Leading restaurants like Maison Bâtard and Circl in Melbourne, Aria and Bennelong in Sydney and Cru Bar in Brisbane have joined the wine-by-the-glass revolution sweeping the world.
So have some other favourites like Jennie Wine Bar in Adelaide and Shadow Wine Bar and Kitchen at the Alex Hotel in Perth.
There are now 77 restaurants in Sydney alone offering wine by glass thanks to the Coravin system.
Coravin is now used in seven out of 10 of the world’s best restaurants and has just sold its two-millionth system globally.
Circl, a “wine cave” restaurant in Melbourne, has 150 wines by the glass.
Jonah’s at Palm Beach in Sydney and the fine dining Japanese restaurant Oborozuki in the Sydney CBD have plenty of wines by the glass.
Prices vary from $16 for a glass of semillon or chardonnay to $100 for a glass of Henschke Hill of Grace and more for vintage Penfolds Grange.
Coravin commissioned a survey of more than 1,000 people in Australia and the UK and found consumption by the glass is growing rapidly.
In Australia, more than half the respondents said they were drinking more wine by the glass than they were two years ago.
“It’s cheaper to buy a glass than a bottle,” was a frequent comment.
The Coravin system invented by biomedical engineer and physicist Greg Lambrecht is revolutionising the wine.
The device he made looks like a handgun and uses a long, thin, hollow needle to push through the cork or stopper into the bottle.
An odourless, tasteless, harmless gas called argon is then pumped through the needle, creating pressure within the bottle that pushes wine back out through the needle.
When the desired amount of wine is poured, the needle is withdrawn, leaving the argon in place of the wine. This prevents oxidation.
After a Coravin pour the bottle can be stored for weeks, and even years, without a negative impact on the wine within.
He’s made a similar system for champagne using CO2.
The system also allows families to enjoy a glass or two at home without having to consume the entire bottle in one sitting.
Australia has even overtaken France to become Coravin’s third largest market globally.
Many leading restaurants now offer wine by the glass drawn by Coravin.
Popular McLaren Vale restaurant Salopian Inn was recently awarded the title of the best wine list in South Australia.
It offers its diners 623 wines, 41 of them by the glass.
And they are not all Australian vintages.
Try a glass of JJ Prüm’s Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett 2020 ($40) or a premium Piedmontese white wine, Vietti Derthona Colli Tortonesi 2020 ($31).
Salopian Inn also has a 2020 Benjamin Leroux Aligote Burgundy ($30) and a 2017 Domaine Blain-Gagnard Volley-Champans 1er Cru Burgundy ($65).
At the Coravin Guide, an online digital directory, wine buffs can search individual city restaurants for wine by the glass options.
Marmelo in the Melbourne CBD pours vintages to match its menu that features the cuisines of Portugal and Spain.
There are 60 wines by the glass with a strong Iberian focus.
The list features sherries, ports, and madeiras including a rare 1907 D’Oliveiras Frasqueira Reserva Malvasia.
Society Restaurant in Melbourne offers treasures like 2016 Barolo Cannubi, 2016 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay, and 2016 Bass Phillip Chardonnay.
It reportedly has Australia’s largest Château d’Yquem collection, offering its “sauternes cru supérieur” by the glass.
Maison Bâtard is an upmarket French restaurant in Melbourne with an enviable list.
It has dozens of premium wines by the glass including the 2018 Domaine Dujac Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru and Henschke Hill of Grace.
The name refers to the famous Bâtard-Montrachet vineyard in France.
Sydney’s Kipling’s Garage Bar at Turramurra offers 145 wines by the glass.
Highlights include a 2022 Chateau de Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Cru ‘Les Clos’ Chardonnay, and a 2012 Yalumba Signature Cabernet Shiraz.
Bennelong showcases Australian classics by the glass including the 2015 House of Arras Vintage Rosé and vintages of Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon.
Aria has a stellar by-the-glass lineup including the 2013 Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon, 2016 Izway ‘Don’ Shiraz, 2017 Brash Higgins ‘Bloom’ Chardonnay, and a 2022 DuMOL ‘Chloe’ Chardonnay from California.
Cru Bar + Cellar Brisbane pours serious aged wines by the glass, such as the 2007 Henschke Julius Riesling and 2014 Deep Woods Estate ‘Reserve’ Cabernet Sauvignon.
Shadow Wine Bar features top Western Australian producers and offers treats like the 2023 Juniper Estate ‘Cornerstone’ Chardonnay.
Jennie Wine Bar adds interest by rotating $16 mystery wine.
Another notable offering is a 1982 Marc Brédif ‘Grande Année’ Chenin Blanc.
“You can drink some seriously cool, and often extremely rare wines by the glass these days,” Chris Walker from Cru Bar said.
“If you said to me 10 years ago that venues would be offering Coche-Dury Meursault or Raveneau Chablis by the glass, I would have said ‘You’re Dreaming’.”
Dining and Cooking