Coming Soon: Cardiff Giant To Celebrate New York Spirits And Liquor

March is here and in a couple of weeks, so will a brand new New York spirits-focused bar named Cardiff Giant, in the former Splitty space at 415 Myrtle Avenue.

What is “Cardiff Giant” and what does it have to do with alcohol? Well, nothing really, except for the New York connection. Co-owner Steven Baird explained that since “our focus is on all New York State alcohol, we were looking for some arcane New York facts” and the Cardiff Giant — a fake prehistoric man supposedly “discovered” on a farm south of Syracuse in 1869 — fit the bill.

“People can look forward to trying hometown produced alcohol that they might not see otherwise, from small producers,” said Baird. “Locally, we have Other Half and Brooklyn Brewery, and from upstate, you have classics like Genesee and Ithaca Brewery, and new smaller breweries and cideries like Aaron Burr,” as well as Riesling wines from the Finger Lakes.

Why focus on local and state-made spirits?

Well, Baird, who also runs a beer and cider bar in Park Slope called the Owl Farm, noticed that “every week when I decide what to sell, I’m drawn to the New York stuff, which has been improving in quality.”

Also, he noted that “a lot of these New York producers get buried in the mix, [so] we’ve worked hard to find these and present them to you, promote stuff that’s made in our state.”

Being made in New York also means beers and ciders have a distinct taste.

“For example, ciders from the Hudson Valley taste very different from ciders from the Finger Lakes,” he continued. “Hudson valley is a little softer because it has different dirt, and Finger Lakes has a little more minerality because of the slate and glaciers that dug through to make those lakes.”

Cardiff Giant will offer 20 beers and 20 ciders, split between drafts and bottles: 12 draft beers and 5 draft ciders, with the remainder as bottles. There will also be 3 draft wines. Everything will be available in multiple sizes, form tastings to carafes. The average price will be between $6-8.

Cardiff Giant will be open initially from 2pm-2am, with hours possibly expanding once summer arrives.