Sofia

I visited Sofia at 242 E 50^th St. It looks adorable from the outside – like a pretty little townhouse that’s been turned into a café. And it’s equally charming inside.

All of the walls are exposed brick, which immediately adds an Italian charm to the bar. Cast iron chandeliers were hanging over the bar, the place is decorated with all different sorts of candles and random little antiquities. Even the tables look old and they are each topped with a neat quartz candleholder. Sofia is very Italian right down to the soft leather bound menus, chipped porcelain plates, and waiters in suspenders. I liked the romantic atmosphere that the bar provides. This would definitely be a great place for a date.

The rest of the guests at the bar were all dressed in business attire and some were more on the formal side. You would probably feel more comfortable coming here a little bit dressed up, although I don’t think you would stand out if you weren’t.

The wines are from France, Italy, Germany, Argentina, Chile, and the US. The glasses are a little pricey starting at $12 and going up to $22. Bottles of these wines were $42 up to $82, so it would appear that you do get a bit of a quantity discount if you buy the whole bottle as opposed to buying 4 glasses. There is also a separate bottle list where they are more expensive, even going up to $500. Although I did see that they have a bottle of Premier Cru Chambertin for $230. Would Napoleon approve? It was his favorite wine after all.

I ordered the 2008 Super Tuscan from the Piemonte region of Italy. I’ve always wanted to try this wine. It smelled and tasted a little young and I would have preferred it to be a couple of years older. I think writing this blog is giving me a very expensive taste in wine. It was still tasty though! It smelled like blackberry and tasted like cherries and cassis. It was pretty dry and was a little high in alcohol, which was actually a nice way to warm up after walking to Sofia in the pouring rain :) This Super Tuscan was good, but something like this would be a good wine to buy at a local wine store rather than paying $14 for a glass of it. This wine would be very good with food, as most Italian wines are high in acidity to pair with the sauces that they use in their dishes, which are often tomato based and therefore high in acidity as well. Gotta match acid with acid, as I always say! I don’t say that at all, actually. But it is a good rule of thumb when selecting a wine to go with your meal.

The staff was very nice and very aware of when each customer needed their attention. As soon as I looked up from my notes to order a snack of Mac & Cheese, a waiter immediately walked over to my table. And to top off the whole experience at Sofia, chilled York peppermint patties are brought to your table with the check. I like it!

I had a 2007 Dr. Hermann Kabinett Riesling from Germany for my second glass, which lately seems to be one of my go to wines for my summer reviews. One of my friends had joined me as well, so what better occasion to continue drinking? This Riesling smelled like lemon and honeysuckle and had similar notes on the palate. It was delicious and refreshing!

The atmosphere of Sofia is wonderfully old world romantic, but the wines are a little overpriced for what they are. You can find better wines at other bars I’ve been to, but when it comes to an authentic and cozy atmosphere, Sofia is hard to beat. I give it a rating of 4 out of 5 glasses.

The cute exterior of Sofia....sideways.

Cozy and authentically Italian atmosphere

My glass of Super Tuscan

Cute poetry on the menu



Vintry Wine & Whiskey

I visited Vintry Wine & Whiskey at 57 Stone St last night. My brother in law was in town, so I decided to take him along on one of my reviews! First of all, this bar specializes in wine AND whiskey? This is awesome. When I’m not drinking wine, I’m likely drinking whiskey so combining my two favorites in one place is perfection.

Being so near the financial district, Vintry draws a lot of the suited-up after work crowd and it gets very busy. Luckily, it’s open early if you choose to go before the prime happy hour time. I also noticed that they are open for brunch on the weekends, which I’m sure will be much quieter than a Thursday night.

The menu has a wide selection of carefully selected wines from France, Spain, Italy, and the US (mostly California and Oregon). Glasses start at $8 and can be as much as $35. They also have a taste option where you can order a 2 oz glass of any wine, which is around half the price of a full glass. Bottles are between $40 and $175.

For my first glass, I ordered the 2005 Vina Alberdi Rioja Alta Reserva for $11. And I must say, this was the best $11 glass of wine I think I’ve ever had. The wine smelled SO good. I really loved the nose – it smelled like cedar and wet leaves, which is a sign that the wine is maturing. I could have sat there swirling and smelling the wine all night, but I figured I should probably drink it too. It did not disappoint! It had vegetal notes and a black cherry finish. It had a good level of acidity too, which means that this wine is going to continue to age well. This is important to know because I plan on buying a bottle or two of this wine. It was really fantastic. Like I said, the best $11 glass of wine I’ve had.

Considering that the Rioja was a great value, I wanted to try another wine to make sure that I wasn’t going to rave about how amazingly priced their wines are and have one of my loyal readers stop by and have a disappointing experience. So, I ordered a 2009 Kabinett Riesling from Germany (Mosel). It smelled like a stone fruit, but I couldn’t pinpoint exactly which one it was – it might have been white peach. It also smelled mineraly and almost chalky, which is a result of the soil that the grapes were grown in and is typical of a good Riesling. It was delicately sweet, tasted like peach, and was much more acidic that I usually expect from a Riesling, but it was good. The acidity gave it a little zing and made the wine very refreshing. I would definitely order this wine again.

The atmosphere of Vintry is part lounge and part cellar. They have wine bottles displayed in glass cases on the wall, which are illuminated with a dim light and the large tables in the bar have corks underneath the glass tabletop. The bar has an old school class to it and I think Don Draper would have come here if this was 1963 and if he were also not a fictional character.

The space is small, but well organized so that people can pack into this bar without it getting overwhelming. If you don’t mind the busy scene of this bar, find a seat in the front corner, tune out the loudness, and get lost in your glass of wine. You will love this place.

I will absolutely return to Vintry. This place has fantastic wines from great vintages at affordable prices and plenty of whiskey to choose from. If you’re looking for an after work scene for a glass of wine this is the place to go. I heart this wine bar. I give Vintry Wine & Whiskey a rating of 4.8 out of 5 glasses.

The alluring entrance to Vintry Wine & Whiskey

My amazing glass of Rioja

Getting standy