There’s a word Robbie Schenck keeps returning to in conversation, and it isn’t wine. It isn’t craft beer, or champagne cocktails, or even the historic house on Cary’s East Chatham Street that has been transformed into one of downtown’s most distinctive destinations. The word is hospitality — and the way Robbie defines it says everything about what Vino & Tap hopes to be.
“Service is getting what you asked for in a timely manner,” he says. “Hospitality is more of a connection. It’s a service that’s enjoyed. You’re not just doing it for the job — you want the people to have the best experience possible. And you can tell when you go somewhere. It’s like, Oh, these people are welcoming. They want me to be here. They want me to come back.”
Open since April, Vino & Tap is still in the early stages of becoming exactly that kind of place. The bones were already there, and thanks to a father and son’s depth of experience in the hospitality industry, the vision is clear.
The historic Pasmore House in downtown Cary makes a fitting home for the Vino & Tap concept.
Managing partner and general manager Robbie grew up in Cary, where he started his career in the dish pit. Over time he worked his way through every position in the kitchen before transitioning to the front of house and doing the same again. Robbie spent years working alongside his father, Drew, at RallyPoint, the bar he owned that became something of a local institution. He also helped Drew open Artful Libations, a bar catering company that was sold and now runs successfully under Jennifer Zewe. Then, for a stretch, Robbie left North Carolina to guide whitewater rafting trips on the New River in West Virginia.
When the chance to open something with his father presented itself, he came home. “I didn’t want to miss another opportunity,” he says simply.
Managing partner and general manager Robbie Schenck
The historic Pasmore House, situated on the edge of Downtown Cary Park, was immediately right, even if what Drew and Robbie found inside was anything but. Beneath the charm of the 1920s Victorian exterior was a web of improvisation: extension cords plugged into extension cords, wiring run through walls, tap lines and plumbing in need of complete replacement. What they had assumed might be a turnkey operation turned out to require nearly new everything — electrical, tap tower, fixtures, paint, curtains, lighting — completed in roughly three months of daily work.
What remains original is the bar top and the blue tile tucked behind the bar. Entirely new is the wine cellar upstairs. Temperature-controlled, insulated, and tinted, it’s stocked with properly temped bottles ready to be retrieved. Everything else has been reimagined, and the result is a historic space that feels purposefully designed: dark but not dim, intimate without being cramped, layered with the kind of atmospheric detail that takes time to notice (the walls in particular boast some gems).
“I think the only time this kind of concept and ambience works is in a house like this,” Robbie admits.
The Schenck family last name, Robbie notes, has deep roots in Germany, where it means “cupbearer.” This trusted individual was responsible for serving wine and beverages to nobility and royalty. More than simply serving drinks, the cupbearer was entrusted with the safety of the imbiber, often tasting wine before it was served to guard against poisoning. Symbolizing hospitality and celebration, this position was one of great honor and loyalty.
Wine-based cocktails can be enjoyed as part of the downtown social district.
“It’s in the blood,” Robbie says with a grin, though the meaningful heritage behind his family name inspires the vision behind Vino & Tap — creating a welcoming place where great wine, craft beer, and good company bring people together.
The cupbearer lineage also shows up in how seriously Vino & Tap approaches its wine — what’s on the list and how it’s stored and served. Temperature, Robbie explains, is non-negotiable. “I hate to go to a nice Italian restaurant and get a bottle and it’s room temp,” he says. “You don’t want red wine at 70-something degrees.”
That’s why at Vino & Tap every white is stored at 47 degrees and every red at 62, with bottle chillers above the bar and a purpose-built wine cellar upstairs that maintains those temperatures around the clock. When a guest orders a bottle, it comes down from the cellar properly temped and ready to drink. It is a detail most bars don’t bother with but one that most guests notice immediately.
The 1920s Victorian was meticulously refitted to create a befitting ambience.
The wine list was developed over several months of tasting and is curated specifically to offer wines you can’t simply pick up in a grocery store. “We wanted to get something that’s special,” Robbie says. Standouts include the Ronco de Sassi, a Primitivo-Malbec blend from Italy that has quickly become the top-selling red, and a sparkling rosé from Gratien & Meyer that proved so popular the distributor had to order 86 additional cases to keep up with demand. A New Zealand sauvignon blanc has reigned as the overall top seller, though the team is transitioning to new favorite Allan Scott from the same region.
All wines, to include this tawny port, have been carefully curated.
Wine tastings have become a signature offering, with recent events dedicated to bubbles and French wines across all regions. Winemakers and reps come in to lead the conversations. “Once they start talking,” Robbie says, laughing, “it makes me feel like, oh, how little I know.”
Robbie is, by his own admission, more of a beer person at heart. He worked at American Brewmaster home brew supply, earned his beer server Cicerone certification, and brewed his own. The tap list at Vino & Tap reflects that knowledge even within a curated selection of 10 beers, plus two proseccos running on a cleverly duplicated bar setup so bartenders on both ends can make wine cocktails without crossing each other.
North Carolina representation is strong: Red Oak, Pernicious IPA, and Blackbird Kölsch hold steady alongside Guinness and Stella. A rotating tap from Flat Rock Cidery — the only cidery in North Carolina using certified Appalachian apples — cycles through seasonal flavors like pineapple and blueberry.
The wine cocktails are where the bar’s creativity gets a full showcase. Foregoing a full liquor license was a deliberate decision that allows guests to take their drinks into downtown Cary’s outdoor social district. Instead, the cocktail program uses wine-based spirits to build a full lineup: a Caribbean cocktail centered on coconut rum, pineapple, orange juice, and prosecco; a Black Velvet made from half Guinness, half prosecco; a Cider Royale combining the rotating Flat Rock cider with prosecco. The drinks are designed to be enjoyed both inside the Victorian house and outside on its phenomenal patio space, as well as out in the social district.
A serene patio space out back is an unexpected bonus.
The food program reads like a love letter to local makers. Frankie B’s Pimento Cheese anchors the savory side, while Slice Pie Company provides rotating pies. The Cary Caramel Company supplies chocolates and caramels. Food trucks pull up regularly, with the through line being the same as everything else at Vino & Tap: build relationships, support the community, and give people a reason to stay.
This summer brought the launch of Vino & Tap’s Collector’s Club membership program, a quarterly subscription that includes bottles of wine reserved and stored in the upstairs cellar, plus access to member pricing and events.
The members lounge — a private upstairs room seating up to 16 — has already hosted groups for all manner of events. Private event packages, with options that include 1.5-gallon sangria carafes, build-your-own mimosa bars, and eventually, a champagne tower available for rent, are forthcoming. Wine tastings, art festivals, food trucks, and live music are already rotating through a calendar that Robbie describes as community focused.
Drinks to-go
The longer vision includes potential expansion — Robbie can imagine a Vino & Tap concept somewhere coastal, or an adventure-themed version near hiking and rock climbing — but for now, the focus is squarely on building what his father built before him: a place people come back to because they know they’ll be welcomed and remembered.
“It’s free to remember somebody’s name and their favorite drink,” Robbie says. “But that goes a long way. People remember that. They go to places for that.”
That’s not service. That’s hospitality. And at Vino & Tap, the distinction matters.
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