We are minutes from downtown Orlando, in beautiful Winter Park!
959 W. Fairbanks Avenue
Winter Park, FL 32789
OPEN MONDAY TO SATURDAY
OPEN
Wine Shop & Wine Bar OPEN @ NOON
Pizza & Wood Fired Oven START @ 4PM
CLOSE
MON thru THU @ 9 PM
FRI & SAT @ 11 PM
Closed Sunday
Telephone: 407-599-9463 or 407-599-9464
Email: info@thewinebarn.net
Please Call for Dinner Reservations
"IF IT'S NOT GREAT, WE DON'T SELL IT"
Welcome to The Wine Barn: The Only Wholesale Wine Market, Open to the Public!
All wines are aggresively priced, everyday... Typically 20-60% off retail prices!
Compare us to the competition...you will not be disappointed!!
Often times there will be sale prices on already sale priced wines! So keep checking back often and tell your friends, as deals this good don’t last long and inventory is constantly changing. Sign Up Here to Receive Insider Deals
I am serious about wine and how it is stored. The new temperature controlled facility ensures that all wines, not just the more expensive ones, are properly cared for...I will not represent any wine that has not been under proper storage conditions.
My business philosophy is simple...
"Taste every wine before I buy it, only choose the few that impress, buy in quantity and negotiate volume pricing...then finally pass the savings along to you, the customer: It's a Win-Win situation and you end up with the BEST wines at the LOWEST prices!"
All wines are offered on a first come, first serve basis (no limit) and do not qualify for additional discounts, unless otherwise noted.
Members (free to join) enjoy sneak-peak deals and special purchasing member-only opportunities.
Prices listed are subject to change without notice.
Your Satisfaction is 100% Guaranteed.
We are a lean, mean, passionate, wine loving machine...and we want you to know that every one of our customers is our #1 priority...
We are not just a wine store and internet site with cool wines and low prices, rather we want to be known as a wine destination location with an interactive, easy to use and community based wine website, and a place where you can come taste, learn, and speak wine...in a no-nonsense, laid back atmosphere.
We are here to serve your every wine need, from locating to delivering, locally or nationally, special orders: small or large, we are your ultimate wine concierge service!
Andres Montoya: The Wine Hunter
andres@thewinebarn.net
WINE IS YOUR RIGHT…
Welcome to The Wine Barn. My name is Andres Montoya, and first and foremost, I must confess...I actually love what I do...(What a Concept!)
Having lived both in Colombia and the US, I grew up with a multi-cultured perspective of the world. I now call Orlando my permanent home...and I love every minute of it! I remember being 14, and with my friend Jacques Bertagnini as accomplice, when I began to discover wine. First an inky bottle of 1979 Pradeaux from Bandol, then an unforgettable Rozes vintage port, followed by a classic Prado Enea from Muga...and all of a sudden wine was a whole new object of study, one that involved history, maps, chemistry experiments and an empty glass waiting to be filled.
I love wine for its history, its incredible ability to spark a conversation, and the fact that it makes me smile....almost as much as my wife does!
I have attended the Certificate in Wine Making Degree Program granted by the University of California, Davis, and my background also includes an Economics B.A. degree from Rollins College, Winter Park.
My favorite wine regions: I love Burgundy as a region and as a cultural destination. I have a special place in my heart for Piedmont and also the Loire Valley. I enjoy mature and young Cabernets, or a nice white Burgundy, as well as a killer glass of Chateauneuf du Pape! And yes, I believe top-notch Riesling is the most undervalued white wine in the world!
When I am not tasting, writing or enjoying all things wine, I enjoy the outdoors immensely, including competitive shotgun shooting, hiking, camping and long walks in foreign, off the beaten path destinations...
I look forward to welcoming you to the store, and meeting The Wine Barn team, as well as my incredible wife, Paula, and our "greeter" hunting dog named Malbec.
