Essensia Lounge's New Happy Hour: Half-Off Organic Wines

​The Essensia Lounge, the speakeasy portion of The Palms Hotel & Spa, has a new happy hour tailored specifically for local sommeliers: Uncorked & Unplugged Thursdays, half off wines by the glass and bottles beginning this Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m.

Ok, that's great, but what's so great about it? For one thing, all of the wines on the list are organically grown and "biodynamic," or farmed responsibly.

More specifically, the term refers to organic farming practices that emphasize the interrelationships between animals and soil, utilizing sustainable methods like composting and integrating manure into the soil and excluding artificial chemicals.

Wonderful, but does the wine taste better?

"I don't know if they're necessarily better tasting," says Vanessa Lopez, public relations manager for The Palms Hotel & Spa. "It's another level of being environmentally responsible and working the land responsibly."

Having organic cocktails is but a small portion of Essensia's overall mission of being environmentally-friendly, which also follows general farm-to-table practice with locally-sourced ingredients.

There can't be a good happy hour without good grub, and in-house chef Julia Frans has that covered with their bar menu that includes duck confit flatbread pizza, mini lamb sliders, Thai rock shrimp fritters, prosciutto-wrapped chicken on bamboo and a cheese and charcuterie sampler, all for $9.

A weekly variety of musicians and musical genres will also be playing. Parking for Uncorked & Unplugged guests will cost $9.

Normally the prices for wines by the glass range from a $10 Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare rosé to a $17 Northstar merlot, and bottles go from anywhere between a $34 J.M. Fonseca vinho verde white wine to $499 for a Domaine de la Romanee Conti French pinot noir.  

"In the spirits industry you're not going to have a high nutritional value in general, it's just that you're not ingesting pesticides," says Lopez.

Essensia Restaurant & Lounge is tucked inside The Palms Hotel & Spa, a breezy luxury resort on the beach where couples can enjoy mind-body relaxation to the extreme with massages during the day and healthy dining in the evening.

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