How Wine Bars Are Redefining Nightlife in Athens

It’s a Friday evening. The massive communal desk on the heart of the bar is full; exterior, patrons stand casually, wine glasses in hand. A cheerful buzz fills the air. Some friends are ready for a seat, whereas others calm down on stools or close by steps. Bottles are being uncorked, and attractive small plates, excellent for sharing, are being served on the bar. Wine bottles, some accessible for buy to remove, fill the cabinets. Welcome to one among Athens’ new-generation wine bars – trendy and welcoming spots which have turn out to be a go-to selection for a night out.

At most of those locations, reservations aren’t mandatory and the group favors pure, low-intervention wines at approachable costs. The institutions serve small, thoughtfully crafted dishes, and the service is relaxed and unpretentious. The environment is pleasant and youthful, by no means heavy or snobbish. Friends can get pleasure from wines by the glass, making it straightforward to discover new choices or to stay to a favourite. Music, too, has turn out to be a key a part of the expertise. Fastidiously curated playlists or visitor DJs set the tone, with eclectic sounds delivered by high-quality sound programs, enhancing the ambiance with out overwhelming the dialog.

What units most of at the moment’s Athenian wine bars aside is a dedication to working with small, impartial producers and to adopting sustainable practices. Under, we spotlight a collection of standout wine bars that embrace innovation and champion new developments.

Subsequent-generation sommeliers

At Gamay in Exarchia (42 Zoodochou Pigis), there’s a deliberate effort to demystify wine, making it extra approachable whereas making a relaxed and welcoming environment. Right here, the sommelier would possibly even be the casually dressed server; the atmosphere is freed from pretense, a formulation that’s captivated the town’s wine lovers. Co-owner Yannis Pappas curates a wine listing that includes over 120 low-intervention labels, together with many new and hard-to-find choices. Reasonably than utilizing technical jargon, he describes wines in vivid, sensory phrases, making it straightforward to think about the flavors and aromas.

“Wine requires creativeness,” Pappas says. “It’s not nearly discussing it methodically; it’s about feeling it. I learn, style, go to wine bars and share my ideas with clients about what I expertise when ingesting a specific glass.” Explaining the complexity of a wine, he says, “You are taking a sip, and all of the sudden you’re tasting home made plum jam out of your mother’s kitchen or candy cherry tomatoes from Santorini.” As for the aromas, he says, “It’s as if all the Kallidromiou farmers’ market [a bustling open-air market in Athens] is in your glass.”

Small plates, huge flavors

At Epta Martyres in Neos Kosmos (3b Menechmou), the main target isn’t simply on wine – it’s additionally on a menu crafted every day with contemporary, seasonal substances sourced from native markets. Impressed by the tsipouradiko custom – a Greek eating type the place small plates of meze (just like tapas) accompany glasses of tsipouro (a standard grape-based spirit) – chef Serafeim Athanasiou prepares a development of small dishes that make up your meal. As an illustration, your first glass of wine is perhaps paired with charred cabbage, adopted by steamed mussels or uncooked oysters, and later, cuttlefish with greens. Every dish prices €5 and arrives as a shock; clients don’t order particular gadgets however get pleasure from what the chef has ready that day. This component of spontaneity, paired with the reasonably priced pricing, encourages diners to discover the total vary of flavors on supply.

From cloth retailer to wine bar

In a former cloth store tucked away simply off  Aiolou Road, 4 buddies of their thirties have created Fellos (Vasilikis and Kolokotroni streets), a wine bar providing Greek wines and expertly crafted spritzes (refreshing cocktails made with glowing wine). The environment is welcoming, the service fast and attentive, and the menu thoughtfully curated.

The wine listing, designed by Vasiliki Galani, a sommelier on the wine bar Materia Prima, showcases low-intervention wines from Greek and Cypriot vineyards and options round 40 bottle choices at costs that begin at €20; a number of can be found by the glass.

