Joe Kline / Bulletin file photoClassic cocktails such as this old fashioned, at left, are making a comeback in Central Oregon.

Bend loves its beer.

Our barber shops have multiple tap handles, our bike races end with beer chugs, and our local historical society likes to celebrate the end of summer with a glorious barrel-aged brew festival.

But, thankfully, our collective palate is evolving.

From Oregon Spirit Distillers’ continued evolution to the recent opening of The Stihl Whisk(e)y bar, spirits and cocktails are making a space for themselves in the home of the Ale Trail.

“People are more aware and are thinking more about cocktails now,” says Phoebe Pedersen, who co-owns The Dogwood Cocktail Cabin in downtown Bend with her husband, Doug. The Pedersens opened The Dogwood in May in the former Astro Lounge space on Minnesota Avenue.

“The thing is, when people have all these options, they’re willing to step out a bit more,” she says.

The Dogwood, which has a sister business of the same name in Crested Butte, Colorado, offers specialty martinis and cocktails in the $10-to-$12 range. If you’re not ready to try a Beetnik martini — which you should; vodka, ginger and beets go surprisingly well together — classic drinks like a Sidecar or Manhattan will do nicely. Patrons can drink an early dinner from 4-6 p.m. when martinis are $4 off.

“Yeah, Bend’s a little beer snobby,” Pedersen jokes. “But it was the same thing at Crested Butte. That’s a Carhartt and PBR town. People were like, ‘pink martinis?’ It just takes a while, then the word gets out there and it’s fine.”

The Stihl, which is located on Franklin Avenue where Bo Rest-obar and Pure Kitchen used to be, nails the dark-yet-inviting bar vibe. Owner Jason Gartz completely revamped the interior, transforming a space that specialized in global small plates into a warm whiskey pub that you’re immediately glad you stumbled upon.

“The idea originally was to do an Irish bar,” Gartz says. “But that would have pigeonholed me and put me in a corner.”

“I love whiskey, but there’s no place (in Bend) for specialty brand items. There’s places that do infusions and places in town that have 60 taps,” he says. “It’s exciting to be the only one here and to have influences like The Whiskey Bar in Seattle and the (Multnomah) Whiskey Library in Portland.”

Gartz is a wealth of knowledge on good booze and a terrific palate guide for whiskey drinkers new and old.

“The biggest challenge for all people involved (at The Stihl) is education, myself included,” says Gartz, who first developed his love of whiskey during a camping trip with his uncle in which he “burned his face off” with Jack Daniels. “We plan on doing progression flights, tastings, educations on whiskeys of the week or the month.

Gartz, whose bar makes one of the finest Old Fashioned drinks in town, says education will go a long way toward getting more Bendites on board with whiskey.

“Whiskey’s a fine art, just like wine, sometimes even more complex,” he says. “There’s so many things to learn about each distillery, each small batch and even each single barrel.”

— Reporter: 541-383-0305,beastes@bendbulletin.com.