Handsomely stocked wine retailer by day; handsomely stocked wine retailer with a righteous wine bar by night. The Wine Store is the sort of place that’ll have you checking East Fremantle property prices the moment you get home. Or at your table if you’ve downed enough goblets of Argentinian fizz, yankee pinot noir or one of the other 20-or-so unfailingly interesting wines by the glass.
Big shout-out, too, to the tidy cache of fortified gear – sherries, vintage port, liqueur verdelhos – ready for action at a moment’s notice. There’s so much interesting, well-priced drinking on offer here.
Crémant de Loire or chenin from Vouvray? Shiraz from Margaret River or the Rhone? Decisions, decisions. A craft-heavy beer list complicates things further, but whichever direction you lean, count on slick, knowledgeable service. If you ask, they’ll even make you a very serviceable dry Bombay Martini. It’s an ace sidekick to the compact food menu built on fromage, charcuterie, fresh-shucked oysters and other wine bar staples.
On Wednesdays, guests can get $15 paella at the open kitchen. It’s one of the fun regular (and irregular) events that keep the Wine Store heaving and, most important of all, loved.