If the reports are true, and this heatwave continues through to October, we’ve decided chilled weeknights and wines are the way to go. The city’s empty, so it’s a great time to bag a seat at the always-busy spots (we’re looking at you, P. Franco) and swap out your usual for three new wine trends that are here to stay.
Tired of rosé? Austrian wines are back on the map and the grüner veltliner is perfect for rising temperatures. Despite falling out of favour around 10 years ago, grüner has shed its passé connotations and we’ve seen it popping up a lot on summer menus, thanks to the fact it will pair with almost any summer food. Order it at Newcomer Wines, the best to try the unconventional GVs, like a Hollenburger from Christoph Hoch or a Tochter from Andreas Nittnaus.
Charcoal has to be one of the buzziest food trends of 2018, but expect black wine to stick around. Originating in Georgia, the Saperavi variety is made in clay qvevri pots that are buried underground to ferment. It’s also meant to be enjoyed as close to the time of bottling as possible so the 2015 Vita Vinea Saperavi at Sapling is a good bet. And there’s more to come from the so-called New Old World scenes – expect to see Romanian varieties on wine lists too, or head to the Wine Over Water festival next month to sample a glass.
We couldn’t do wine trend without mentioning chilled reds (order at Bright, Brawn and Legs) but for the total antithesis to the growing taste for pale-hued rosé, go dark. Honey Spencer (Nuala, Sager + Wilde, Noma Mexico) tipped us off on the rise of deeper-toned rosés earlier in the year and we’ve been ordering rosés-on-the-cusp-of-reds ever since. Honey’s one to watch – Bastarda is her new project with Anaïs Van Manen (Bones, Trullo, NUALA). They launched over a two day takeover at Giant Steps this month, but have warned us there’s something major in the works for the rest of August – we want more details, pronto!
And before we go – keep an eye out for The Laughing Heart’s Summer Sessions. Their staff are on holiday, so they’re mixing it up with a little help from their friends on the grill. Tutto Wines and Cameron Dewar took over last week – see their Instagram for this week’s line-up and head there to kick back, August heatwave style.
