U.S. restaurants increasingly offering wine on tap, which is cheaper than bottled wine as it removes costs of bottle, associated packaging and wine waste from oxidation

Nevin Barich

LOS ANGELES , May 4, 2012 (Industry Intelligence) – Restaurants are increasingly offering wine on tap, The Chicago Tribune reported May 3.

Wine on tap is cheaper than wine in more traditional bottles, as it removes the costs of the bottle and associated packaging. It also reduces wine waste from oxidation, which occurs once a bottle is opened and oxygen gets inside, according to Elizabeth Mendez, the wine director for Chicago-area restaurant Vera.

A keg can hold the equivalent of approximately 26 bottles of wine. Wine kept in kegs is pressurized using an inert, flavorless gas, Mendez added.

Winemakers can use kegged wine delivered to a few restaurants to pilot new wine varieties without accruing the added expense of bottling and marketing the product, said Eno Restaurant & Market concept manager Scott Harney.

In addition, wine kegs can either be recycled or reused. They have a more environmentally friendly carbon footprint than their bottled counterparts. Since Eno began offering wine on tap, its annual cardboard and glass waste has declined by approximately 5 tons, Harvey estimated.

Serving wine on tap has a long history in areas such as France, Italy and Spain, Cafe Spiaggia sommelier/wine director Jason Carlen said. Domestically, the wine keg trend first took off in California.

The primary source of this article is The Chicago Tribune, Chicago, Illinois, on May 3, 2012.

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