On Tap

B Squared

A Bottle Shop And tASting Room

B Squared Bottl is located in the Vermillion neighborhood of Huntersville.

A passion for bartending led to new business opportunity by Lara Tumer | photography by Ken Noblezada

It’s easy to go from bartender to business consultant when you have the level of passion that David Lynch does for his involvement with B Squared bottle shop. After speaking to Lynch, it’s clear that sourcing beer and wine for the community is such a small part of what he does.

Originally a bartender at Barley Market in Cornelius (owned by Charlie Dyer), Lynch explains that he “acted like the business was [his] own, even when it wasn’t.” When the opportunity for a second location came up a few years later in Huntersville, Lynch was the obvious choice when Dyer was looking for a partner.

The basis of the bottle shop was always community, with a guiding belief that they should always be questioning “what do the people want?” While at its roots, the bottle shop is a place to purchase a mix-n-match six pack of beer or discover a new wine for a get together, Lynch really turned to the community to guide the business. The original selection of beer and wine started off generic and basic, but after listening to his customers, the menu has grown into something truly remarkable and special. Since the clientele in Huntersville is not a carbon copy of that in Cornelius, the menu is also distinct.

The bottle shop features a small tapas menu, including items like Bang Bang Shrimp and Pork Belly Nachos. Local musicians take the stage on select Fridays and Saturdays—mostly musicians who Lynch has met over the years from the Lake Norman area. Walking into a bottle shop can be overwhelming, especially when there are over 200 beers on the list. The drafts are constantly rotating, and while of course there is some overlap with other local bars, B Squared offers options that you simply won’t see elsewhere. The menu is comprised of a mix of popular well-known brews and beers from local breweries as well as selections that either used to be popular years ago or that are sourced from other cities in the United States. Because the Lake Norman area is such a melting pot, “if I bring in a beer from Ithaca in upstate New York or Anchorage, Alaska it’s reminding someone of where they grew up or a place they just moved from.” The reaction he gets from these gestures is what really sets the business apart and leads to great conversations.

“You would think I had their grandma sitting at the bar,” Lynch jokes.

The objective of B Squared is to make every customer feel warm and welcome. Lynch often places a special order of beer for a single person because he’s taken the time to really get to know what they like. Everything about B Squared brings home the sense of community. “At the end of the day, beer is going to change but 95 percent of the success if customer service and paying attention to details.” It’s obvious that these are words that Lynch truly lives by and has instilled in the bottle shop’s brand.

B Squared

13812 Cinnabar Place, Huntersville 704.947.5109 www.b2bottleshop.com/