Time Out Food & Drink Awards 2022: Best Wine Bar

Annata has been quietly making a statement in Crows Nest since its doors first swung open in mid-2015. The beverage offering at Annata has always been top-shelf; now however you will find a greater focus on wine than cocktails, although a smart list of signature and classics remains. The wine list has plenty to offer from all around the globe and the sommelier is very knowledgeable and happy to chat in as much or as little detail as you require – suggestions of wines to match your food are spot on.

Just another Surry Hills wine bar, this ain’t. Sure, Bar Suze – the Scandinavian-inspired, late night snack bar on Foveaux Street - serves up plenty of wines by the glass with plenty of small plate options. But what sets it apart from what you might think of as a wine bar is that it’s fun. Don’t get us wrong, settling into an intimate corner, whispering to a jazz soundtrack while quaffing an obscure Burgundy can be great. In fact, it can be wonderful. But it can also turn into a rather ostentatious, and dare we say, pretentious affair from time to time. The fact the Suze can deliver the goods while also bringing the fun is what makes this venue such a hit. Where there are sleek granite top bars, there’s a bop by Bruce Springsteen in the air. While you’re sitting in a plush, black, high backed booth, you’ve got a view of the mirror ball being hand spun by an excited chef between orders.

The folks that brought us Love, Tilly Devine, Ragazzi and Dear Sainte Èloise have set the standard pretty darn high in terms of Sydney wine bars (and the snacks aren't bad either). Their latest venture is a Catalan-inspired watering hole that isn't taking itself too seriously. La Salut is a joint venture between the Love Tilly Group and newly launched hospitality and accommodation group the people_ (helmed by Paul Schulte and Andrew Taylor). It aims to be a little piece of Catalonia in the heart of Redfern, with all the colour and vibrancy that comes along with it. The 40-seat venue features blushing earthy tones and polished concrete, with outdoor dining along Walker Street. 

Love, Tilly Devine is understandably one of the first things that may pop into your head when someone utters the words 'wine bar' in Sydney. This is one of the originals and still one of the best. The Darlinghurst staple has been championing small wine producers for the better part of a decade and is showing no sign of slowing down. An extensive and impressive list is a total globetrot from Georgia to Chile and beyond, with a healthy amount of Aussie representation too. Snack lists don't come much better than those on offer at Love, Tilly Devine and if you can score a laneway table it's the perfect spot to while away an afternoon of dog watching.

Depending on what angle you squint at it from, the Paddington outpost of P&V Merchants puts on a convincing new persona each time. Is it a chic wine bar with a well-stocked bottle shop at the front? Is it a bottle shop with a light-filled courtyard out the back? Is it an addendum to the main event of Porcine, the wood-panelled, French-inspired bistro up top? Maybe. P&V –  which stands for ‘piss and vinegar’ – has always done things a little off-book, anyway. Its Newtown boutique was a key player in bringing the natural wine movement to the mainstream, stocking small-batch, minimal intervention wines from all around Australia and overseas. The Paddington store has stayed true to that goal, with shelves stocked with wines, craft beers and spirits of all sorts, as well as tinned fish, deli goods, spices and sauces.

Every now and then, a bar comes along so righteously in tune with its neighbourhood that you wonder how locals ever functioned without it. Where’s Nick is one such watering hole, housed in an unassuming open shopfront on a buzzy strip of Marrickville Road that, despite the lingering signage, is clearly no longer Marrickville Quality Cakes. Picture what Central Perk would look like if Friends were a sitcom about woke millennial share-housers in the Inner West, and you’ve pretty much got the idea. 

The bones of Wyno, a tight bar-bottleshop styled on its wine-focused predecessor 121 BC, remain: the long counter, which seats just 27, encourages sharing and conversation; the bottleshop still trades in takeaway; and staff can talk wine with the best of them. Staff might pour whatever they have open, encourage you to grab a bottle from the shop where Italy, France and Spain are the main stops outside the local stuff, or follow your whims on the 300-plus label list. 

Time Out’s People’s Choice Awards this year invited readers to select their favourite restaurant, bar, pub and café, and the votes are in.