The small kitchen, helmed by Ilias Balaskas – chef and proprietor of Seawolf in Koukaki – delivers meze-style plates designed to pair completely with the drinks. Dishes embody marinated anchovies with pepper and apricot chutney, creamy taramosalata (a standard dip made with fish roe), and shrimp skewers. These fastidiously crafted bites complement each the wine and the general expertise.

Emphasis on high-quality sound

A rising development on this planet’s main cities is the rise of listening bars, the place exceptional-quality sound programs take heart stage, whereas drinks and meals play a supporting function. The idea isn’t totally new; it originated within the Nineteen Twenties in Tokyo with their jazz kissa (jazz cafés) however has, lately, has been reinterpreted in new and artistic methods.

Impressed by this development, Kennedy (9 Nikiou), a wine bar by Christos Kontos – a photographer and writer of {a magazine} of the identical identify – opened in downtown Athens. “I’ve been keen about sound programs for years; I’m an audiophile,” Kontos says. “I purchase, restore, improve, and have constructed a big assortment of kit. At Kennedy, I created a sound system that’s distinctive – and never simply by Greek requirements.”

In parallel together with his pursuit of high-quality sound, Kontos developed a deep appreciation for wine. Touring to Alsace, the place his spouse is from, he visited quite a few wineries, tasted their wines, and met the winemakers personally. This journey impressed him to import their merchandise, making the wines at Kennedy unique to the bar – you gained’t discover these labels anyplace else in Athens. The wine listing, which options low-intervention wines, is often up to date with new additions. What’s extra, all wines can be found by the glass, permitting patrons to discover quite a lot of flavors.

Native producers and sustainability

“We love Greek wine, and we serve solely Greek labels,” says Eva Bololia, one of many co-owners of Tanini Agapi Mou in Exarchia (91 Ippokratous & Methonis). “We’re at all times looking out for pioneering winemakers, uncommon Greek grape varieties, and vineyards cultivated organically or biodynamically.” The bar, the primary in Athens to focus completely on low-intervention wines, additionally champions sustainability via its dedication to the round economic system, utilizing solely recyclable or biodegradable packaging. Even the furnishings is crafted by impartial artisans who prioritize eco-friendly practices. This dedication to supporting small producers and selling sustainability has made it a standout vacation spot for conscientious wine lovers in Athens.

Parisian influences

The roots of recent wine bars might be traced again to Paris. In accordance with Aaron Ayscough, creator of  The World of  Pure Wine, the French capital grew to become a “highly effective cultural pressure” for the pure wine motion within the Nineteen Eighties. It was right now that the idea of the cave à manger emerged: small, casual bars the place wine lovers gathered to share bottles, typically accompanied by easy charcuterie and cheese boards.

In Athens, Wine is High quality (6 Vissis) brings a contact of Parisian aptitude. Two Frenchmen, Raphaël Vallon-Brownstone and Thomas Brenguier, working with Greek chef Stavros Chrysafidis, curate a collection of low-intervention wines, largely from Greece and France, with extra labels from Portugal, Italy, Slovenia and past. Solely a handful of wines can be found by the glass (beginning at €5); the complete listing boasts round 80 choices. The menu emphasizes small bites, excellent for sharing, with simply two or three most important dishes and quite a lot of snacks starting from home made pâté to easy boiled eggs with mayonnaise.

Wine bars evolving into wine golf equipment

Whereas wine bars initially began as areas for relaxed, high-quality wine experiences, a brand new development is reworking them into livelier “wine golf equipment,” the place the environment turns into extra dynamic because the evening unfolds. In Paris, for instance, the favored institution Bambino modifications gears after midnight: tables are cleared away, making room for patrons to bounce.

Athens is embracing this evolution, too, with wine bars more and more incorporating louder music and standing-room-only setups, making them vigorous hotspots for socializing, ingesting and dancing. These venues are rapidly becoming a member of the town’s lineup of latest wave bars, the place the nightlife strikes in a extra energetic method.