WineBar

Earlier this week, I took advantage of my last “use ‘em or lose ‘em” vacation days and found myself with nothing to do on a sunny weekday afternoon. My first thought, of course, was to go to a wine bar. I decided on WineBar, which is located in the East Village at 65 2^nd Ave.

The bar is very lounge-like, but also very chill and laid back. At least on a Monday afternoon. The interior was dark, with dark wood floors, long high-top black wooden tables, and tall bar stools to match. Accents of red were featured throughout the bar and there was a wall of shelves stocked with bottles of wine. Current popular electronica and trance music playing, which led me to believe that their customer is a bit on the younger side. I don’t’ encounter a wine bar like this too often, so I was pleasantly surprised. I chose to sit at the outdoor seating because it was such a perfect day that it would be a shame to not be outside drinking wine. So, I unfortunately did not get many pictures of the interior of WineBar. Mostly because I felt too awkward to walk inside and start snapping pictures like a wierdo.

Anyhow, glasses of wine were between $8 and $19 and bottles were $32 to $590. There was a very large selection of wines from France, Italy, and Spain, with a small list of wines from other countries. The menu had a map of the country that the wines on the opposite page were from, which I thought was a fun and educational touch. My inner wine nerd I was pleased.

For my first choice of wine, I happened to select a Riesling from the Alsace region of France, which was the only wine that WineBar was sold out of due to their next shipment failing to arrive. So, my second choice was the 2010 Cermeno Malvasia from Spain. It was delivered to my table in a nice large Riedel glass. I always appreciate nice stemware at a wine bar, so this gave WineBar some extra points. The wine tasted like a cool climate wine and had notes of guava and apricot, with a zingy acidity. I was recovering from a cold, so my sniffer wasn’t in tip top shape, but from what I could tell, there were hints of corn kernels and traffic. It was a great wine to enjoy sipping on outside and definitely not a bad choice at $8 a glass.

The waitress was very sweet and checked up on me often. She also didn’t seem to mind returning to my table a few times as I was flipping through the extensive menu trying to decide which wine I wanted to order. She only added to the relaxed atmosphere here.

The atmosphere was actually so pleasant that I decided to order a second glass and this time went with a nonvintage Moscato d’Asti from the Piedmont region of Italy. It smelled like orange peels and the citrus notes were on the palate as well, with flavors of lemon and some honey. Although it wasn’t an amazing Moscato, it was sweet, bubbly, and enjoyable.

The name of the bar is generic and the place is a pretty standard wine bar in Manhattan, but something about it makes it feel a little more young and fun. It appears to be geared towards a younger crowd, and lately, with an interest in wine increasing among 20-somethings, this might just set them apart for that crowd. I give WineBar a rating of 3.8 out of 5 glasses.

Like I said, this was the only picture I could get of the inside without feeling awkward 

My glass of Malvasia

The list of Italian wines accompanied by a map of Italy

My glass of Moscato d'Asti

'inoteca

My dear readers, I have to apologize for my lack of frequent reviews. It’s been one heck of a busy summer! Last week I was able to visit ‘inoteca (no, that’s not a typo) at the bustling intersection of Rivington and Ludlow in the Lower East Side.

The atmosphere here is pretty hip. It has an open layout and is one of the larger wine bars I’ve been to. It was bright inside since most of the walls were covered with large windows, there were faux exposed beams on the ceiling as well as a sweet rectangular light fixture hanging above one of the larger wooden tables. Some popular songs from the 60s were playing and it gave the bar a fun and somewhat lighthearted feel. The back of the bar had a cool, masculine vibe going on with fully stocked wooden wine and liquor racks covering the walls, and a solid metal bar with glasses hanging above it. At first impression, I was liking the place.

Glasses were between $9 and $16 and bottles were between $33 and $73. What appears to be a half carafe of wine, although it wasn’t labeled, starts at $17 and is no more than $37. All of the wines were Italian and I decided on a glass of the 2010 Andrew Felici Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore. Say that three times fast. Once I ordered, the waiter brought a wine glass out, set it on my table, and walked away. Invisible wine? Just as I was about to start swirling air, he came back and poured a small amount of real wine into my glass for me to try. I approved, and he poured me a full glass. He then asked if I was going to order food or if all I was going to have was one glass of wine. I said that for now, it would just be the wine. He had a slightly annoyed look on his face , said “….ok” and walked away. Never to be seen again. The service was a little off-putting.

On to the wine. The Verdicchio had a great, full aroma of grass and lemon and even a little bit like hay. It tasted like green apple and the lemon came through on the palette as well. It had a refreshing acidity and developed in the finish to a honeysuckle flavor. It was a very yummy wine.

The crowd was a mix of youngins such as myself, several middle aged couples, and an older couple that I hope to be as cool as someday. It’s definitely an eclectic customer base, at least on an early Friday evening. There is plenty of nightlife nearby, as well as shopping, so ‘inoteca would be a great spot to stop in before or after either of these.

Now, I'm serious about that waiter never being seen again. I’m assuming service was poor because I was allegedly having only one glass of wine, but shouldn’t every customer be given the same experience regardless of how much money they’re about to spend? Once my glass was poured, my table must have evaporated into thin air until the universe sensed my need to pay the bill, and I was once again relevant to the wine bar. Another waiter saw this miraculous act unfolding before his eyes and he was actually friendly when he asked me if I was ready for another glass of wine or the check.

‘inoteca has great wines for the price, a chill atmosphere, and a space that is well laid out. It is lacking in the service area, at least from my experience there. I give ‘inoteca a rating of 3.6 out of 5 glasses, its saving grace being the last impression I had, which was the one friendly waiter.

The outside of 'inoteca

my glass of Verdicchio

The solid bar area in the back