Wine Bar Down
Fort Worth wine bar with craft beer on the side pulls the plug
A creative and evolving restaurant-bar concept that aspired to bring fine wine and craft beer has called it quits. 44 Bootlegger, the shop-turned-bar in the Near Southside, closed on April 1. Owners Tommy and Tammy Brown announced the news via a post on Facebook.
"We opted out of our lease after 4 years and 7 months," the post says. "Thank you to those who kept our register ringing and the good times and friends we met along the way. We didn’t realize we would make so many friends, We thought we would make money, maybe it worked out in our favor."
The Browns opened 44Bootlegger in 2015 with the idea of bringing a retail option to Magnolia Avenue. They soon discovered that half the people who opened their front door thought they were a bar, so they made the switch in 2016, offering 44 beers and 44 wines by the glass.
They served food including salads, snacks, and a generous charcuterie board with meats, bread, cheese, olives, and nuts. They also became known for their vinyl nights, called "The Spins."
And while Magnolia Avenue has a few craft beer spots, 44 Bootlegger was one of the few places on the street you could get craft beer to go.