Dunedin HOB Readies For Wine Bar Opening

Owners Rick Clemo and Andy Polce are just about ready to debut their wine drinker's sanctuary at the ever-popular Dunedin House of Beer. 

Wine & Brew, what owners call their "pet project," is HOB's long-anticipated expansion into the adjacent storage room that was once opened for only special events.

It's meant to be a "sanctuary from the craziness next door," Clemo said Wednesday as he pulled together some final details before its soft launch public opening Saturday, Aug. 24, from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. 

The interior is now transformed into a fancier, more romantic version of Dunedin House of Beer. It features new loungey couches, a custom-built bar, intricately painted walls with rotating local art for purchase from Studio Adams, a wine cellar and 10 taps of the most popular beers from next door. 

"We're not trying to be snooty," Clemo said. "But we're snooty for the HOB." 

Clemo said the wine menu isn't solidified, but he's hired industry experts to ensure the bar is stocked with quality "drink-'em-before-they're-famous" wines. Glasses will be priced in the $5 to $7 range and bottles in the $20 to $50 range. Patrons can start a tab at either place and carry it over, Clemo said. 

"It's all the same, but different," he said.

The whole project evolved years ago, when Clemo and Polce started seeing a need for a bigger bar, especially for weekends and big events. The recent Wine & Brew addition is designed to call attention to their wine list — something they've always served at HOB, although it wasn't widely known.

The next phase of the Wine & Brew expansion is the addition of two taps dedicated to a Dunedin HOB brew. Licensing is approved and the stainless steel tanks are in the process of being built, so it's still a little ways off, Clemo said.

They're taking the HOB approach: "start small and as it becomes successful, reinvest." 

Wine & Brew, at 927 Broadway, will be open weekends from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. to start. A grand opening is slated for sometime in September. 

Wine & Brew's upcoming opening left Clemo remembering the year he opened his humble neighborhood craft beer bar using stools from his own kitchen. In 2009, he remembers being a bit apprehensive to meet Dunedin Brewery owner Michael Bryant out of fear there'd be underlying rivalry for opening in their shadow.

Instead, Bryant gave him a warm and enthusiastic welcome that sticks with Clemo: 

"So you're the one," he exclaimed. "Let's bring Main Street to Skinner!"