by David Chapman
Staff Writer
For Peter Miller, succeeding at his business meant getting back to what his wine bar did best: being a wine bar.
Miller has owned The Wine Bar at 200 Wharfside Way on the Southbank since June 2007 but until recently it was a Tastings franchisee.
“I love what I do,” said Miller on opening the establishment. “For the first time in my life, I’ve enjoyed coming to work.”
The Wine Bar has been open through the changes and celebrated its grand reopening dubbed, “The End of an Error” (“An error on my part,” admitted Miller). Although the restaurant no longer is considered a full entree restaurant, it still serves tapas, cheese plates, sandwiches and small plates.
The switch will allow Miller to adjust his financial focus away from the food aspect of his business and back to what is most important to him and his clientele: the wine.
“We’re still a wine bar with some pretty good food,” said Miller. “but we’re getting back to what we were originally meant to do.”
With around 130 vintages from all over the world, including boutique labels, The Wine Bar has something for everyone’s taste, he said. Full bottles range from $12–$200, with no corkage fee.
If an entire bottle is too much, patrons can also sample a large variety of wines through the Wine Bar’s Italian-brand enomatic wine systems – used to preserve open bottles of wine by using nitrogen – with an in-house debit card.
Cards can be loaded with any monetary amount and inserted into the machine to dispense samples.
“There’s a lot to choose from,” said Miller. “People like the options.”
The cards are more than just a fancy way to pay, though. If wine drinkers aren’t able to remember which wines they tasted before, Miller and staff can pull up a wine history using the card, too.
Wine connoisseurs aren’t the only ones welcome, as The Wine Bar also offers a dozen domestic and imported beers and other beverages.
For those not sure where to start, there’s help on hand, too.
“We definitely get questions about types of wines to try,” said General Manager Maurice Ricks. “Everyone has different tastes but after a few questions about their likes and dislikes, I point them in the right direction.”
Additionally, The Wine Bar is able to host different functions both small and large – birthdays, bridal showers, afterwork functions and other events.
One of the more popular events for Miller and The Wine Bar are the Wednesday wine tastings from 6:30–8:30 p.m. Entry is $15 and includes a variety of cheese plates, appetizers and tapas samples.
“We do it every week and it’s been a pretty big hit,” said Miller. “We offer wines that are new to us and people seem to have a good time.”
With a down economy, business hasn’t been as big as Miller hoped, but he is confident the fiscal cycle will pick back up and allow wine lovers to partake more.
For first timers, though, Miller is optimistic The Wine Bar will be a relaxed and memorable experience.
“Expect to be able to try 130 different wines inexpensively in a great atmosphere with the best staff in town.”
356-2466