5 Best Bars in Madrid, Spain

The age-old technique of maceration rules at Macera, where bartenders treat spirits like blank canvases, imbuing them with surprising flavor combinations. Gin is steeped with fresh cilantro, lime, and jalapeño until it achieves a zippy grassy piquancy. Whiskey might be infused with almonds, fresh cherries, mint, or vanilla bean.There's a second, clubbier outpost on Calle de Ventura de la Vega 7 in Barrio de Las Letras.

The Argentine celebrity mixologist behind Salmon Guru has converted one of Madrid's oldest tabernas, built in 1856, into a see-and-be-seen cocktail hot spot. The building's architectural bones remain, from the carved-wood bar to the arched doorways to the tiled walls, but the rest, particularly the flamboyantly garnished drinks and well-dressed crowd, feels distinctly current.

There are no fripperies of modern mixology to be found at Del Diego, and that's just how the dyed-in-the-wool regulars like it. This legendary bar has been pouring flawless classic cocktails like dirty martinis and white Russians since the late 1990s, and amigos, you'd better believe they're all that and a bag of chips.

Regularly featured on best-of lists, Salmon Guru is Madrid's—and perhaps Spain's—most innovative coctelería. Come here to impress and geek out over eye-popping concoctions like the Chipotle Chillón, made with mezcal, absinthe, and chipotle syrup. The nueva cocina tapas are almost as impressive as the drinks.

This cocktail bar mixes vintage design with artsy touches and caters to a laid-back bohemian crowd. Choose from a variety of not-too-fussy cocktails including one bearing the club's name, made with mixed-berry juice and vodka or gin.