“Opening the Wine Bar has been amazing- but never in the way you think it’s going to be at first,” it’s been many laborious years in the making.
I have painstakingly ( if not quite single handedly) dismantled the old butcher shop, one of the most iconic buildings in Linlithgow High Street, only to put it back again in a way that preserves all the original character. The result is a beautiful Wine Bar that fits well within the surrounding area.
“I enjoyed taking on the project as a whole building”. Things have to happen on different levels for it to feel interesting. “The idea of a Wine Bar in Linlithgow is also something I loved” — it’s there for everyone, it’s part of the community. I’d hate for anyone to look at this and think it’s not for them.” I named the bar Du Vin Bouchers on the back of it originally being Laurie’s The Butcher (distant relative) and simply translates to The Butchers Wine giving a French feel.
The traditional style interior looks effortlessly inviting: the Solid Oak Church Pews about the Wood Panelling, Stained Glass Windows, Wine Glass Chandelier, Original Butcher Hooks, the traditional side board vanity toilet unit and don’t forget the twinkly lights giving that “On a European Break Cosy Wee Bar”- “what a find” feel.
The bar started serving glasses of Wine in October 2018 – and hasn’t looked back since, the avid Wine Drinker wanders in to be faced with the sounds of Jazz, Blues, Foot Tapping Classics and an aroma of fantastic Wines accompanied with Cheese and Meats in which are prepared fresh to order by our team.
For me, the “little moments” are what makes being the owner special — “the experience the public have”, someone coming in for a glass of wine on their own or with friends, or just dropping in for one of our platters, knowing you’ve accounted for a shaft of sunlight hitting that spot at that time of day”. It’s not what you’ve got, but what you do with it that counts.
