A NEW bar will bring a dash of speakeasy class to Old Town.

The Eternal Optimist opened on Friday night. The Devizes Road bar is a collaboration between Tom Gee, owner of the Hop Kettle Brewery and landlord at Cricklade’s Red Lion pub, and Old Town designer Matt Cole.

It will serve 60 different spirits, including gins, bourbons and rums, including their own-brand gin Silver Lining. Owners say the spirits served will be constantly rotated so the same brand will never be served twice.

Hop Kettle Brewery will provide the three cask ales, including an IPA brewed especially for the new bar.

Tom said: “The Eternal Optimist is supposed to be a kind of home away from home. It’s a speakeasy bar, slightly like a lounge bar.

“It’s a place for people who enjoy their drinks for what they are. We will have drinks in all price brackets.”

The brewery, which is based near the Oasis Leisure Centre, had wanted a bar in Old Town for some time, Tom said. They were approached by Matt, an experienced designer and owner of Victoria Road’s Arc Lighting, and jumped at his suggestion they go into business together.

“Devizes Road is a really interesting drag, in terms of its pubs and bars,” he said. “We thought that was just the perfect place. We’re not all after the same market.”

The Eternal Optimist is at 1-3 Devizes Road.