dbo:abstract
- El Vino, also known as El Vino's, is a wine bar and off-licence in London's Fleet Street that was famously patronised by journalists when many national newspapers were based nearby. It is still patronised by lawyers as the surrounding area is still London's legal district. The business was founded by the wine merchant Alfred Bower in Mark Lane as Bower and Co. in 1879. That was on the east side of the City of London and, as the business prospered by selling imported Burgundy, claret, and sherry, he opened four more wine bars, including the famous branch in Fleet Street. In 1923, the business had to change its name, so that Bower could become an alderman, and so it was renamed El Vino – the Spanish name for wine. Bower then became Lord Mayor and the business continued in his family until 2015, when it was sold to the Davy chain of wine bars. (en)