New lease on life
Enoteca is starting to settle into its new space in Post Falls, on Spokane Street around the corner from its former location on Seltice Way.
The wine and beer shop, with its attached Drinks lounge, reopened three weeks ago at 702 N. Spokane St. (just north of the freeway exit) after being closed for more than two months while making the move.
“Finally we’re here, and I survived,” says owner John Eckhart, who plans a grand opening celebration later this month. “It’s kind of nice having people pay me for a change.”
Eckhart mans the retail side, in a more compact space than before. It’s largely filled with a selection of some 800 different beers, from familiar labels to more distinctive strong and sour offerings (many of the wines are yet to be displayed). While most are at room temperature, IPAs and the like still are stored in a cooler to protect their hop character.
The much-ballyhooed Bomb! imperial stout from Nebraska’s Prairie Artisan Ales just arrived in bottles, and is expected to go on tap next week. Eckhart also plans to pour a three-year vertical tasting of Deschutes’ Abyss once the 2015 version is released later this month, and has a stash of aged barleywines to pull out over the winter.
Beer and wine of the month clubs have resumed for November. On the suds side, there’s the Fine Beer Club for $20 a month, and the limited-release Rare Beer Society for $35; each monthly package is 10 percent off list price, and members get the same discount on other in-store purchases.
The adjoining Drinks has a full bar with 12 regular taps, and four more available for special events. Eckhart plans tap takeover nights featuring area breweries, like the one he did with Waddell’s before closing the old store in July.
Draft offerings range from the rare, like Avery’s rum-barrel aged Rumpkin imperial pumpkin, to more well-known names such as Bale Breaker’s Topcutter IPA. They’re available in 4-ounce tasters, pints (half-pints for specialty beers) and growlers; prices tend to the higher side, with most pints in the $7 to $10 range.
The space is done up with a brown-hued concrete floor, gray walls and black ceiling. One wall is covered in reclaimed black walnut, with more wood strips arranged in random patterns on top for a 3-D effect.
While the higher round and lower square tables came over from the old place, there’s a new twist: a cozy corner with four plush chairs arranged around an ethanol fireplace.
The new Enoteca sits between the White House Grill and Oval Office restaurants, and Eckhart is in discussions about having their food delivered to Drinks customers.
While the lounge previously opened at 4 p.m., it’s now open the same hours as the retail shop, daily from 11 a.m. to close (generally 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, later on weekends).