusting’ ?
The licensing panel hasn’t met yet yet alone made a decsion!
Laine, DIB, Indigo these people rule town and licensing with pretty much blank paper and total freedom
CYWL is fantastical! It’s much more of an experience than a bar, and the go to destination to learn about and sample fine whiskies from around the planet. It’s a world of discovery filled with amazing liquids served by wise & knowledgeable staff! (You can tell I had a great time!)
Its Brightons secret gem & staying open a little later is only good news!
Cut them back.. reduce the others back to how they started.. every excuse to turn the country into rubbish. Everywhere you go booze booze booze all day every day, petrol stations kiosks anywhere with a crust on offer… cut it down not more access and endless drunks onthe go
I live in the tower block opposite. This place isn’t a typical bar. I don’t ever see people screaming running out of it, or shenanigans.
I’ve never been in but I’ve heard nothing but good things. Give them what they’re after, people need to earn a crust FFS.
This is blatantly corruption aimed at stifling competition. There is just no way the type of people frequenting a whisky bar are the type of antisocial drinkers that would pose an issue for people accessing the train station. They also say there is already a saturation of licensed businesses in the area, so this small increase is unlikely to have a material impact especially considering the likely nature of the clientele.
The council need to be careful of avoiding the smell of corruption when deciding this one. If they restrict opening hours of this bar compared with other bars in the local area, it will look very suspicious.
The hours are already restricted.
The bar wants them extended.
The hours other premises operate is a totally sepatate issue.
Just because one bar has longer hours does not automatically mean those hours should apply to other bars. And it’s not corrupt for the panel to decide on different hours for different premises,