The best wine bars in Hong Kong
Red or white, natural or fortified … it doesn’t matter how you like your wine. This list has you covered.
- June 2019
Hong Kong is a nation of hard-core food and drink lovers so it’s no surprise that the wine bars in the city are anything but run-of-the-mill. Rather, they serve an adventurous audience who has an appetite for anything from biodynamic wines to bottles from obscure vineyards. Here are four picks to get your night started.
For natural wines: La Cabane Wine Bistro
La Cabane was the first wine store in Hong Kong to import natural wines. We’re talking way back in 2010 before the drink became trendy. Today, the owners remain dedicated to sourcing natural and biodynamic wines directly from small vineyards in France, Italy, Spain and Greece where picking and selection of grapes are done by hand, and fermentation is made strictly with wild yeast.
For foodies: 121BC
121BC opens in new window — the Asian outpost of the wildly successful Sydney wine bar of the same name — is Italian in both kitchen and cellar. Expect shared plates of unpretentious classics made excellently like homemade ricotta and aubergine caponata. Like the food, the well-composed wine list shows a focus on substance over style. Forget trendy vineyards — 99 percent of the wines are self-imported from small Italian vineyards.
For fortified wines: Ham & Sherry
If anyone was going to make drinking sherry cool, it was going to be the dynamic duo of Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton and famous restaurateur Yenn Wong. The Catalan-style mosaic tile-clad walls and open kitchen with hocks of cured ham hanging overhead scream “modern bodega”. The vibe is buzzy without being raucous, which makes it a cosy spot to get acquainted with the 50-strong sherry list.
For boutique wines: Shady Acres
The name of the bar comes from the 1994 film with Jim Carrey, Ace Ventura Pet Detective, so you really shouldn’t be surprised the vibe is casual and fun. This is not to say the guys behind Shady Acres opens in new window don’t take their wines seriously. Flip through the list of over 200 handpicked bottles, and you’re likely to stumble upon indie labels you’ve not heard of, and niche categories like Pét-Nat — a style of gently sparkling natural wine that uses techniques from as far back as 16th century France.