Far from sitting in the shadow of Melbourne’s world-famous food and wine scene, Edwin Wine Bar & Cellar at the new Shadow Play by Peppers at Southbank shines the spotlight exclusively on Victorian food and beverages.
Developed by luxury property developer Jonathan Hallinan of BPM Corp, the hotel and restaurant’s aesthetic and offering reflects his and his company’s renowned style and impeccable attention to detail.
The décor is dark and seductive yet the menu and the philosophy behind it is a breath of fresh air, according to Shadow Play by Peppers’ General Manager Alistair Munro.
“Our Head Chef Ritesh Patil and Sommelier Yu Kurosawa have created an extraordinary dining experience that celebrates the diversity of Victoria and Victorians,” said Mr Munro.
“Our menu is not just curated from the inspiration of Victoria’s best wine and produce, its philosophy is based on gender equity and fostering a relationship with local producers.”
Resident Sommelier Yu Kurosawa is one of the growing number of female Sommeliers in Australia and says that every wine has a story, not just about how it tastes and what food it should be paired with, but how and where the grapes were grown and the individual style of the winemaker.
“Our menu features wine from each of Victoria’s 21 wine regions with an almost equal gender balance between male and female winemakers,” said Ms Kurosawa.
“We hang our hat on the fact our wine list has been curated to be filled with Victorian wines, including some of Australia’s most well-known and sought after wine labels such as Crawford River, Bindi, Yarra Yering and Sorrenberg just to name a few.
“In fact, our entire drinks menu is locally sourced including water and soft drinks from Daylesford, orange juice from Caulfield and soda and mixers from Kyneton.”
Spirits including gin, vodka, whisky, rum, vermouth and liqueurs are also produced in Victoria.
The venue is also encouraging guests to discover the stories behind its
wine list with its monthly wine program, created by internationally acclaimed
sommelier and wine educator Dan Sims.
Each month will focus on a different Victorian wine region and the evening event will be presented by the winemakers themselves.
The evening tasting events are free and there is no need to pre-book. On the evening I visited Edwin, Moorooduc Estate was pouring and it was fabulous trying everything from their 2016 Estate Chardonnay to their 2018 Pinot Gris on Skins.
Head Chef Ritesh Patil says it was not difficult to create a menu that exclusively featured produce from Victoria.
“Not only does Victoria produce the best seafood, meats, cheeses and local produce in Australia but we have some great local producers here who deserve to step out of the shadows of being just a supplier and be seen as co- creators of our menu of excellence,” said Chef Patil.
The menu highlights its locally cured in Daylesford salumi selection and celebrates cheese supplied by Marie at Emerald Deli at South Melbourne markets.
Chef Patil’s food preparation style is one of simplicity with just four or five ingredients on a plate.
“It is much more powerful to have each ingredient speak for itself. I don’t overcomplicate my dishes because this just drowns each ingredient’s contribution to a dish.”
Edwin Wine Bar & Cellar is located at 308-320 City Road, Southbank and is open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
For more information and to peruse menus, visit www.peppers.com.au/shadow-play/dining.
Edwin Wine Bar & Cellar is located at Shadow Play by Peppers, 308-320 City Road, Southbank.
Book online: www.edwinwinebar.com.au/book
