On quest to find out more about wines that haven’t been inoculated, acidified, de-acidified, chapitalized, sulphured to death, overly extracted or so influenced by new wood that it tastes more like wine created by a carpenter than a winemaker, I recently headed to Ten Bells to chat with Jenny of Jenny and Francois Selections, also known as World Wide Wines.
World Wide Wines are quirky importers of natural wines from the Loire, Burgundy, Champagne, Rhone, Alsace and a few small appellations around the south of France. We met to discuss my article for Imbibe magazine on natural wines. What makes a wine natural? What makes the vast majority of conventional wines unnatural? How is natural different to organic or biodynamic? You’ll have to stay tuned for the article due out in September to find out what the rock stars of the natural wine industry have to say on the subject.
The same folks that own Le Pere Pinard on Ludlow own Ten Bells. It feels like a very casual wine bar on the east side of Paris except the bread they serve is very shitty – try not to chip your tooth – but the cheeses, all from local farms, are fabulous and they have a nice selection of cured meats. The wine list in that I-don’t-care-I’m-French-and I’m-doing-what-I-want way, written on two large chalkboards on either side of the restaurant, does not mention the name of any producers.
Despite it’s quirks, Ten Bells is a fun, popular hangout. It’s got a good mix of industry insider buzz (Alice Feiring happened to be there with a representative of the Loire Valley Wine Bureau and I met a gentleman from David Bowler Wines on the same night), French ex-pats and Lower East Side dwelling babes. The wine list is excellent, save for the Oregon Gamay (we had do try) that tasted like an oak stave.
The following evening I had a dinner appointment with a PR woman. My choice of venue was Pure Food and Wine, a restaurant that has greatly improved its wine list since I was last there. They actually have some genuinely “pure” wines on that list now. The food is always really surprisingly good. They somehow manage to make raw dishes sexy, delish and intriguing. The mushroom ravioli was earthy and exploding with flavor, the Thai rolls were crispy and vibrant, while the “cheesecake” (made from nut milk) was surprisingly smooth and creamy, if a little heavier than it’s genuine counterpart. Best of all though was a lovely little Cotes de Duras (Haut la Vigne), served by the glass, which was simple, thirst-quenching and showed purity of fruit. A vin de soif as the French say. Oh yes and should you venture there, wear your favorite dress because this sure ain’t no dungaree-wearing crusty hangout.