The Wine Fairy

Automated wine bars have been a part of urban life for a little while now. I’ve seen them on cruise ships, in hotel lobbies, and popping up in trendy neighborhoods in big cities like San Francisco and New York. So when I had a couple of hours to relax in Fort Worth, I just had to go check out Salute, North Texas’s own self-serve wine bar.

Salute Wine Bar is a single room in Fort Worth’s Foundry District, a former industrial corridor turned artsy neighborhood. The atmosphere is casual and chic. The walls are painted coal-gray and decorated with Prohibition-era photographs. The picture windows look out across the street at gleaming three-story condos with corrugated siding and subway-tile kitchens. (Wine pours start at around $3.40, Foundry Row townhomes at around $700,000.)

Getting wine here is easy. You give the server/host your name, and you’re handed a themed keycard. (Mine depicted a classy dame, legs crossed and hand cradling a prodigious pour of red wine.) The host gives you a brief orientation: There are dozens of taps of wines from around the world. All the wines are available by the taste, half-glass, or full glass. Empty red and white wine glasses are under the machines. Printed cards give tasting notes and production details for each bottle.

Duly inducted, you seat yourself and pour yourself. The bartender comes back with water and a cute ramekin of Dot’s Pretzels.

When you’re all done, you hand in your card, and the chip lets the computer know what you drank and how much of it. You pay with a credit card or mobile app (Salute is cashless), and then skip along to your salon appointment or gallery opening.

There are some limitations to the self-service system. If you want to order a sparkling wine or if you have a special request (there were several off-menu sweet wines available for the after-brunch crowd), you can get the attention of a staff member at the bar. That’s also where you go to order appetizers, to buy wine by the bottle, or to settle your tab. There’s sangrias and spritzes, too!

The wines of Salute

Salute boasts six wine machines spanning two walls of the tasting room. That’s 42 wine taps, all of which were stocked and in working order. (The wines rotate weekly, rewarding repeat visits by the vino-curious.) Empty bottles were promptly replaced–thanks to vigilant staff and a bartop “command center” that monitors the fluid level and temperature of each bottle.

Prices are displayed on the LED screen above each wine. After inserting your plastic card, you hold up your glass to receive either a 2-, 4-, or 6-ounce portion.

Taps are thoughtfully arranged from light and fruity whites (left side of the room), all the way down the spectrum to heavy reds (right side). If you knew nothing at all about tasting order, it would still be very easy to build a flight that was well-sequenced to bring out the best in each wine.

The info cards were likewise beginner-friendly. Printed notes take away the nervousness that comes with encountering an unfamiliar bottle at the wine bar. That worrying feeling that you’re asking too many questions, ordering something uncool, or mispronouncing a wine and sounding ignorant–we’ve all been there.

I personally loved being able to take the parchment-paper wine notes back to my seat to read them at my leisure. Aesthetically, it’s a much nicer experience than constantly pulling out your phone to find a grape fact or a blending stat.

Salute’s website doesn’t have a sample wine list. However, the large range of styles and prices means most drinkers will be able to find something that suits their preferences.

The wine selections are divided among white, rosés, and reds. Major regions and popular styles are represented, along with uncommon options like local Texas wines and an orange wine.

I couldn’t help but grin when I realized there were way more interesting wines than I would be able to sample on one visit! But I wanted to get a sense of how the wine preservation system worked, so I alternated between wines I was familiar with and wines I’d never tasted before.

Working left to right as suggested, my wife and I blazed through almost a dozen small pours over about 90 minutes, comparing notes with glee. A California Verdejo, an Aussie Sauv Blanc, a white Langhe (From Nascetta–new grape unlocked!), and a Rhône Viognier. For reds, we sipped on a Sonoma Pinot Noir, a Chianti Classico, a Gigondas, a Nebbiolo, a big Cali red blend, and an Argentine Malbec.

Are robo-bars the way of the future?

The tasting-bar format offers a unique opportunity for students and wine explorers. Finding a bar with a good by-the-glass list is rare–half-glasses and tasting flights are even rarer. I truly value having the freedom to taste so many different wines without spending a fortune or drinking more alcohol than I want to.

