STORY AND PHOTOS BY KATE DALY
After serving as a mainstay in Hailey for nearly 20 years, diVine Wine Bar literally closed on an up note, with live music playing on the patio accompanied by the sounds of many glasses clinking into the night.
Regular customers streamed in before the last day, which took place last week, to dine, say goodbye, and take advantage of the discounted inventory of wines. They also loaded up on take-out containers of fondue and tomato bisque.
Co-owner Sherry Horton said the restaurant’s signature cheesy dish was developed by the restaurant’s second owner. The fondue recipe is a secret, but Horton did reveal it combines two key ingredients that work well together: Gruyere and Emmentaler.
Horton, who used to manage the nearby Wicked Spud, joined Kari Haugen, a librarian at Wood River High School, and silent partner Wally Creviston to take over diVine nine years ago.
They worked with a staff of 10, and Horton says it was a second job for all of them.
Staffing wasn’t a problem, but the stress of running the business day-to-day became an issue when the owners developed “a lot going on personally.”
Horton said they decided to sell the wine bar in June. When no takers stepped forward, they then decided to stay open until their lease ran out on their space on N. 1st Ave.
They own a lot of cooking, serving and dining equipment and furniture and are putting everything into storage and stepping back for a while--maybe for a month or two—to see if diVine rises from the ashes, Horton said.
Horton jokes the wine bar could even be reimagined on wheels as a food truck.
“It’s been a good ride,” she said. But, for now, her aging mother needs her help back east. After that, Horton is looking forward to taking some time off and reading and playing with her dogs.
“I love to cook,” she said. In fact, she found herself cooking more than ever during COVID, and she enjoyed coming up with new dishes for the restaurant.
“Nobody’s leaving town,” she said. So, maybe, just maybe, there will be another round, similar to what happened whenever diVine patrons came into sample the selection of 13 red, 14 white and five rose wines by the glass.
“We have a lot of wine you can’t get anywhere else in town,” Horton said.
Some folks will no doubt miss swinging by just to try different vintages and tastes from different regions.
At this point, though, Horton is busy cleaning and clearing out. And that leaves her little time to reflect on all the customers and years of memorable birthday, bridal and New Year’s Eve parties, special Valentine’s Day dinners, Sunday winter movie nights and good times.
“I’m too tired to be sad,” she said.