Pints of IPA and goblets of stout catch the evening light, conversations floating up from picnic tables speckled with “bottle-share” picks being passed among the hop-minded. A food truck hums by the fence shielding this happy island from nearby traffic, an island ruled by Mark Dion, at least for today, at least according to Foursquare, the app declaring him mayor of this patio after 51 consecutive weeks of check-ins at Khoury’s Fine Wine & Spirits.

“You need a new hobby,” jokes Dion’s husband Don Tenney, looking up from a cribbage board the two bequeathed to their favorite bar, which is actually a liquor store in a southeast strip mall. It’s Wednesday, the best night of the week for Khoury’s faithful, when new brews are tapped. Not Blue Moon and Stella—seasonal and specialty local stuff that’s hard to find outside the breweries, from CraftHaus’ crisp and citrusy Any Which Way white IPA to Joseph James Brewing’s collaboration beer with the Nevada Craft Brewers Association, a “banana split” hefeweizen bursting with notes of ripe fruit and chocolate.

“We were always wine drinkers until Issa installed the taps, and then we started getting into craft beers. So now we’re equal-opportunity lushes,” Tenney says with a laugh.

He’s talking about Issa Khoury, who put his family name on this modest retail space in 2004. Back then it really was just a liquor store, but Khoury’s has evolved into one of the city’s premier destinations for beer and wine enthusiasts, boasting an exciting selection, a staff of certifiable geeks, cozy atmosphere and patrons as loyal as they are discerning.

Looking for Bud Light? It’s behind the last door at the end of the beer cooler, and to get there you have to pass loads of locals (from Joseph James’ Desert Snow white IPA and Blood Moon Barleywine to Bad Beat’s Ace in the Hole basil pale ale), trendy regionals (Sam Adams’ boozy Barrel Room Collection or Dogfish Head’s toasty and bold Indian Brown) and fun finds from breweries new to the market. Khoury’s is the place to taste that just-released beer before your friends do.

“I like to think even though we don’t have the biggest selection, we have one of the more eclectic selections in town,” says Khoury, adding that his small operation is sometimes an advantage. If distributors get shipments of something interesting, they don’t have to wait for corporate approval to drop the product here; the indie shop can put it on the shelves or on tap that afternoon. Khoury says he was one of the first retailers in the Valley to sell now-popular beers from the Bruery, Almanac and Evil Twin, and his shop helped introduce top-notch nearby breweries like San Diego’s Pizza Port and LA’s Angel City Brewery to our scene. The most frequent gets are from local spots, particularly Joseph James, whose new releases often show up on Khoury’s shelves a week before hitting other local stores. Recent specialty drop-offs include the Henderson brewery’s shandy and raspberry saison and a 10-year anniversary beer aged in bourbon, wine or brandy barrels and brewed just for Khoury’s.

“They’re always bringing in stuff you can’t get here, which is really cool,” says Matt Marino, director of brewing at Joseph James. “He probably has the best beer selection in town.” The brewer says he’s a Wednesday regular because, “There’s always something interesting on tap” (sometimes his own creations), in a chill, non-gaming, non-smoking environment. There’s also the chance to catch a tap takeover or special release, like Big Dog’s recent launch of its line of canned beers.

“He supports all the local breweries; we do a lot of events here,” Marino says. “Issa’s the rare person who does draft and package … And he’s really easy to work with. Some guys are a pain in the ass.”

*****

Khoury’s first taste of “the business” came working for his father, who owns the Khoury’s Market grocery store in his Northern Nevada hometown, Elko.

“Since I was old enough to push a broom, I was working at my dad’s shop,” says Khoury, who started out bagging groceries, cashiering and handling inventory in the produce and meat sections. When he came of age, his focus shifted to the small-town supermarket’s booze department.

“My dad took pride in his liquor selection. For a little town like Elko there weren’t a whole lot of options,” Khoury says. “I became familiar with a lot of brands and styles. I like marketing; I like the labels. I like reading about it; I like the stories. That’s what kind of got me into it.”

Khoury studied business and marketing at UNLV while working at the family store on breaks. He got a job offer with Gallo, the largest exporter of California wine, but turned down the sales-rep position to stay in Las Vegas, opting for a similar job with Gallo’s local distributor, Johnson Brothers. “I ended up getting even deeper into wines and crafty spirits and beers. … I started traveling a lot to California and started seeing a lot of smaller shops like this, and even up in Reno. I was inspired,” says Khoury, giving credit to bigger retailers but pointing out that there were unfilled niches.

Backed by his father, he opened Khoury’s in August 2004, initially selling wines, spirits and beers and offering a Thursday wine tasting that’s still going strong. But if you’ve driven by the Silverado Ranch storefront on a Wednesday, it’s obvious the hops now rival the grapes.

“When we opened up, in my opinion, it was one of the first true wine shops in Vegas, and then a lot of wine shops opened up,” says Khoury, who still makes the majority of his money on wine but moves beer in much greater volume. Demand drove him to get a special liquor license and install a three-tap kegerator behind a small bar. As word spread and crowds swelled, he did away with his expansive hard-liquor section to make room for a new bar that now features 11 beers and eight wines on tap.

“Do I really need all 32 flavors of Smirnoff?” asks Khoury, who decided to leave the fight to sell it cheaper to big stores like Lee’s and Total Wine. And he added a library, with titles ranging from Bottled Poetry to The Bartender’s Best Friend, even product look-books from Rogue Ales and Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, plus a section for communal board games (if you need a Cards Against Humanity judge, a bartender will happily stand in). He wants the vibe to encourage conversation, which is why he avoided “distractions.”

“I purposely did not put gaming in here. I don’t do a lot of big TVs or anything like that,” Khoury says. “You’re sitting here having a beer, and that guy’s sitting there having a beer, and I can almost guarantee that guy’s going to ask you what you’re drinking.”

*****

Frank DiNicola has been that guy. “I’ve met so many people just talking about beer. Beer is like the great equalizer,” says DiNicola, who rarely misses Wednesday beer tappings. Regulars aren’t shy about sharing their buys or even a home brew or rare find from elsewhere. For a small fee, Khoury lets customers bring in beverages he doesn’t sell. He wants them to feel at home, even if that means installing one television for some Sunday patrons who’d otherwise move to the football bar down the road.

“There are other places that do craft beer here, and there are other places that sell the same stuff, but you don’t get that community environment,” says Jason Huffer, mentioning a cornhole tournament and even a group of Khoury’s patrons who go out for karaoke together on Friday nights.

“It’s kind of neat to see the intermingling, to watch a lawyer that comes in here all the time talk to a librarian that comes in here all the time—in normal cases, those guys would never talk to each other if they were at a sports bar,” Khoury says. “Here they’re having a full conversation about something that they’re passionate about, the beer, or a glass of wine.”

You’ll often find the owner in these conversations; he considers many of his patrons friends. Even the ones he doesn’t know well he probably knows by name. He’s the kind of guy who drinks the beer he sells, and plays on the rec soccer team his shop sponsors. Hands-on. Which makes it even sweeter that his little business has grown legs.

“I had one guy come in here and say [to his friends] he was at the liquor store for three hours, and they thought he was crazy,” Khoury says. “But when he brought them down here, they realized: This isn’t a liquor store.”

Khoury’s Fine Wine & Spirits Monday & Tuesday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sunday, noon-6 p.m. 9915 S. Eastern Ave. #110, 702-435-9463, khourysfinewine.com.