At your service,
Andres F. Montoya "The Wine Hunter"
"Honesty isn't an attribute, It is my Philosophy."
Wine lovers and pizza lovers unite at Winter Park’s Wine Barn
Slake and bake at quaint wine shop with wood-burning pizza oven.
By Faiyaz Kara
PUBLISHED: MAY 7, 2014
I’m ashamed to say that it’s taken me two and half years to visit the Wine Barn on Fairbanks Avenue, but now that I’ve notched my first appearance, I plan on making trips to this quaint wine market a regular occurrence. Owner Andres Montoya, a wine aficionado with a certificate from University of California-Davis’ wine-making degree program, took over the former Wine Warehouse space next to A Chateau Kitchen back in November 2011, and Winter Park bon vivants rejoiced. What was once the second outpost of Montoya’s wholesale wine market is now his one and only outlet (the first was in a less desirable area on 33rd Street near I-4), but the place is more than just a wine shop; in many respects, it’s the wine shop.
Soon after entering, we received a tour of the Wine Barn from a young gentleman who was as well-versed in wine as he was in patience. He fielded our questions with aplomb, then pointed out the varietals of their vast selection of boutique and small-batch wines from around the world. Montoya and his team have actually tasted every one of the 600-plus wines they sell, but, best of all, bottles can be purchased and enjoyed with your meal sans droit de bouchon – that’s no corkage fee. Our meal was on par with the two malbecs we enjoyed – a pleasantly structured 2008 Cuvelier Los Andes blend ($29.99) and a rich, balanced 2011 Diamandes de Uco ($19.99). The dining area toward the back has worktables set up amid bottles of their domestic wine selections. We took our seats on stools made from wine boxes and commenced sniffing, swirling and swishing.
The menu primarily comprises pizzas and finger foods fired in Wine Barn’s two outdoor wood-burning ovens, one of which is housed in a fire truck in the parking lot. (There’s a small prep station inside, so it’s common to see cooks shuffling in and out.)
Before we tore into the pizzas, we sampled a couple of other wood-fired instant classics. First up: chicken wings ($9). The menu said they were rubbed with cayenne butter and roasted rosemary and garlic, but we detected heavy notes of turmeric on these jumbo flappers, giving them an exotic Indian essence. The wings were topped with a sprinkling of fried shallots that had a flavor reminiscent of pakoras. All in all, they were some of the finest wings we’ve sampled. Next up: Angus meatballs ($8). While I thought the shallot rub and marinara sauce lent an unsuitable sweetness to the meaty orbs, my dining comrades felt otherwise. “You’re absurd,” they squawked. “We don’t care what you say – they’re delicious.”
The 14-inch pizzas are made from scratch with dough of 100 percent Caputo doppio zero (the best flour for pizza) and baked at 800 degrees for 90 seconds. The result: a nicely blistered crust with just the right amount of elasticity. The margherita ($9), with its San Marzano tomatoes, fior di latte (cow’s milk mozzarella) and basil, was outstanding and heartily devoured. We then scarfed down half of the Piemonte ($16) layered with Ibérico ham, butter-glazed mushrooms, caramelized onions, tomato chutney and a farmer’s egg. The fragrant pie was doused in white truffle oil, and we’re not complaining. If there was any fault, we would’ve liked a smidge more ham and eggs on this pie.
Because they forgot to box up our half-eaten pizza (they threw it out while we were enjoying some glasses in the front patio), the cooks made us another Piemonte at no extra charge to take home with us. Needless to say, we enjoyed our breakfast the next day.
The Wine Barn WRITTEN BY SCOTT JOSEPHON
I'll have to admit that my expectations weren't exactly high when I was invited to the Wine Barn in Winter Park to sample its line of pizzas. I mean, come on: It's called the Wine Barn, for crying out loud, and its main purpose is to sell wines in a somewhat warehousey sort of setting. The food has to be just a sideline, a distraction, a hobby. We're probably talking prefab Boboli-type dough with some slathered sauce and canned toppings, right?
