NORTHAMPTON -- As it was in the dry days of Prohibition, rumors of a new speakeasy in town spread slowly but surely.

But by the time murmurings of the cloistered spot reached the ears of the masses, it had already begun to melt.

Since February, Dave Rothstein of Northampton has been serving up alcoholic and virgin beverages inside a roomy igloo he built on the front lawn of his Florence Street home. The so-called speakeasy has attracted 60 to 70 people each night over the past two weekends.

When asked why he opened his igloo to the public, the experienced snow sculptor said simply, "It seemed a shame to let it go to waste, with only me enjoying it."

The first thing you might notice about the inside of the structure is how it's spotted with colored luminescence cast by a tiny disco ball, the floors lit with a gentle golden glow.

That's if Rothstein standing behind the bar in a full-body polar bear costume doesn't catch your eye, first.

The Worcester native serves his drinks in shot glasses made of ice, free of charge. Friends and neighbors have mostly been the beneficiaries of his unique form of generosity, but curious strangers have shown up at the igloo as they've found out about it through Instagram and Facebook.

Although by day he's an attorney with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Rothstein regularly travels abroad to ice sculpt for festivals and venues, a hobby he picked up in 1997. He tends to build grandiose and often abstract sculptures: The 20-foot tall snowman, submarines, cartoon characters.

Rothstein had planned to fly out to Alaska earlier this winter for a gig. But he got into a car accident that left him injured and unable to do the kind of large-scale work expected of him.

Rothstein didn't let the debilitation get him down for long. He decided to sculpt something at home instead. Something big.

With the help of five friends and their kids, Rothstein got to work on the igloo. The team packed snow around a giant beach ball - 10 feet in diameter - to form the structure.

At first he enjoyed the igloo with just a few friends, even sleeping in it many nights to soak in the calm and quiet of the snow dome. But soon he wanted to spread the joy of his secret.

Before he knew it, locals were asking him, "Have you heard about the igloo speakeasy?"

"Well, yeah," Rothstein would respond.

Take a virtual tour of the speakeasy igloo below:

The igloo, which has an 9-foot high ceiling, had as many as 18 people crammed in it one night in early March. Rothstein provides an array of booze, but also encourages folks to bring their own. And in the spirit of daytime family fun, there's non-alcoholic cider and apple juice for the kids.

"There's an innocence to this you don't get at the Tunnel Bar or the Dirty Truth," Rothstein said, playfully referencing downtown bars he himself frequents.

As temperatures began to rise this week, the igloo has shrunk considerably. But Rothstein's pretty sure his makeshift speakeasy will be back next year.

"This would have been a great winter to be out sculpting overseas," Rothstein said. "But this has been better. It's my community appreciating snow and it makes people happy."