Category: Rosemary Beach Living

One of the coolest, laid back places to go in our area on a Friday afternoon is the Fonville Press at the entrance to the homes in Alys Beach. 

Fonville Press is a combination book store, coffee/pastry shop and wine bar – all packed in to 645 square feet under roof, but plenty of additional room to lounge both in the front and rear of the building.  Fonville Press has the best happy hour buffet on Friday afternoons that I’ve experienced on the coast.

Alys Beach is a unique and very upscale 160 acre complex in its early stages of development.  There is a ten year build out time that will eventually see 599 homes in Alys Beach and 90,000 square feet of commercial space interspersed amongst the residential components. 

Alys Beach is designed in the same mode as Seaside and Rosemary Beach and is using the same architects who designed those outstanding developments.  Alys Beach is just a short walk or bike road to the west of the homes in Rosemary Beach. 

Fonville Press is owned by the development company, EBSCO of Birmingham, and managed by a very efficient and happy staff.  The wines are somewhat limited, but well selected, and are laid out for everyone to see.  

After drinks are ordered at the bar, help yourself to the buffet and again – it is creative and excellent.  On a recent Friday visit my guest chose a split of Perrier Jouet Champagne and I had a Spanish Albarino.  The buffet had several meats including salami, ham, a kind of beef jerky (the only item that wasn’t excellent) and a pate. 

There was a tremendous selection of cheeses including crumbled goat cheese in olive oil, brie, muenster, a variety of bleu cheeses and more.  Our favorite was a salad of roasted garlic, sun dried tomatoes, olives and celery in a good olive oil.  There were grapes, olives, carrots and real crisp seasoned croutons.  Click picture > to enlarge and “backspace” to return to article. 

 

We grabbed a cushion seat  against the wall on the back deck and settled in for the Friday afternoon live music.  Fonville has a rotating group of solo musicians who perform there, but on this recent Friday it was blues guitarist, Hans.  I’ve heard Hans several times at Baytowne Wharf in Sandestin, and both Vicki and I really enjoy his music. 

There are several homes for sale in Alys Beach, and the community is a work in progress.  But we already highly recommend this unique little place whether it be for a cup of coffee, pastries, reading great books, magazines and newspapers from around the world – but most particularly you can’t beat Fonville Press for Happy Hour on Friday afternoon. 

Imagine yourself after a relaxing day at the beach, you’ve finished a long bath and now you’re dressed for a nice dinner. But wait, it’s still too early for your reservations.

Why not head to the east end of CR-30A and have a glass of wine with friends first?

The perfect place is nestled amongst the shops and homes in Rosemary Beach, and it is the neighborhood bar – Courtyard Wine and Cheese Bar. Its tucked away but worth the effort to find it.

This really cool and unique little wine bar was previously known as Medusa Rouge and was owned by Shane Hicks, a former studio and touring musician who moved to paradise from Nashville.

When Hicks decided to go back to music, the Krutz family from Jackson, Mississippi stepped up to take the reins. Bryan and Patrick are in their late twenties but know a whole lot about wine.

Bryan is actually the brother that you will see year round. Patrick spends a little time in Rosemary Beach, but spends most of his time in Sonoma, California producing about 700 cases of wine a year. I caught up with Patrick a while back while having a glass of wine with a friend and client, Norman McLean of Nashville. Patrick pointed out that for the most part he makes pinot noir and chardonnay and makes the wine at a shared crush facility in Sonoma County. He said that he was able to sell all of his wine through devotees and about five restaurants/wine bars including of course The Courtyard but also the famous Casanova Restaurant in Carmel, California.

The indoor part of the wine bar is really small with only about eight seats at the bar. But adjoining the bar is a really cool little courtyard that can seat about another 25/30 people.

You’ll see a musician playing from time to time here – usually on Sunday late afternoons. Also adjoining the bar is a temperature controlled, glass enclosed retail wine area from which a really nice selection of wines can be purchased.

My guest and I were in a couple of weeks ago, and I started with a glass of the Krutz pinot noir while my guest went with a sparkling wine from California. The pinot noir had a tremendous bouquet. It was a classic pinot noir smell in addition to a real full mouth feel and lingering finish – good stuff.

We also shared the only food offered at Courtyard, cheese with fruit and crackers. We got the small cheese plate and not being a fan of bleu cheeses, they thoughtfully swapped out for another slice of manchego.

Are you thinking of moving to the beach and hanging out at your new neighborhood bar? If you want to go upscale, this is the place. There are lots of homes for sale in Rosemary Beach, although they are not inexpensive. Currently the least expensive one is only 599 square feet priced at a cool $900,000. But people who invested in Rosemary Beach more than two years ago know that values have skyrocketed.

But it’s not necessary to buy a home in Rosemary Beach to enjoy a little vino at The Courtyard Wine Bar. Call 8502311219 if you cant find it.