At Cellar 101 it will be possible to sample any of 100 wines on sale before buying them. But how you try the wine is what makes this store unique; Cellar 101 will utilize an automated system of vending or tasting machines and smartcards to sell one-ounce wine “testers.” Purchase a pre-paid smartcard worth $10, $20, $50 or $100 and step up to the stylish vending machines. Insert your card, hold your glass up to a spout and ‘voila’ a sampling of your choice pours out for sniffing, swirl, or sipping. Each “taste” ranges in price from $1 to $28 depending on the year and vineyard. While you might assume the wine bottles are pumped with Nitrogen, Cellar 101 actually uses Argon gas to preserve the wine in the bottles. Argon is an inert gas that does not interact with the wine.

Cellar 101, will open late summer of this year, and will emphasize wines from vineyards that are family-owned and stay true to small production. Each is hand picked by the owners, who have combined their passion for wine and entrepreneurism into this venture.

The large space will be modern yet warm, encouraging you to wander, sample, explore and chat with others about your selections. The shop will also serve as a gallery of sorts, featuring the work of emerging local photographers and artists. It will also be a place to find gifts for wine lovers or those just learning about wine. There will be an events space and a champagne and dessert wine bar for the chilled selections where you can try a mini-flight of four, one-ounce pours of champagne or sparkling wine. They will even have a private, temperature and humidity controlled cellar space for rent onsite. Helpful and knowledgeable staff will always be nearby to answer questions, though the wines are nicely labeled with plenty of detail.

At Cellar 101 we believe that tasting is the first step towards learning about wine. At the 12 tasting stations, wines are arranged by varietals and regions, allowing you to easily compare several wines at a time. Want to try that luxury white wine before spending over $200 on a bottle? This will be your place. Since the focus is on tasting, there are also spit buckets available at every station.

While the owners in the venture are passionate wine lovers, they also will have two top-notch wine experts on staff, who will lead classes and seminars onsite. Students will taste 6 wines during the 45-minute to 1 hour-long classes (around $40).  Class topics will include comparisons of Old World vs. New World wines, “Aromas and Flavors”, and “The Concept of Terrior: France vs. USA”. Students will taste 10 wines during the 1- to 1.5-hour-long class (around $75).