"Age appears best in four things: old wood to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust and old authors to read."
― Francis Bacon
 

Housed in a historic building in Downtown Tampa, Lector is a place for old friends to experience old wine and burn the house down with new friends, music, and stories.  

Our name is inspired by Tampa’s historical lineage of los lectores, the readers, from the 19th century cigar-factory days. In this era, lectores read the daily newspapers in multiple languages, recited poetry and great works of literature, as well as, comical dramas while factory workers quietly rolled cigars. This is also when Tampa enjoyed a fluid exchange of ideas between friends from all over the world―Cuba and New York in particular.  

It is in this spirit that we have built Lector, as much a listening room as a wine shoppe. Whether our stage hosts a famous author reading from their latest novel, a local musician performing their original songs, or a natural wine class, we invite our guests to listen and to be heard. 

Discover more about Lector's Wine, Culture, Community and Writer's Residency.