Bubbles at the Bar

image: Prosecco on the bar at Fiamo, credit: Treve Ring

For a few months now, a little restaurant on lower Yates has been doing something no one else in Canada can – pouring Prosecco on tap.

You read that right. Prosecco, the frizzante Italian wine that is all the rage, is available in draft at Fiamo. How civilized – cozy up to the bar, order a cheese and charcuterie board, and have the bartender fill your flute with bubbles pulled from a bar tap. Quite common in Italy, and now seen throughout Europe, Asia and Australia, the practice is slowly making its way onto North American soils (Fiamo was 2nd to employ the system after a NYC resto).

The technology that makes it all possible is the KeyKeg. The revolutionary and innovative KeyKeg can be utilized for any liquid, though it is especially suited for carbonated beverages. You’ve heard of bag-in-box? This is bag-in-ball. Pressurized by the tap, the wine is fresh and fizzy, glass after glass, just like draft beer. In appearance the KeyKeg comes off as a cross between a giant plastic light bulb and an astronaut helmet. Extremely lightweight, and completely recyclable, the 30 Litre keg holds 40 bottles of wine, and when drained weighs in at a mere 1.4kg. This is not just a revolution in dispensing technology, but also a giant leap in the greening of wine. The uber-lightness of the KeyKeg results reduced shipping costs. All pieces are recycled by the vendor, meaning no empty kegs have to be shipped back to Europe (or wherever) for refilling. Easy to store, easy to handle and easy to use. Easy to like.

According to Fiamo bar manager Scott Vanwyck, there is even more to like about KeyKeg. Staff love the convenience and ease of the product. It’s a great feature to chat up guests, and no time is wasted on chilling and opening bottles in a rush. For Vanwyck, traditional Prosecco cocktails such as the Aperol Spritz and the Bellini are now cost effective. According to Vanwyck, it’s a no-brainer. “This will revolutionize pub culture”.

The keg wine at Fiamo is produced by Montelvini, the Italian leader in wine on tap. They have the largest keg filling plant in Italy and, most likely, in the world. Located in the village of Venegazzù in Veneto, Italy, the winery was established in 1969, and been a leader in keg wine production since the inception of the practice in 1988.
In addition to Prosecco (Montelvini Prosecco IGT della Marca Trevigiana) Fiamo also has a fresh and fruity red and softly perfumed white wine on tap. Here’s your house wine at the ready, with no worries about freshness or spoilage.

All this is fine and good, but what about the taste? Their Prosecco is pleasant, appealing, refreshing, quaffable – all the things Prosecco needs to be. Fiamo customers are sold – the Montelvini Prosecco outsells draft beer. Salute!

www.fiamo.ca

www.keykeg.com

www.montelvini.it