The clear glass refrigerators make it easy to see what wines are (actually) in stock. The high-tech dispensers make sure you’re never under-poured or over-poured, and they serve each glass reliably at the ideal temperature. They have become an especially attractive solution in cities where rising labor costs are squeezing the hospitality industry into a tough spot.

As a person who likes wine talk almost as much as I like wine, however, I don’t think the self-serve bar will ever be my favorite way to enjoy a glass. Sure, I’m confident enough about picking my own wine from a list. The machine is a cool novelty. But it won’t replace my appreciation for servers and sommeliers who can recommend and pour wine, who make human interaction part of the experience.

I also retain a touch of skepticism about the machines themselves. I know that they work–I just don’t know that any system works well enough to keep dozens of bottles of wine fresh for up to a week or more.

Salute uses a 5- and 8-bottle fridges from an industry-leading provider of wine-preservation systems. I’ve seen the same ones in airport lounges and behind the counter at full-service wine bars. They use an argon/nitrogen gas replacement method to blanket the surface of the wine and slow its natural oxidation process.

The manufacturer makes some extraordinary claims about the systems’ efficacy, including that they can preserve an open bottle of wine for 30+ days with no appreciable loss of quality. They’ve picked up some key endorsements from wine industry groups, too.

But somms and others who regularly use these machines have given me different reports about how long they actually delay oxidation. The bottle is completely uncorked when it’s loaded, and a hose goes down the neck of the bottle to siphon up the wine. The consensus seems to be that these dispensers are much more effective than re-corking and refrigerating, and somewhat less effective than preservation systems that leave the cork intact.

Obviously, if a bar is churning through bottles quickly enough, oxidation/spoilage is not going to be much of a problem. But this is a small place and 42 open bottles is a lot…and many of them are niche picks that may not have the same sell-through rate as the heavy hitters.

My totally unscientific and anecdotal opinion: I tried pours from ten bottles and two were out-of-condition based on my previous experiences with those wines (one very noticeably so). I’m sure the bar would’ve replaced those pours–but the Wine Fairy is a non-confrontational sort of person. And after all, the financial investment in a 2-ounce taster is very small.

Of course, the freshness issue could’ve been from other storage or environmental factors, like UV exposure. And there are definitely times that I might not notice or care. But if it’s important to you to taste a wine in its very tip-toppest condition, I don’t know that I’d rely on these machines. I’d still look out for the fullest, most recently opened bottles. Or ask a human.

That brings me to the strangely solitary aspect of drinking wine from a vending machine. Whether that’s a plus or a minus for you depends on your personality. (And perhaps, on the occasion.)

This wine blogger is a chatty barfly after a glass or two, so I must admit that the self-serve experience left that particular itch unscratched. But for certain people–introverts, laptop warriors, non-English speakers, romantic couples–being left alone to grab your own refills might be just what you’re looking for.

Salute Wine Bar is a delightful spot to stop in and drink from a varied wine list without committing to big pours. We were very happy when we got the check. We got to sample a whole bunch of different wines for around $50, or the cost of a single mid-priced restaurant bottle.

Fort Worth’s Foundry District has lots to drink and eat, and it’s just across the river from many of the city’s cultural monuments and tourist attractions. Give it a try next time you’re in town!

Where: Salute Wine Bar, 212 Carroll St Ste 130, Fort Worth, TX 76107 (open daily)

Wines tasted:

Matchbook “Tinto Rey” Verdejo, Dunnigan Hills, California (2022)

Farm to Table Sauvignon Blanc, Victoria, Australia (2022)

Fabio Oberto La Collina di Dioniso Nascetta Langhe, Italy (2022)

Domaine Philippe et Vincent Jaboulet Viognier, Collines Rhodaniennes IGP, France (2022)

Stony Point Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, California (2021)

Casa Emma Chianti Classico, Italy (2021)

Domaine du Pesquier Gigondas, France (2022)

Cascina Vengore “Belgardo” Terre Alfieri DOCG Nebbiolo, Italy (2021)

Fulcrum “Madman” Red Blend, Sonoma County, California (2022)

Bodega Atamisque Serbal Malbec, Uco Valley, Argentina (2023)

Review disclosure: I was not compensated or provided any free products for this review. Opinions expressed on The Wine Fairy blog are entirely my own.