La Lune Wine Co

Paul McGivern (The Wolfe) first dreamed of opening his own wine bar after visiting Burgundy in 2010. It was another seven years before the perfect location came up.

The result is La Lune Wine Co. The bar occupies a ground-level space in the new Melbourne Residences apartment block on Melbourne Street, but fronts Fish Lane around the back of the building. While the building looks new and modern and the bar itself was established in 2017, McGivern was careful to make it look worn and comfortable rather than slick and bland.

The small 42-seat venue has moody, darkened tones: wooden tables and chairs, a long black booth and a mixture of timber and tile flooring. The dominant feature is the open kitchen and an accompanying long, marble bar. Take a seat at the latter and you can have a good chat to the chefs.

The menu is separated into four sections: charcuterie, raw, cheese and hot. Charcuterie features dishes such as kangaroo tartare, a terrine and cured meats. Raw involves ceviche, sashimi and the like. Five cheeses are offered, and the hot section leans towards larger plates such as lamb neck and Wagyu flank.

The 120-strong wine list is by the bar manager, Olivia Evans, along with McGivern and his mate Nick Farr from By Farr Winery. Farr has actually reserved some of his vineyard just to make wines for La Lune. Expect to find plenty of McGivern’s favourite grapes on the list: chardonnay, pinot noir and, of course, Burgundy.