Ryan S.
Yelp
From top quality wines to hip and tasty craft beers House Wine is certainly a place for my fellow beer snobs and stuck-up winos to unite. Yet what makes it upmost charming is that behind its sleek design is a neighborhood bar, with a friendly, throwback bartender, and great conversation to boot.
This is the third time I have been here in as many years. First with a book club/wine crawl, and then later with a wine loving friend. I digged the clean, spacey environment, the choice of various wines on book cases that circled the store, and the industrial fixtures that make the place seem more a structural engineer's workspace than a wooden Aspen lodge that flavors many wine bars. It was an instant hit with me after I tried the showcased wine in their self-serve wine dispensers. But this time I sat at their minimalistic, trimmed down bar, and it bumps my rating to 5-stars--my most emphatic top rating for a drink spot yet.
The bartender had a retro style, meaning he's that type from mythic older days that pours a drink and gets you into conversation. He helps you forget your troubles, that street psychiatrist type who understands his job is to release his patrons stress and get them into a better state of mind--an escape from the hassles of the world for a few. You never see that type in the bars and clubs of the world. Very outgoing and willing to chat on anything spanning sports to politics; he ferments conversation between patrons, opens groups together, and creates a neighborhood experience. As I waited for my date I watched people come in and out, telling their troubles, successes, and gossips to him. The conversation we had with him and fellow drinkers were smart, interesting and funny.
Helping guide the experience is the selection of beers and wines. On tap were several microbrew including Brooklyn Blast, which I had a sniffer of, a keg of something (I forget its name) which was the last in the USA, and several others. Their menu ( I think their choices of drafts change constantly) included lagers, droughts, ales, and hybrids. Of course we had some wine; a glass and a bottle of different Rieslings ( we like it sweet) that got the brain bubbling. The wine choice, of course, is extensive.
This is certainly a great place to stop for a drink after a long day, or to grab a bottle for Thanksgiving--definitely grab a bottle for thanksgiving--there's family there. ;-)