MANILA’S EMERGING WINE SUBCULTURE HAS TAKEN A FRONT SEAT

There is a growing subculture amongst wine connoisseurs and enthusiasts and it’s greatly affecting how millennials are slowly reshaping the landscape. For many years, wine was unmistakably the “rich man’s drink,” simply because it is perceived to be more sophisticated than beer, which is its closest counterpart in terms of alcohol content. Largely, it had something to do with the process and the amount of time required to produce a fine quality of grape wine. This gives beer a more ubiquitous “common” image, raising the image of wine to something far superior.

The Philippines has always been relatively huge when it comes to importing wines and shares many similarities with its Southeast Asian neighbors. In fact, it’s a thriving market and with access to some of the finest wines in the world, it comes as no surprise that Wine Warehouse—the country’s largest wine importer and distributor—has stayed in the business for almost 20 years with an impressive roster of trade clients ranging from luxury hotels, resorts, restaurants, to large- and small-scale supermarkets nationwide. Established by Brett Tolhurst in the early 2000s, Wine Warehouse carries a family that which has survived for many generations and up to this day, the company is responsible for bringing in top brands from Europe, South America, and even New Worlds such as Australia and New Zealand.

“Drinking wine is no longer an exclusive thing and this is because the market is rapidly maturing. With millennials being more health conscious, wine drinking is definitely surfacing as a much healthier option than other alcohol-induced beverages”, says Brett Tolhurst, Chairman and Founder of Wine Warehouse Corporation.

At a recent food and wine tasting event organized by Wine Warehouse in partnership with Mirèio, a fine dining French restaurant located at Raffles Makati, Brett and his team of wine experts shared some of their best picks.

Chef’s Table at Mirèio featuring wines from Sanguine Estate of Australia.

Of course, wine is best paired with good food. The guests at the Chef’s Table, which comprised wine enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, and media were treated to mouthwatering Provençal-inspired dishes by French chef de cuisine Nicolas Cegretin of Mirèio. According to Chef Nicolas, “we carefully selected the dishes for tonight as we want to make sure that guests will have a one of a kind gastronomical experience the moment they leave Mirèio”.

Some of the highlights at the Chef’s Table:

This year, Wine Warehouse is holding more events like this to open up new partnerships and to create more awareness especially among people in their 20s and early 30s who still see wine drinking as something old and traditional. “Wines are evolving. The market is rapidly changing, and so is Wine Warehouse. As a business owner and a wine lover myself, I’ll take it as a responsibility to promote the many benefits of drinking wine over other alcoholic beverages and why it’s a popular subculture amongst millennials” according to Brett Tolhurst.

Wine Warehouse is located at 217 Nicanor Garcia, Bel-Air Village, Makati City 1203. For more information, log on to www.winedepot.com.ph