bottle bank

Houston's oldest wine storage facility for cherished collections announces new ownership

Facilities like Vino Vault provide an alternative to a large home cellar.

Photo by JPM Real Estate Photography

The Bayou City's oldest wine storage facility has new ownership. Vino Vault recently acquired Houston Wine Cellar.

Founded in 1993, Gigi and Brad White acquired Houston Wine Cellar in 2001. Like other, similar concepts, the facility provides wine collectors with individual lockers of climate-controlled storage for their most treasured vintages. Despite the name, it should not be confused with Vault & Vino, a wine storage facility and event space in Montrose.

“We are thankful to the Houston wine community for their trust over the past two decades,” Gigi White said in a statement. “Houston Wine Cellar was the first storage facility in the state of Texas and for almost thirty years we have been relied on by our clients to care for their cherished wine collections. While we will certainly miss the community we built, we know our clients are in good hands with Vino Vault who is committed to continuing our excellence.”

Vino Vault touts the acquisition as an opportunity for customers to take advantage of upgraded services such as organizing and analyzing collections and "turnkey auction management services."

"Having served the Houston area for decades, Gigi and Brad White have built a highly regarded reputation in the wine storage space,” Vino Vault CEO Jeff Anthony added. “Houston Wine Cellar is home to a community that brings together wine novices, serious collectors, and general enthusiasts alike; we are looking forward to continuing to provide that same level of personalized service within the Vino Vault portfolio."

Founded in 2021, Vino Vault already has locations in Los Angeles, New York, and Denver. Houston is its second Texas facility, joining one in Dallas.

wine

head east

Eagerly-anticipated Houston barbecue joint hosts weekend preview pop-ups

Courtesy of Eastbound Barbecue

Get a first taste of Eastbound Barbecue this weekend.

One of Houston’s most eagerly anticipated new barbecue joints is giving diners a preview of what’s to come. Eastbound Barbecue will host “Sneak Peak Weekends” every Saturday and Sunday beginning this Saturday, December 20, until the restaurant opens in early 2026.

Held at the restaurant’s location in the East End (1105 Sampson Street) from 12-4 pm (or sold out), the weekend service gives diners their first chance to try Eastbound Barbecue’s smoked meats, sides, and desserts. That includes, smoked brisket, baby back ribs, jalapeno & cheese sausage, hatch chili lasagna mac & cheese, herbed potato salad, and more. Save room for the two dessert offerings, salted caramel banana pudding and cookie butter cake.

To distinguish Eastbound’s barbecue, chefs Lopez and Granville use different seasonings than other restaurants, such as rosemary salt in the brisket rub and a miso-caramel sauce that gives its ribs a sweet and savory bite. During the preview, Eastbound’s prices are noticeably lower than many other Houston barbecue joints, with brisket priced at $29 per pound, ribs at $26 per pound, and pulled pork at $22 per pound.

As CultureMap reported in August, Eastbound unites four friends, Ryan Penn, Ryan Powell, Luis Lopez, and Jake Granville, who also held senior roles at various restaurants owned by prominent Houston chef Ronnie Killen. Since then, the four partners have finished many of the improvements they needed to make prior to opening, including closing in the patio and installing offset smokers on the property.

For Penn, leaving the Killen’s organization after almost 20 years was a difficult decision, but one he felt he had to make. “I could have worked for [Killen] forever and been happy. It was more along the lines of, if I don’t do this now, I don’t want to be 70 and wish that I had,” he said at the time.

Courtesy of Eastbound Barbecue

Get a first taste of Eastbound Barbecue this weekend.

news-you-can-eat barbecue openings