Commonwealth Tap (9411 Norton Commons Blvd.) is now open in Norton Commons, bringing an affordable but sorta-upscale wine, beer and bourbon bar to the growing East End neighborhood.
Save for Bistro 1860, which uses the massive cruvinet tap system brought to Louisville by L&N Wine Bar and Bistro, no one other than Commonwealth is serving wine by the glass via nitrogen- tap.
Using such a system means you get properly chilled (around 60 F) 2 oz., 4 oz. and 8 oz. pours of good wine for prices averaging about $1 per oz.
If you’re searching for new wines, this is a great way to go. If you’re looking for super-high value, this is a double plus.
Wine geeks and operating partners, Neil Morgan, Kenny Anderozzi and Alex Tinker, are regular visitors to West Coast wineries, and they’ve secured good connections supplying 20-liter casks for high-quality, lesser-known wines priced affordably. That they can introduce wine drinkers to new discoveries and not charge them an arm and a leg is “a big reason we got into this business,” Morgan said. “It’s fun for us to do that, to share that enjoyment of tasting something different and not have to hit your retirement funds to get it.”
If you’re a wine geek yourself, have the dollars for pricier pours, know that you can try $8, 2 oz. samples of nitro-tapped bottles as costly as $80 each. It’s an inexpensive way to try before you commit to such a substantial purchase, not to mention a cheap way to enter a wine snob conversation knowledgably.
If you’re not a wine fan, you can choose from eight craft draft brews, an abundance of bourbon and whiskey choices, as well as wine and whiskey sold by the package.
It’s open Monday-Friday from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Saturday from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. Visit its Facebook page for more info.
