Last week two new places for wine popped open, and both are suitable for private tastings.
Less than a block east of Union Square is the latest from Michael Sinensky, the owner of Village Pourhouse and Hudson Terrace. Vintage Irving is Sinensky's wine and tapas bar, with a 60-seat dining space and a selection of European wines, craft beers, and Absinthe cocktails. Filled with high-top tables and stools, the small space features high ceilings, hardwood floors, and exposed brick walls. In the rear of the space is a 30-seat private room, which can be used for meetings and dinners as well as sommelier- and mixologist-led tastings.
Further uptown is Clo, a new wine bar and shop joining Masa, Per Se, and Porter House New York on the fourth floor of the Time Warner Center. Andrew Bradbury, former wine director of Aureole in Las Vegas, is the man behind this new spot, which occupies 925 square feet of space and is dedicated to boutique, cult, and rare vintages. The draw at Clo is not just the custom Enomatic machines—dispensers operated by debit-style cards—but also the interactive touch-screen wine lists embedded in the surface of a communal table. The wine bar holds 75.
