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1 week ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Ellie Broughton |Joel Hart
In the Koreatown neighbourhood of Los Angeles, I’m having lunch with Jenee Kim, the owner of Park’s BBQ, who is something of a ‘K-Town’ matriarch. We are sitting in the unassuming, noir room, which stands in stark contrast to a technicolor spread of side dishes called banchan that soon brightens the table. There are fermented cucumbers and kimchis representing different levels of funk and tang; strips of salty-sweet eomek (fish cake); pickled king oyster mushrooms, and more.
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1 month ago | 
decanter.com | Joel Hart
I’m at La Maison du Saké in Paris’s 2nd arrondissement, watching the rain shatter the pavement outside as I sip a cockle-warming glass of sake from organic, natural producer Katori. It’s aromatically complex – smooth yet textured, much like the sandstone walls and blonde oak shelves of the shop.
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1 month ago | 
decanter.com | Joel Hart
In February 2024, Adejoké Bakare became the first black woman in the UK to be awarded a Michelin star – for Chishuru, her restaurant reimagining Nigerian and Ghanaian dishes. Now in new central London digs, Chishuru joins the rise of modern West African cuisine in the capital, alongside two-star Ikoyi, which has evolved beyond its West African roots; Akoko, also awarded a star last February; and its casual offshoot Akara.
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1 month ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Joel Hart |Ciaran Griffiths |William Morris |Pip Mortimer
Cocktail creator, writer and consultant Sammi Katz and interdisciplinary designer and illustrator Olivia McGiff have created Spirited Women: Makers, Shakers and Trailblazers in the World of Cocktails, a book that shines a light on 55 women who are redefining the spirits industry. From distillers and blenders to mixologists and educators, the guide explores the stories of these inspiring figures and pairs them with an original cocktail that reflects their journeys and contributions.
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1 month ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Joel Hart |Ciaran Griffiths |William Morris |Pip Mortimer
The listening bar has arguably never been more popular as a concept, a point perfectly demonstrated this month by three new London venues all serving drinks to a vinyl soundtrack. A multifaceted pub in Maida Vale that’s welcoming a second-floor cocktail bar is one of them, along with a bar in London Bridge serving Tequila with tunes and another in east London from founders with plenty of hospitality experience in the capital.
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2 months ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Joel Harrison |Nina Caplan |Fiona Sims |Joel Hart
As part of our partnership with The Institute of Masters of Wine, we asked current candidates to submit to us an article dedicated to a person, place or particular drink discovery that helped first ignite their passion for wine – and we were blown away by the submissions. Here, we publish the first of two personal essays that most impressed the Club Oenologique editorial team. This one is written by California-based student Jasmine Aum.
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2 months ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Nicola Leigh Stewart |Adam Lechmere |Joel Hart |Nina Caplan
Find yourself staring at a bottle of Pet Nat whilst out shopping and you might assume you’re in an independent wine boutique. Today, however, that’s no longer guaranteed; a rising sense of adventure amongst drinkers means supermarkets are responding with unusual, unfamiliar and often niche choices. The Pet Nat on the shelf in front of you could now signal you’re in a branch of M&S, after the team introduced an English example of the style to the range in 2024.
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2 months ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Adam Lechmere |Nina Caplan |Tom Harrow |Joel Hart
‘I think the hotels realised that with so many options for where to drink outside the hotel, that’s exactly where their guests were going,’ says Aurélie Panhelleux, co-founder of cocktail bar CopperBay, which now has a third outpost at the Hotel Lancaster in Paris. Watching guests leave to find newer, more hip cocktail bars has motivated a wave of high-end Parisian hotels to reimagine their own bars, and they’re welcoming a new crowd of discerning drinkers as a result.
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2 months ago | 
cluboenologique.com | William Morris |Nina Caplan |Joel Hart
New York, as is often the case, is the city to be in for cocktails this month, as drinkers are given the new options of film producer Baz Luhrmann’s idiosyncratic bar in the East Village, loosely inspired by the 15th century, and a venue in the same neighbourhood from former owners of the award-winning Two Schmucks. The story of ‘proven teams branching out’ continues in other cities this February.
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2 months ago | 
cluboenologique.com | Victoria Moore |Joel Hart |Nina Caplan |Ciaran Griffiths
Founded in 1925, the Consorzio per la Tutela dei Vini Valpolicella has been dedicated to supporting winemakers and safeguarding the wines made in one of the world’s most renowned regions for viticulture. In celebrating its centenary this year, one can review a 100-year history in which the Consorzio has cultivated a connection with both the wineries and the picturesque Valpolicella region, known for the rolling hills that surround the city of Verona.
