Japanese-inspired bar with rare whiskey options opens in Detroit Book Tower basement

The Panic in Detroit drink option (Photo credit: Hayden Steinbaugh)

A new Japanese-inspired cocktail lounge is officially open for business, offering a cozy experience in the Detroit Book Tower and extremely rare whiskey for those with a refined taste.

Aladdin Sane pays homage to David Bowie while borrowing ideas from the traditional cocktail bars in Tokyo to help guide its theme on the menu. 

Among the most obvious tributes to Bowie - besides using his 1973 album by the same name - Aladdin Sane also sells cocktails inspired by songs on the album. That includes Watch That Man, made with Japanese whiskey, umeshu, oloroso, cap corse, and bitters, and Panic in Detroit, made with rum, lime, sakura, seltzer, and mint.

The lounge also offers classic cocktails like spicy margaritas, manhattans, and sazeracs.

Inside Aladdin Sane, which includes nine seats at the bar and 23 lounge seats. (Photo credit: Matthew Williams. )

But the real treat may be further down the menu. The Japanese Whiskey list offers an array of tastes, including some incredibly rare brands like a 100th Anniversary bottle of Yamazaki and a 29-year-old Glenfiddich Grand Yozakura.

Located in the basement of the Detroit Book Tower on Washington Boulevard, it comes outfitted with 23 lounge seats and nine more situated along a mahogany slab at the bar. 

The Take Your Time drink option (Photo credit: Hayden Steinbaugh)