Restaurants: Pastel Wine Bar, Adelaide, Australia – superb food meets a good wine list in a nice setting
Website: https://pastel.bar/
On my first night in Australia, after a drink at East End Cellars, I headed over to Pastel Wine Bar in North Adelaide with Ali Fraquelli who works at Jim Barry in the Clare, and is one of the two people behind the excellent Yarn English sparkling wine (https://www.yarnwine.com/)
It’s a really nice spot with a great atmosphere, and on a Saturday night it was full. We ate and drank well. The food was seriously impressive, and this place comes highly recommended, even if you are jet lagged.
To drink, two really good bottles.
Ochota Barrels A Forest Pinot Noir 2024 Adelaide Hills, Australia
12.3% alcohol. Clones 777, 114, 114, D7V5, MV6. Supple and elegant with cherries and plums showing sappy green hints as well as a silky texture. Nice compactness with a bit of structure. Really lovely weight and finesse. 94/100
Pare Douglas Gully Vineyard Grenache 2022 Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale
14.5% alcohol. Vines planted in 1948. Cork sealed with wax: a good sign! This is ripe but it’s also really elegant with sleek black cherry and blackberry fruit and notes of liquorice pepper and spice and marzipan Textural and fine. It’s ripe but elegant. 95/100
Of course, the evening ended in The Exeter.
