[title subtitle=”WORDS Jeanni Brosius
IMAGES courtesy Ross Jones ][/title]
The Saturday night air was bitter cold following a midweek ice storm. The sparse crowd at Postmaster Spirits and Craft Distillery in Newport, Arkansas gained momentum as the night edged on. Locals made their way in for the distillery’s signature cocktails and the entrée of the week—Pho.
Owner Ross Jones made sure those ordering knew the correct pronunciation of the Vietnamese soup. Ross learned how to make Pho from his Vietnamese mother-in-law, who also makes the most delicious egg rolls.
Each weekend, the dinner menu is comprised of random dishes from around the world depending on who the guest chef is that week. One week, it could be Greek, the next it could be Cajun or Italian or Asian or Mexican, prepared authentically by experts in the particular culture.
When you belly up to the bar at Postmaster Spirits, there will always be conversation. It can be about the weather, the building’s paranormal activity, the distillery’s production line, or it can be politically charged, but it may not always be politically correct. Ross always welcomes his customers, whether they are regulars or newcomers, with stories and a drink. The distillery is known for its Trump Tonic vodka, which is available in four flavors: the orange Trump Tonic, Mmm Peach, Border Berry and Salted Caramel.
As a former newspaper man, Ross finds it second nature to come up with catchy slogans for his products, and he loves political satire, “with proof.”
“The Mmm Peach can only be served in doubles,” he said with a laugh.
Drinks such as the Double Mmmpeachment, Border Berry-er Spritzer, Muller Mule and Screwed Sunrise are only a few of the dinks on the cocktail menu.
Ross said the distillery’s new line of vodka will not be satirical, but it will be supportive. He said proceeds of the sale of the new blueberry, cinnamon, lemon, or white chocolate vodkas will be sent either to law enforcement, fire fighters or first responders. He is also developing a signature flavor for Newport. Ross also recently announced Postmaster’s new oak barrel aged, limited batch, Sugar Wash Whiskey made with a heritage recipe.
Ross and his wife Lua purchased the old Newport Post Office building and worked for three years to preserve and showcase its glamour and tumultuous past. Constructed when Jackson County was booming, the more than 7,000-square-foot post office was built to a high standard with twenty-foot ceilings, a marble bathroom, and terrazzo floors. It even includes a huge safe, booby trapped with mustard gas, which, of course, no longer contains the mustard gas vials.
When the Joneses chose the name for their craft distillery, Postmaster Spirits, it had a double meaning. Not only are spirits now produced in the sorting room, but the building is brimming with spirits from a bygone era.
The original tables that are bolted to the floor have inkwells in the middle for when people would write with quills. Ross talked about the news that was read and written at those tables. Dear John letters written, or news read about losing someone in the war. News that made an indelible mark on the space, leaving a sad energy behind. But mostly, the paranormal experiences center on keys. The sound of jingling keys or strange keys left in odd places, and a toilet that randomly flushes itself are common occurrences.
Taking his customers on tours of the building, including the secret tunnels, Ross tells stories about the spirits that co-inhabit the building, along with the history that preceded him.
One night, Jon Chadwell was sitting at the bar while Ross had taken a group on a tour.
“I felt someone behind me and assumed someone had dropped out of the tour,” Chadwell said. “But when I turned to acknowledge—and maybe tease them a bit—there was no one there. I was very certain someone had been.”
Other patrons have experienced similar occurrences. Ross said three teams of paranormal investigators have been in the building and picked up paranormal activity, one even got an image of a man walking out of the darkness.
“It was finished in 1915, two years before WWII and at the end of the wild west era,” Ross said about the building that sits on the corner of Hazel and Second streets. “This was the information hub for this area, and it was built as a fortress.”
Ross said, “So much alcohol was coming through the post office during Prohibition that the Feds came in and added a surveillance system in the form of peep holes.” He pointed up to what looked like a ventilation system above the bar and explained that it was a secret tunnel through the building and there is not a room in the building where someone cannot be seen. Most of the locals had no idea, nor did the post office employees, that this secret tunnel and entrance into the building existed.
Jon Chadwell, director of Newport Economic Development Commission, has seen the transformation of the old post office every step of the way.
“I love the restoration,” Jon said. “They stayed very true to the historic nature of the building and yet gave it a chic, big city venue vibe. The elements they have highlighted illustrate the bones of one of the neatest buildings in Newport.”
Jon said the atmosphere is something that would fit in larger cities, such as Fayetteville or Little Rock.
“The food is amazing,” he said. “And the neat thing is that they serve cuisine that you can’t get anywhere in Newport and probably not many places in the state. Much of it is Asian inspired and it’s all delicious. The drinks are fun, and they have a wide selection of beer, good wine and a full bar, and the vodka they make at Postmaster is used for some fun and tasty signature cocktails…. Ross is a great storyteller, and you can sit at the bar for an hour with a drink or two and be entertained, or you can come with someone special, find a table for two and escape into conversation with that special person.”
Not everyone may have business in Newport, but a destination trip to Postmaster Spirits is worth your time. Located at 200 Hazel Street, the distillery is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Dinner is served only on Friday and Saturday, but go early, because when it’s gone, it’s gone.
For more information, call 870.495.3893 or visit with Ross on Facebook @postmasterspirits.
