Vinga Bar (Re)Visited

Vinga Wine Bar

Photo and Article by Ines Cho
"Seven stories of vinoculture" (3/10/06)
(Image from J-Style and Weekend, Joong Ang Daily)

Some readers may recall my blog entry of November 3, 2006, "Maybe I wine too much, but there's hope for Korea yet..."

Well, my wife and I finally paid a visit to the Vinga Wine Bar, located on the lower level of Podo Plaza, and I emphasize 'paid' because we certainly did. The least expensive bottles start at 38,000 won (roughly 40 dollars), and since one must order an entire bottle, we drank only a médoc from the Cave Saint Jean (Grand vin de Bordeaux 2000).

Wikipedia tells me that médoc combines primarily cabernet sauvignon and merlot grapes, and Answers.com informs me that the soil of this region of Bordeaux is not the best for wine but that the wines are generally good.

That explains why we paid 'only' 40,000 won for our bottle. The prices for Vinga's other wines rise exponentially, but the selection is excellent. The list must have included hundreds of wines, but if you want to try a number of them, then take along your friends unless you don't mind leaving with a much lighter pocketbook and several heavy bottles.

Although we didn't have dinner, the food looked and smelled good. Moreover, the atmosphere was relaxed, the lights mellow, the live music quiet, and the service courteous.

Best of all, my wonderful wife was there...