Owners of The Classic Wineseller

Interviewed by Dennis Ray

Rapid River Magazine: Tell us a little about the The Classic Wineseller.

The Classic Wineseller: The Classic Wineseller is a unique underground shop located at 20 Church Street in historic downtown Waynesville. We specialize in older vintages and highly allocated boutique wines, as well as craft beer. The shop was opened 16 years ago and is family owned and operated. We not only serve western North Carolina but we have shipped all over the US and around the world.

We were once contacted by a winery in California that no longer had its inaugural vintage. They learned that we had the wine in stock and bought it back from us! We have more than 12,000 bottles and over 1,200 different kinds of wine and craft beer, including wine from countries all over the world like Taiwan and Greece, and wine and beer from right here in western North Carolina.

Our underground environs also house a 50-seat small plate, tapas-style restaurant that is open on Friday and Saturday nights with live music. We serve delicious imported and local cheeses, tasty appetizers and entrees, unique flatbreads, and scrumptious desserts.

RRM: What up-coming events does the The Classic Wineseller have planned?

TCW: We’re planning wine pairings, dinners, and tastings, as well as beer tastings. For one of our dinners we will be Skyping the winemaker during the evening. We’ll also hold charity dinners at the Wineseller. In response to customer requests, we’re adding wine classes this winter to help take some of the guesswork out of the wine drinking experience.

RRM: Tell us a little about your live music.

TCW: We offer live music every Friday and Saturday night at 7pm. We have our own Steinway piano and we like to feature it when we can. Our music offerings range from American roots, blues, pop, and ballads, to jazz standards and classical tunes.

We feature local, regional and national performers. We enjoy bringing live jazz to Waynesville too and have hosted a fall jazz series and a summer jazz series to help show off the many talented jazz artists in the area.

RRM: What drew you to first open up such an eclectic business?

TCW: The business started out as retail only and has evolved in the last couple of years into an intimate live music venue and to include a restaurant. It offers customers the perfect opportunity to “Come Share Our Passion: Wine, Beer, Food, & LIVE Music!”

RRM: What changes do you have planned for 2014?

TCW: We’re planning to open the restaurant on additional nights and there’s the possibility of expanding live music to those nights as well.

We continue to offer the Classic Wineseller as a private party location for birthday parties, Christmas parties, fundraising events, you name it. We have a not-for-profit arm of the Classic Wineseller called the Wineseller Foundation. With it we raise money for local hunger programs and use a program called “Round Up for Hunger” to raise matching funds for our local food pantries.

RRM: Live music is a huge part of what The Classic Wineseller is known for. Will you be expanding your entertainment calendar this year? And what may we expect?

TCW: We’ll be offering live music every Friday and Saturday night for the first time during the winter. As far as entertainment goes, we say: “Expect the unexpected!” We’ll continue to bring the best local, regional, and national artists that we can attract. We have a very unusual space with wonderful old world ambiance. We have a very nice piano with a piano technician on staff to see that it stays in great shape for the bands and pianists who perform here.

 The Classic Wineseller
20 Church Street Waynesville
(828) 452-6000
www.classicwineseller.com
www.facebook.com/theclassicwineseller