Customers can sample oils, vinegars before buying from Westlake-area business

It has been a long road that Chris and Kristin Vertomile have taken to arrive at Vom Fass, an oil, vinegar and spirits shop on Bee Caves Road.

After starting out in engineering, the couple decided they wanted a change.

"I was either going to go to culinary [school] or firefighting, and fire won out," Chris said.

He became a firefighter, and Kristin became a paramedic, a license she maintains today. After a little more than five years at that the couple needed a new direction, Chris said.

Though Chris said he loved to cook, he said he didn't want to go back to school a third time. He said he also had no interest in working in a kitchen or owning a restaurant.

Kristin said they knew they wanted a change after their sons, now ages 5 and nearly 3, were born.

"Chris is an amazing cook; he's the chef of the family. I love everything he makes," she said. "I kept trying to talk him into a restaurant, [but] he stumbled across this whole concept [and] I loved it right away."

The couple opened the store Jan. 12, 2013, and said the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

"Our repeat business is incredible. People just keep coming back," Chris said. "We knew Austin was a foodie town, and we knew this area was a good area."

Vom Fass, German for "from the barrel" or "from the cask," offers more than 40 oils, 25 vinegars and 90 spirits—scotches and flavored liquers—that are available for customers to sample before purchasing.

"[Oils range from] extra-virgin olive oils to cooking oils, to nut and seed oils to wellness oils [such as] flax, evening primrose [or] Omega 369, which is like a blend of six different nut and seed oils," Chris said.

The vinegars start with basic, unaged red or white wine vinegars and include some that have been aged for more than 25 years.

Vom Fass also offers scotch tastings intended to teach customers about how the alcohol is made, how it is aged, what glass to use to drink it and the differences in flavor profiles.

Both Chris and Kristin said they want customers to experiment with the variety of flavors the oils and vinegars offer.

"Just taking a simple salad from one flavor to the next each day I'm not the biggest cook in the world, [but] this has totally changed my ability to cook," Kristin said.

Vom Fass, 3660 Bee Caves Road, Ste. 4-H, Austin, 512-637-9545, https://austin.vomfassusa.com

• Hours: Mon.–Sat. 10 a.m.–6 p.m.