No, not right. The pizzas here are excellent, some of the best I've had in Central Florida. And my reaction is not because of lowered expectations or, as a way of giving full disclosure, a placation to a business that advertises on SJO. These are some darned fine pies.
They're rustic pizzas that immediately brought to mind the sort that are served at Prato. There are two keys to their success. First is the flour, which is Caputo brand, imported from Naples (not the one in Florida) and is a 00, the finest grind (ratings are 1, 0 and 00). The pizza dough is made from scratch and allowed to rest for 24 hours before it is hand-stretched when the pizza is ordered.
The other key is the oven. Instead of retrofitting the retail space with a kitchen, owner Andres Montoya has essentially set up a more temporary kitchen behind the building — think the sort of setup you'd find at a food fair in the park. There he has an actual wood-burning oven capable of the desired 800-degree temps that allow a pie to cook in about 90 seconds.
A third key, and not an insignificant one, is a staff who know how to use keys one and two. Here the pizzaioli are Melina Salazar and Marcus Adam, and they do a terrific job.
I sampled several, and I liked them all, but my favorite was the Piemonte, which had jamon Iberico, buttered mushrooms, asiago cheese and two farmer's eggs, sunny side up, sitting atop just waiting to be pierced to release their ooze. The crusts here are thin but with a bit of chew, not crackerlike, and the high heat gives bits of black spots on the crust that add a charred note.
It isn't only pizzas that come out of the oven. The Wine Barn offered some chicken wings, a nice alternative to the deep-fried variety, seasoned with garlic and rosemary and a cayenne butter rub, topped with crisped onions.
There's also something called Bacon Love Bread, which is baguette made with the same dough as the pizza and stuffed with wood-smoked pork belly and asiago cheese. Yes, it's just as tasty as it sounds. Or you might choose the charcuterie board, which could include jamon Iberico, dry-aged pinocchiona salame, aged Gouda, artisan Parmesan, olives and cornichons.
And by the way, the most expensive item on the menu is a $20 pizza that includes an entire Maine lobster, so we're also talking reasonableness.
You can dine in the Barn, as it were, at one of the, um, rustic wood tables (think workbench), and you can choose a wine from the surrounding shelves to enjoy with your meal with no corkage fee. Food is also available for delivery through a partnership with Doorstep Delivery.
The Wine Barn is at 959 W. Fairbanks Ave., Winter Park (lots of parking in the back, next to the kitchen). Pizza is available for dinner Tuesday through Saturday and lunch on Saturdays. The phone number is 407-599-9463.
I’m ashamed to say that it’s taken me two and half years to visit the Wine Barn on Fairbanks Avenue, but now that I’ve notched my first appearance, I plan on making trips to this quaint wine market a regular occurrence. Owner Andres Montoya, a wine aficionado with a certificate from University of California-Davis’ wine-making degree program, took over the former Wine Warehouse space next to A Chateau Kitchen back in November 2011, and Winter Park bon vivants rejoiced. What was once the second outpost of Montoya’s wholesale wine market is now his one and only outlet (the first was in a less desirable area on 33rd Street near I-4), but the place is more than just a wine shop; in many respects, it’s the wine shop.
Before we tore into the pizzas, we sampled a couple of other wood-fired instant classics. First up: chicken wings ($9). The menu said they were rubbed with cayenne butter and roasted rosemary and garlic, but we detected heavy notes of turmeric on these jumbo flappers, giving them an exotic Indian essence. The wings were topped with a sprinkling of fried shallots that had a flavor reminiscent of pakoras. All in all, they were some of the finest wings we’ve sampled. Next up: Angus meatballs ($8). While I thought the shallot rub and marinara sauce lent an unsuitable sweetness to the meaty orbs, my dining comrades felt otherwise. “You’re absurd,” they squawked. “We don’t care what you say – they’re delicious.”
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