This past Friday I went to Lallisse, which is located in the Ramada Inn at 161 Lexington Ave. I believe this is the first hotel wine bar I’ve been to.
The place looks like it’s relatively new and it has an upscale beach restaurant feel. The seating around the walls consisted of tall and short heavy wooden benches accented by persimmon colored pillows. The entrance featured lightweight curtains of the same orange color and there were large windows, all with plants in them. Glass globe lamps hung low from the ceiling and added to the crisp, clean lines of the bar. As I was sitting there, I felt like it should be summer with a sea breeze blowing through my hair. But alas, it was a wet fall day. I’d say they definitely achieved the atmosphere they were hoping for.
After opening the menu, I quickly discovered why it had this vibe; it’s a Mediterranean wine bar featuring organic wines. Glasses of wine were $7 to $14 and bottles of the same wines were $28 to $54. There was a separate list for bottles only, which were between $32 and $200, with most being in the $30 to $40 range. Not all of the wines were organic, but if they were there was a notation indicting if it was organic or sustainable. When the waitress came by, I asked her if she could tell me the difference between “organic” and “sustainable”. She told me that in order to have the certification of “organic”, a vineyard has to use organically grown grapes and maintain organic processes and products for at least 7 years. It’s expensive to obtain this certification and includes regulations such as not using herbicides or pesticides and using only natural fertilizers. It also prohibits the use of added sulfites. The label of “sustainable” usually refers to a vineyard that is currently using some if not all of these same organic processes, but either has not been doing so for the minimum of 7 years, or chooses not to partake in the expensive organic certification. Sustainability also focuses on the benefit of the environment beyond the vineyard, so socially and environmentally responsible practices are implemented, such as water conservation and the use of renewable materials. Conveniently enough, many wine regions in the Mediterranean have been making wine this way for hundreds of years, so organic wine isn’t too difficult to come by.
I ordered the 2010 Element Terre Cabernet Sauvignon from the Languedoc region of France, which was an organic wine. It smelled like ripe red fruits and a little bit like cocoa powder. It tasted like blackberry and plum, had really soft tannins and a good balance of fruit and acidity. It was a very tasty wine! The Mediterranean air did these grapes well.
Lallisse has a great, relaxing atmosphere and a plethora of organic and sustainable wines. The waitress very nice and was willing to share lots of information about the wines served here. I really liked this place. I give Lallisse a rating of 4.4 out of 5 glasses.
My glass of tasty organic wine
