Honour Ave Cellars in Graceville to open to only 8 patrons

Brisbane is set to get a swanky new wine bar selling some of the most unique wine in the country. But if you want a chance to snag a place at the venue you’d better get in quick.

Brisbane’s southwest is set to get a swanky new wine bar selling some of the most unique wine in the country. But if you want a seat you better book, with the tiny 28sq m establishment only open to eight guests.

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Honour Ave Cellars will open in Graceville at the end of August as a bar and bottle shop, offering about 150 wine labels for purchase and up to 60 by the glass to drink in store.

Owner Chris Siktars said the venue could technically hold 14 patrons with new COVID-19 restriction rules, but he wanted to give guests as much room as possible.

“It will be cosy – that Austrian/European style of place,” he said. “We’re only seating eight people at the moment and we'll see where the future takes us.”

Chris Siktars is set to open one of the Brisbane smallest bars later this month called Honour Avenue Cellars in Graceville. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Mr Siktars is the man behind the hugely popular fine dining Blackox pop-up restaurants that are held in secret locations across Brisbane and sell out months in advance.

Despite opening the venue in a pandemic, he had faith the business would work.

“As humans we drink through everything – good times, bad times, and wine, you can’t stop learning about it,” he said.

The bar is currently under construction and is due to open by the end of the month. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Setting the bar apart will be interesting and hard-to-find drops, with the sommelier bringing in vino from far flung places such as Georgia, near Turkey, and Hungary. He is also trying to secure wines from the 1960s, including a 1966 French pinot.

“We’re working closely with small, family boutique producers so a lot of the wineries we’re stocking aren’t really well known,” he said. “We’ll have very small, limited quantity wines.”

Mr Siktars is still waiting for the final liquor licence to come through, but also plans to operate a small menu of cured meats, boutique Australian cheeses and snacks, such as spicy tuna toast.