The Lofts climate-controlled wine room, kept at 62 degrees, contains private wine lockers for each of its members.

Central Oregon is home to a new club, where members can drink vintage wine, socialize, host parties and conduct business meetings in the middle of downtown Bend.

The Loft of Bend, located on the second floor of the new 919 Bond Building, is a private wine and social club. According to Adam Bledsoe, owner and operator, it’s similar to other social clubs that have been established in places such as Portland and San Francisco.

“There were a lot of people in Bend that were waiting for this exact concept,” said Bledsoe, 30. “It’s a concept that is popular in metropolitan areas, which Bend is becoming.”

Bledsoe compares his business to a country club without the golf, or to a full-service urban country club.

“I felt like there was a need for it,” he said. “There are several successful business people that live in Bend that don’t play golf and still wanted to have a club to belong to.”

Bledsoe’s brother, former NFL quarterback Drew Bledsoe, and Chad Wold, are partners in the Bend business that opened Aug. 1. Wold operates similar businesses in Missoula and Whitefish, Mont.

The club, which is open 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. and closed on Tuesdays, is staffed with a concierge and full-time server. It provides members key-card access to a rooftop garden, a conference room equipped for business presentations, a main bar with local microbrews on tap, approximately 100 types of wines offered at special member prices, and individual private wine lockers kept at 62 degrees.

Volo, located on the first floor, serves food, but The Loft itself is planning a menu with light food choices, expected to be available in early September.

Tim Lynch, a member of The Loft, runs a health care investment fund from an office across the hall. He has taken advantage of the club for client meetings. “Meeting space is a huge plus, whether it’s for friends or business,” he said. “That’s very unique.”

Lynch, who’s not an avid golfer, also uses the club as a venue to meet people, socialize, host friends and learn about wine.

Membership fees include participation in club events, such as poker nights and biweekly wine tastings with distributors and winemakers, and the option to host an event in part of the nearly 5,000-square-foot space.

Anne McDonald, owner of the McDonald Group, a professional recruiting firm, also uses her membership to conduct business meetings with clients and candidates at the club.

“My purpose for joining is really for business purposes,” McDonald said. “It’s a fantastic location in downtown Bend. It’s very classy — it’s not pretentious at all, and it’s confidential.”

Costs for members, who must be over 21, include an initiation fee of $2,000 and monthly dues of $200. A corporate membership, which includes four principals or employees, is available for a $6,000 initiation fee and $200 per month for each member.

There are about 65 members, Bledsoe said. Membership will be capped at 200.

“We priced it so that a broad range of people could afford it,” he said. “It’s not ultra-expensive. A lot of people spend $200 a month on their cell phone bill. If you cut out lattes, you’re halfway there.”

Membership is diverse and includes a range of midlevel wage earners to the very wealthy, Bledsoe said. Members’ ages vary between about 33 and 65.

“I definitely think it will be successful,” McDonald said. “I think the misconception is that it is an exclusive social club, that you have to be in an elite group of people to join, but that’s not the case at all.”

Affordability is one reason Bledsoe thinks The Loft will be successful in the current economy. Other reasons include the value and location of the club, and people’s willingness to pay for quality.

“Our whole business is based around making our members happy,” Bledsoe said. “All our members have other places they can go and drink a glass of wine, but how we are trying to differentiate ourselves is by offering the next level of service.”