Bes Oh Bar

Drink with class at Cebu's unique and astounding place, Beso Bar.

Owned by Ms. Bess Ortiz, Bes Oh is a chill out bar for the young (18 and above, of course) which opened last June 9, 2006.

Bes Oh is not just an ordinary bar where people drink beer; it has the widest range of wines and spirits, since its main company is Ralph's which is the direct importer from 16 countries like France, Italy and Belgium.

Just tell the bartenders what you want to have in your drink and they will give it to you just how you like it. It is like making your own drink by using other people's hands.

Another advantage of this bar is the food it serves. Bes Oh serves Spanish food, instead of grilled, fried or "pica-pica" food commonly served in other bars.

What makes Bes Oh very interesting and different is the fact that it educates the young how to drink: that is, drink with sophistication. In the morning, there are educational sessions on wines and spirits and how to handle different glasses properly.

The sessions also teaches the young that the main purpose of drinking is not getting drunk, but rather enjoying the drink in the company of friends. Drinking is part of socializing with people. Imagine yourself mingling with others and acting crazy because of having too much to drink. Ms. Ortiz said that drinking should not be done when a person is depressed. "You cannot drown your problems with liquor. You can tell your problems to somebody over a drink," she said.

Ms. Ortiz added that wines can also be a good table topic. You can talk about how and where wines are made of or what are the different kinds of spirits.

There are actually four types of wine: table wines, which are the most commonly produced type of wine. They are most often served with a meal. Then, there are sparkling wines, like champagne, which contain bubbles of carbon dioxide gas. People enjoy drinking sparkling wines on festive occasions. A third type are fortified wines like brandy or wine with alcohol added to them. They tend to be sweeter than most other wines. For this reason, some people prefer to drink fortified wines with dessert or after a meal, while others choose to drink dry sherry or white port before dinner. The last are flavored wines which contain flavoring substances. For example, vermouth is a white wine flavored with herbs. Wine coolers are wines flavored with fruit juices. Most flavored wines are served alone or before a meal.

Wine-making requires a series of steps. Decisions made by the winemaker during each step influence the final "character" of the wine. A winemaker must first decide which grapes to use and when to harvest them. After the grapes are crushed, the juice is converted into wine through a process called fermentation. Wine is then aged until it is ready for drinking.

The common spirits, on the other hand, are whisky, vodka, rum, scotch, gin, tequila, vermouth (for martinis and manhattans). People drink them by themselves and others choose to add them to coffee, juices and other drinks.

Learn these and more at Bes Oh Bar, located at Morales St., Escario, Cebu City with contact number 0917-5560700.