Aloft is the budget boutique hotel entry of W Hotels subgroup of Starwood. It feels like a utopian version of a European hostel in a major capital that has nightclubs nearby.
The locations are listed on the inside of the elevator.----Austin. Bogota. Chinese cities beginning with "Zh". The elevators have funky floors with fluid that changes under the pressure of one's feet.
All the Aloft installations have similar bars in the lobby, called W XYZ, with the name in neon above the bar. Some of them are mirror images of the layout at the one in Aurora.
This is according to the bartender there.
Behind the bar are five sets of shelves, backlit in a gradient of color from orange to sky blue. Each set has three shelves. On the fifteen shelves, I observed:
Bottled beers: 2 shelves (the top shelves of the two sets on the right)
Wines: 2 shelves (the top shelves of the two sets on the left)
Vodkas: 3 shelves (the middle set of shelves)
Whiskys: 2 and one half shelves
Aperitifs: 1 half of a shelf
Liquers: 1 shelf
Rums: 1 shelf
Tequilas: 1 shelf
Misc other: 1 shelf
When I mentioned this to the bartender I learned that this was not the standard layout. He himself had arranged them such, under his autonomy as the senior bartender.
We agreed it was genius to allow guests to charge drinks to their room.
"A lot of money," I said.
He nodded his ahead.
"Quite a game," I said to him, after a pause in the conversation, while glancing up at the television above the bar. It was still tuned to the sports channel showing the recent game highlights. The sound was turned down.
He hadn't seen much of the game. Wasn't a college football fan, I could tell.
He comped me a second White Russian. He was astonished at my resemblance to a well-known Scottish comedian (I don't see it). But I blew his mind when I slipped into a Scottish accent..
I told him he looked like Leo DiCaprio (which he does, with a skinnier neck).
Made his night.
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