One of Melbourne’s favourite indie wine stores, Blackhearts and Sparrows, has nearly a dozen locations around town. Its latest, in Fitzroy, is a little different. Called By the Glass, it’s as much a low-fi bar as it is a bottle-o, letting you try before you buy at a reasonable price.
“We’re not putting the usual restaurant mark-up on … so [wine] might come in at $5 a glass cheaper,” says co-founder Paul Ghaie.
Sit at the communal table, snack on cheese and charcuterie and sip whatever’s open, perhaps $10-a-glass Gum rosé or a swanky chablis.