Play and drink like a high roller in Las Vegas at the new Aureus Lounge

Drink bougie inside the new high roller hot spot, Aureus Lounge at Caesars Palace. The new space is ethereal, beautiful and rich, and it’s open 24 hours daily to anyone 21 years or older.

Besides the gaming options, including blackjack, roulette and baccarat, with table minimums usually starting around $100 and going higher during peak hours, there are multiple flat-screen TVs to catch the latest sports. Whispers of top 40s music fills the air, and plenty of lounge-like seating, including high back chairs, club chairs and sofas, allows guests to take a reprieve from gambling.

The real highlight of Aureus, though, is its cocktail program—the most high-end spirits and the most expensive cocktails on property can be found at this lounge.

Specialty cocktails, classic cocktails, build-your-own cocktails and champagne cocktails fill the menu. The most expensive specialty cocktail, priced at $65.99, is made with Mark Wahlberg’s new tequila brand, Flecha Azul. It uses Flecha Azul’s extra anejo, which is the most expensive spirit in the brand’s tequila offerings and is often not used in cocktails because of its hefty price tag, says David Chiti, director of food and beverage at Caesars Palace. It’s usually just served straight in a small pour, he says, but at Aureus you can taste it in a cocktail called the Snake Eyes. The recipe mixes it with Giffard banana liqueur, lemon juice, cream of coconut, passion fruit purée and cardamom bitters, all topped with a toasted banana slice.

Under the classic cocktails, Chiti highlights the spicy mezcal margarita. This twist on the classic margarita uses Dos Hombres mezcal—a spirit from actors Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul—mixed with Cointreau, lime juice, agave syrup and firewater bitters, plus a rim dipped in Tajín. This cocktail has bite, but in the most delish, lip-smacking way.

For those who love brown spirits, a must-try section of the menu is the build-your-own Old-Fashioned or Manhattan. Go classic with the Old-Fashioned, mixed with Knob Creek single barrel, simple syrup, Angostura bitters and orange bitters. Guests can choose their whiskey for either recipe, with choices that include high-end spirits like Pappy 10-Year, WhistlePig 15-Year, Crown Royal 18-Year, Thomas H. Handy sazerac rye, Patrón El Alto and even Caesars Palace’s own barrels like Old Forester, Blanton’s Gold and Rabbit Hole bourbon. For the Old-Fashioned, choose your bitters, like Angostura, Regans orange bitters, cherry bark vanilla, lavender bitters and chocolate bitters; and for the Manhattan, choose your vermouth.

Hey, remember, you’re on vacay, so continue to live a lot and order delectably delish, expensive champagne cocktails like the strawberry bellini with Telmont Réserve brut champagne, peach purée and muddled strawberries or the classic French 75 with Monkey 47 gin, Telmont Réserve brut champagne, lemon juice and lemon twist.

“We use high-end, top-shelf spirits in our cocktails and incorporate expert presentations, so each drink stands out,” Chiti says. “We wanted to create a modern, upscale space for our high-limit blackjack players, and Aureus Lounge provides an elegant area for our guests to play while receiving an elevated experience with great cocktails, top-notch service and a sophisticated ambience.”

Insider Tips

• Don’t skip the espresso martini, here made slightly differently than most versions of the classic cocktail. Instead of freshly brewed espresso, this version uses Alchemyst Espresso concentrate, which gives the cocktail a better froth and doesn’t water down the recipe with hot espresso.

• Aureus Lounge stocks a very rare bottle of Eagle Rare 25-year bourbon, and guests can try it for $1,199 per shot.

• Cigar smokers rejoice! Aureus Lounge offers a nice selection of stogies including brands like Atabey Ritos, Montecristo White Series Toro, Oliva Serie V Melanio, Padron 1964 Anniversary Series Exclusivo and Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real #2.

• The high-limit lounge was named after the word for currency, or gold, called “aureus” in ancient Roman times.

Caesars Palace, 702.731.7266. caesars.com

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