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The Guardian
06-04-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
‘Reflection of culture': large glasses of wine come off the menu for British drinkers
It may be a sign of changing tastes, of a health-conscious nation, or yet another example of the cost of living crisis encroaching on our few simple pleasures – but it seems the large glass of wine may soon be a thing of the past. While a 250ml option used to be commonplace, it is becoming harder to find on the menus of bars and restaurants up and down the country as venues increasingly favour smaller 125ml servings. At high-end restaurants, which would have tended to offer diners a choice of small or medium 175ml servings, there is a notable shift. Only one of the 20 top Michelin-starred restaurants now serves a medium: the Ledbury in Notting Hill. At the rest, diners are offered 125ml or a whole bottle at 750ml. Hannah Crosbie, the Guardian's wine critic, said it was something she had noticed and 'found quite interesting'. 'Any time there's a big changing of tides or a notable difference in the way we drink wine, it really is a reflection of the culture and how we're drinking now,' she said. 'First of all, I'd say it's reflective of people just drinking less generally.' Crosbie said it felt 'like a more health-conscious decision' but could sometimes be a convenient excuse to have a glass of wine instead of skipping it altogether. 'Instead of not getting wine, you get a smaller glass of wine.' Another reason, Crosbie said, was that consumers were increasingly trying wines they would not have tried in the past. 'The average person – particularly in metropolitan areas, not speaking for the whole of the country – is now more adventurous with their wine choices than they've ever been,' she said. 'So instead of perhaps having a bottle and just sticking on one wine for the entire night, they would instead want to try lots of different things and, again, in order to keep on top of what they were drinking, they would just have smaller glasses so they could try as much as they can.' She cited the rise of bars focusing on natural wines – those that are typically organic and use minimal processing – as these 'tend to have much smaller bistro ISO-style glasses [smaller wine glasses for tasting] and that naturally lends itself to a smaller serve.' Jono Hawthorne, the chef patron at Chef Jono at V&V in Leeds, agreed and added that price was also a huge factor. He still serves large glasses but has noticed a trend towards customers wanting smaller glasses of higher-priced wines. 'The rise of smaller wine bars, especially natural and low-intervention wine, has led to more expensive wines being offered to customers,' said Hawthorne, who worked at Michelin-starred restaurants such as Noma and the Box Tree and competed on MasterChef: The Professionals before running his own kitchen. Price is something he is conscious about when it comes to his own customers, offering affordable fine-dining options including creative five-course menus priced at £45. 'If you put a 250ml glass of wine on a menu, it would be the price of a bottle to some people,' he said. But the good news for those unsatisfied by smaller servings is that chains such as Wetherspoon's, Pizza Express and All Bar One appear to be resisting the trend. 'A small glass of wine doesn't sound right, does it?' said Sanda Anlezark, over a bottle shared with her friend Jean Collingwood in All Bar One in Manchester city centre. The pair, 20 years retired from careers in advertising sales, were taking advantage of a Thursday deal at the chain where buying two glasses gets the rest of the bottle free – and were surprised to hear that wine sizes appeared to be shrinking. Collingwood agreed. 'The best thing is when you don't have to ask, the person behind the bar goes … [she nods, conspiratorially] … and brings you a large.' What if you went to a bar that only served small glasses? 'It wouldn't bother me,' said Anlezark. 'You'd get a bottle.'
The Guardian
07-03-2025
- The Guardian
Five bars that show off London's status as ‘wine capital of the world'
This week, London was crowned 'wine capital of the world'. It's worth noting, perhaps, that this shiny new title comes from the annual Knight Frank Wealth Report, and is based on how many restaurants serve fine wines from the world's top 250 wine and champagne houses. If this is what matters to you when looking at a wine list, this would put London's wine offering ahead of New York, and even Paris. Below, the Guardian's resident wine expert Hannah Crosbie lists a few old and new wine bars that you can walk into and order a bottle anytime. You don't have to be rich to drink here (but I'm sure it helps). Here's a fun game if you're on a first date with someone who likes wine: ask them to rank the three Noble Rot restaurants. For me, Noble Rot Mayfair sits firmly at the top. Their 50-page wine list rests sweetly on the border that lies between the traditional and natural. In essence, wines that honour the environment, but lean on faithful expressions of the land they hail from. And, if you're a fan of mature, rarer wines, they work with The Wine Society for a special reserve list– one amassed from a reserve built up over their 150 years operating at a member-owned retailer. Loved by wine industry professionals for many reasons. Here are just a few: It's in the fabulously central Covent Garden. Their Franco-European food is seriously good. In summer, the pavement at its front is packed with rattan chairs. And, as its name suggests, they will only order 10 cases of any wine, meaning their list constantly changes – making it a good one to follow if you want to keep a finger on the pulse of London's evolving tastes. The natural wine bar has become pretty synonymous with east London life. Every month, I see a new one opening and I think the bubble will burst. Every month I'm proved wrong. Goodbye Horses opened only in August, but has already cemented itself as both a destination wine bar and a favourite among De Beauvoir locals. It believes a wine list should be 'as close to zero-zero as possible' – nothing added, nothing taken away. The interiors are impeccably designed, with a custom-made oak bar, delightful music and beguiling painted curtains. I am forever jealous of every person who lives in Camberwell: they get to live near The Camberwell Arms. It's now been a decade since the Victorian pub was refurbished by chef-director Mike Davies. Obviously, people come here for the food – you can find day boat fish, delica squash and their adored scotch bonnet pork fat on toast on the current menu – but you can also nip in for a quick drink. Their classic but playful wine list fits neatly on to a piece of A4 paper. A great example of how great wine is even being enjoyed in a pub setting. The front gets good sun in the summer months. Sign up to Feast Recipes from all our star cooks, seasonal eating ideas and restaurant reviews. Get our best food writing every week after newsletter promotion If you've been trying (and failing) to get a table at Tomos Parry's revered Mountain, take the road north to Half Cut Market. Their wine offering is curated by Mountain's wine manager, Holly Willcocks. Because wine importers love her, Half Cut punches way above its allocation for a wee restaurant on York Way. Ask for the special allocated stuff that's off-list for hand sale. The food is jubilant, and their skewer sessions (a skewer, flatbread, salad and glass of wine for £18) runs every Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Guardian
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
When my 70s bar job was a Babychambles
Hannah Crosbie writes about Babycham's potential revival as though it lived up to its original marketing hype as a sophisticated drink for the ladies (Liquid optimism: why Babycham is ripe for a revival, 28 February). As a barman in the 70s, I remember the frequent orders of triple brandy and Babycham. They were often followed by devastation, and I can remember suggesting to the landlord that, if we stopped serving this 'alcoholic lemonade', we'd have less trouble. Unfortunately, my advice was ignored and the fights Holman-LisneyTadley, Hampshire The theatre or cinema pipe organ (Letters, 27 February) has almost completely faded from public awareness. Those that remain are mostly in the hands of charities and individuals, including the Mighty Wurlitzer in London's magnificent art-deco Troxy theatre. Let us ensure that these amazing instruments continue to make their special contribution to the world of popular orchestral LeemingVice-president, The Cinema Organ Society A wonderful English teacher at my secondary school commented 'Susan enjoys a bit of sedition' in my report (Letters, 3 March). After checking the dictionary, I decided that this was a good thing and have continued to do HutchinsonOxford The BBC could safely broadcast Malta's Eurovision entry here in the north (No kant do: Eurovision bars Malta's entry over title's similarity to C-word, 5 March). We would never confuse the C-word with CharltonNorthallerton, North Yorkshire Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
