Honesty, I wasn’t expecting to be blown away by a wine bar in Midtown Manhattan since the area isn’t exactly known for superb restaurants and bars. Instead the area’s businesses tend to thrive on the convenience of their location. However, Wine:30 is a gem! It’s located at 41 E 30th St.
It’s a cute little place and not pretentious at all. The staff was very friendly, helpful and professional, yet laid back enough to be approachable. I often overheard them making wine suggestions to other customers and they definitely knew what they were talking about. The bartenders even remembered the names of the people who were apparently regulars…or maybe they were mind readers? I’m guessing it was the first scenario though. It must be a local favorite and I see why! In addition to the bartenders and waitresses knowing their wines, the other customers did as well. I heard bits of conversation about French wine history from a nearby table. I felt like I had stumbled upon the wine culture in one bar. My fellow winos! The bar really seems to be completely centered around wine, as it should be.
The atmosphere was very relaxing and it had an industrial, yet cozy feel to it. There were wooden beams on the ceiling, an exposed brick wall, industrial lights, and plenty of comfortable bar and table seating. They also have an outdoor seating area, which I would love to check out when there isn’t a chance of rain like there was tonight.
The bar had a great selection of wines! Rather than focusing on wine from a particular region, they had wines from all the main viticultural areas; California, Italy, France, Spain, Chile, etc. and also some from New York. There were many options for wines by the glass and they even had a list of by the glass wines condensed on the back of the food menu for convenience. I think a very anal retentive person organized these menus. I like it! Speaking of food, they had a very yummy looking cheese selection, including a pecorino that was infused with veins of wine. I was very tempted to order it, but I didn’t want to spoil my dinner :)
Average bottle prices were in the mid $40 range and, save the few exceptions, no more than $100. Glasses were between $9 and $16. The 2005 Monte Degli Angeli Barolo Nebbiolo was $16 and you know how much I love Nebbiolo, so I ordered this wine. It was great! It was a very dry, robust wine that had a strong berry aroma and a slightly spicy finish. One of my friends joined me at the bar later in the evening, so I ordered a second glass. I couldn’t resist ordering the next wine because of its name: Cat’s Pee Sauvignon Blanc. I know. One of the aromas for some white wines, particularly Sauvignon Blanc, is occasionally described as “cat pee”, so I thought it was cleverly named and decided to give it a try. I never thought I would say this about something that had the words “cat” and “pee” in it, but it was delicious! Although it did smell mildly like my cat’s litter box, I was able to put it to my lips and take a sip. It had a very juicy pear flavor with a good balance of fruit and acidity. I have to say, I enjoyed it.
Wine:30 was very busy, especially for a Wednesday night. It was filled with the after work crowd, mainly in their late 20’s and mid 30’s, but a pretty wide variety of people were there. The only downside of this place is that it’s a little on the small side and really noisy later in the evening. But hey, that’s New York! I don’t hold it against them for having a small location. The place is a little close quartered, so I wouldn’t recommend it for a first date, but I would come back here to relax after a hard day’s work. It was very quaint and relaxing.
I really, really liked Wine:30 and if I didn’t have more than 100 other wine bars to meet, I might consider settling down with this place. Go there. You won’t be disappointed. I give it a rating of 4.6 out of 5 glasses. Love it!
Wine:30 exterior
Nebbiolo
Industrial and cozy!
Love this place :)