Trend we love: Wine on tap!

It's already happened to me a couple of times in Toronto this summer: From Gusto 101 to the new location of Rock Lobster, when ordering a chilled glass of the house plonk, I've been asked "How many ounces would you like?"

"Somewhere between five ounces and a pitcher," is my usual reply, since I think I'm hilarious.

But really, I'm not, and this new question marks the dawn of a new way with wine: Wine on tap. We're just sipping into the trend in Toronto, but in Vancouver, wine on tap is quickly becoming the new norm.

Vancouver Urban Winery – which opened for public tastings in spring 2012 – is the city’s first commercial urban winery, offering wine geeks the opportunity to learn about B.C. wines and the winemaking process without having to travel to all the vineyards. Located in the historic Railtown district, the large and lovely loft-style building features a wine-on-tap tasting bar that serves as many as 36 premium "kegged" varietals at a time. Visitors can enjoy a wine flight consisting of five 1-oz pours for $12 (plus tax), and add a cheese and charcuterie plate should the mood strike.

Vancouver Urban Winery’s subsidiary company is FreshTAP, a first for Canada, the company packages wine in massive stainless steel kegs and distributes them to dozens of local restaurants and bars – a concept that reduces costs (wine by the glass means zero spoilage) and provides an eco-friendly alternative to buying by the bottle (less packaging).

Now that’s fresh.