After 20 years in Naperville, Tasting deVine Cellars is reinventing itself.

The tasting room lat 21 W. Jefferson Ave. started off exclusively selling wine from Lynfred Winery, the oldest family-run wine producer in Illinois, but about five years ago added beer and whiskey to its lineup. Now, it’s expanded to include mocktails and is seeking city approval to do tequila tastings.

The business is also changing its name to Barrel & Heritage to better reflect what the tasting room has to offer.

“The thought process was, after years of being called Tasting deVine Cellars, that does not really help us sell whiskey and tequila at this point, plus wine and beer sales are at one of the lowest levels in history,” said Nicholas Janettas, a manager at Barrel & Heritage.

Overall revenue from U.S. wine sales in 2025 was $74.3 billion, down from $75.5 billion in 2024, according to a Silicon Valley Bank report, part of a trend that started in 2020. Fewer members of the “Boomer” generation are drinking wine and those that do are drinking less of it, the report said. Younger generations do not appear to be replacing the older cohort in wine consumption, the report said.

John Beckman, a manager at Barrel & Heritage, speaks in front of the Liquor Commission at the Naperville Municipal Center on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. Barrel & Heritage is waiting for approval from the Naperville City Council to start selling tequila at their location. (Carolyn Stein/Naperville Sun)

It’s a similar story for craft beer. Industry trade group Brewers Association wrote in a December report that for the second consecutive year, the number of breweries that closed in 2025 outpaced the number that opened. In a midyear survey from July, the Brewers Association also estimated there was a 5% decrease in the volume of craft beer produced year-over-year.

And on top of all that, Americans appear to be drinking less in general.

According to a 2025 Gallup poll, a record-low 54% of Americans reported that they consume alcohol. It was the third consecutive year the poll found a decline, and for the first time, a majority of Americans said they believed drinking in moderation — one or two drinks a day — was bad for their health.

Janettas said that while Barrel & Heritage’s alcohol sales have stayed relatively consistent, it’s important to stay on top of the trends for long-term survival.

“Spirits and cocktails and things like that are kind of holding their own. So moving forward, we just thought obviously the name would be a little bit more unique and it would help us kind of transition as well into this new period of time,” he said.

The tasting room’s landlord also told the business last year that he wanted to the change the building’s exterior, Janettas said. Since they were already considering new signage, a rebrand seemed to make sense, he said.

With the new Barrel & Heritage sign now up and a new glass doorway installed, they’re planning to update the interior with new paint and decor.

“I think 20 years ago, maroon and mustard was a little bit more in,” Janettas said of the colors used for Tasting deVine. “We’re going for a little bit lighter, like a little bit more of a cream color. And then hoping to brighten up the space a little bit naturally with the paint color since we are set below street level.”

After considering hundreds of possible names, Barrel & Heritage — referring to the barrels used to store and age wine, tequila and whiskey and the heritage of wines and whiskey made in the Midwest — made sense.

“Our whiskeys are primarily, 99%, all from the Midwest, some smaller distilleries throughout the Midwest that don’t get as much recognition as some of the larger ones from Kentucky and throughout the world,” Janettas said.

That includes whiskeys only sold at Barrel & Heritage.

“There’s one from Whiskey Acres, which is a distillery in DeKalb. They’re the first estate grown distillery in Illinois … one of their selections is only available here, was not even sold at the distillery,” Janettas said.

“We have an extremely popular whiskey from Red Line Whiskey Co. that is finished in a Brazilian oak called amburana. This is the only place in Illinois you can try that as well, and that is by far our most popular.”

cstein@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/15/devine-cellars-barrel-heritage-naperville-rebrand/