Steve’s Wine Bar shares business journey following 10-year celebration

Just beyond the painted grapes adorning the walls of Steve’s Wine Bar, customers trickle in for a night of live jazz, wine tastings and celebration.

Located at 111 Industrial St., Steve’s Wine Bar is home to a rotating menu of over 200 wines. For the month of August, the bar’s menu marks a special occasion, featuring some of 66-year-old owner Steven Severance’s favorite wines to celebrate 10 years of business.

“To me, a wine bar is something that’s fresh, it’s new, it’s educational,” Severance said. “Whereas you go to a restaurant that serves wine, you can pretty much bet that they’re going to have the same wines. … They’re not changing anything.”

Over a decade ago on Aug. 5, 2016, Steve’s Wine Bar opened its doors for the first time, following Severance’s discovery of his love for wine.

After traveling through Europe with his family, Severance found he enjoyed the experience of pairing wine with different food dishes. He then began hosting dinner parties, inviting guests to curate the wine menu for the evening by selecting one to coordinate with their assigned dish.

“We were doing this and people started saying ..., ‘Gosh, you really like wine,’” Severance said. “I go, ‘I do like wine, I like learning about wine. I like the experiences that we craft around a dinner and wine.’ So one thing led to another.”

Today, the bar hosts live jazz music five to six nights a week, a monthly subscription-based wine club and other community events, aiming to continue sharing the experience of drinking wine.

Children’s book author and regular customer Tanya Blixt said she believes the bar holds an important role in the community, and that it has been the venue for her book releases.

“They get out, they make sure that they’re seen. ... They do everything they can to make sure they’re supportive and helpful.” Blixt said. “That’s what Denton is. Denton is such a great place because everybody truly cares, and I don’t think you find that everywhere.”

Severance had not originally planned to enter the wine industry at all, nor did he anticipate his business would turn into a venue for up-and-coming jazz artists. Yet in 2019, the bar moved from its original location at 219 E. Hickory St. to allow more room for live performers.

“I just wanted a place to come and relax, have fun. I did not plan this at all,” Severance said while gesturing to a crowd gathered for the night’s live jazz. “It happened, and we played off of it.”

Severance’s business model has centered around adapting to the current needs of his customers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he moved all his products online to a website for customers to host a wine experience at home.

“It was a huge challenge, but [I] could stay completely viable during COVID,” Severance said.

Throughout its decade in business, Steve’s Wine Bar faced its share of challenges. The very location where the business initially opened was home to two previously failed wine bars. When the business first started, Severance’s goal was to make sure his bills were paid at home.

He attributes his success to his wine club that allows members to taste different wines each month and even take a bottle of their favorite home. Since Severance first started the business, the subscription-based service adds at least eight new wines to its menu each month.

“We’re more than just this space,” Severance said. “We’re out there in people’s homes and helping them with wine.”

Utilizing the service, Katherine Quinones, a customer and a childhood friend of Severance’s daughter, said she and her husband became very interested in wine during the pandemic. Eventually, the couple joined the bar’s wine club and found a community.

“Steve’s is very much kind of another part of the thread of the tapestry that makes Denton what it is,” Quinones said. “It just fits very perfectly in the community.”

Though the business has evolved over time, and had its impact on the community, Severance said he strives to continue for the same reasons he started: wine.

“The one thing that I love to tell people is that we are a wine bar, a true wine bar,” Severance said. “We’re not a restaurant, we are here to have a great time drinking wine.”