Urban Winery Sydney

Since it relocated from the inner-west suburb of St Peters, Sydney’s first true urban winery is creating and showcasing wines in a former sound studio and amphitheatre in Moore Park’s Entertainment Quarter.

The wines are made on-site, all under the winemaker Alex Retief’s label (A.Retief) using grapes from three contract vineyards in southern New South Wales in Young, Wagga and Tumbarumba.

Varieties are diverse, and individual vintages are often surprising; some are influenced by Retief’s work in regions such as France’s Bordeaux, Spain’s Rioja and California in the US. The sauvignon blanc, for example, is made in the French style with a period of barrel fermentation, while the pinot gris gets just enough skin contact to take on a pink hue.

Twenty-five bucks buys you a flight of six of the label’s best, which you should enjoy with a selection of locally made antipasto involving olives from Alto Olives, salami from Salumi, cheese from Pecora Dairy, and pate made by chef Aaron Teece [of Sunday Sous Sessions]. Everything comes from NSW.

Take a seat at the bar, or jostle for one of the deep, suede armchairs in a corner among the wine barrels. If you enjoy the wine, you can pick up a bottle or two to take home, too.

As well as being available for private functions, the venue schedules regular collaborations with notable chefs for its Chef X Winemaker lunch series, which includes food created to accompany Retief’s wines.