Caleb Baker and Josh Hodges are co-owners and founders of award-winning venues, Mr West Bar & Bottle Shop in Footscray and Bar Spontana in Brunswick. The passion they share for high quality artisanal liquor, craft beer, lo-fi wine and boutique spirits is clearly reflected in the offerings of both venues, and Spontana in particular showcases their love of all things spontaneously fermented.
Here’s what’s drinking well according to Baker and Hodges.
As far as I’m concerned, the defining place to get a drink in Victoria is…
Josh Hodges: My local, Arnold’s, in Kensington. Scott and the team have put together such a fantastic selection of Victorian booze. The beer and spirits list are tidy, the wine list rotates regularly, always stacked with delicious local gems, and it’s just such a comfortable place to exist. It feels effortless, in the best way. Pair that with some incredible bar snacks in town and you’ve won my heart for sure.
The last three delicious things I drank were…
Caleb Baker: I ate at Bar Merenda in Daylesford recently and among the many great things we enjoyed was a ridiculously delicious bottle of savagnin from Victorian winemaker Etienne Mangier under his Contreforte label. He makes it in an almost vin jaune style, spending two years under flor, and the result is rich, nutty, savoury and spicy yet fresh. Fans of Jura or sherry will love this wine.
I also visited the wonderful Micah Hewitt of Defialy Wines and tasted through a heap of his new releases. One of which was his Not Lost, Just Wandering, a 50/50 blend of ribolla gialla and fiano. The ribolla spent 12 months on skins in clay amphora while the fiano was macerated for just four days, making for a beautifully balanced orange wine with lots of fresh and dried stone fruit, a lovely savoury, herbaceous, peppery edge, lots of lovely fine texture and plenty of refreshing acidity. I enjoyed it so much it’s now on the wine lists at both Bar Spontana and Mr West.
On a recent visit to our pals at Bar Bellamy I tried their twist on the classic Caipirinha, and it did not disappoint. Made with cachaca, white Calvados and Beechworth Bitters’ In The Weeds herbal liqueur, sorrel and lime. Refreshing, layered, nuanced and seriously delicious.
When someone hands me a drinks list, I…
Caleb: Being a hospitality business owner and wine buyer, when we go out my friends and family almost always just hand the list to me and make me responsible for the groups drinking choices. There’s a bit of pressure haha but I’m always up for it. Firstly, I browse the full menu from front to back to get a good sense of what is on offer and what the venue’s focus or strong points might be before narrowing down the choices to what the group is in the mood for. Personally, I often like to start with a cocktail or mixed drink so hopefully there’s something like a nice vermouth such as the wonderful Saison Aperitifs on offer. Then when it’s time for wine it’s all about matching the moment. What do my companions like to drink? What will match the food best? I actually really enjoy navigating a drinks menu and hopefully helping everyone have a relaxed and wonderful time!
The Victorian spirit I’m loving most right now is…
Josh: Without a doubt, Kinglake Whisky. It’s rare to find a whisky that truly reflects terroir and a sense of place, but Kinglake nails it. I’m especially keen on their 46% Double Wood Single Malt. It’s a four-grain mash bill with about 25% peated malt, just enough for a lick of smoke to come through among notes of coffee, chocolate and salted caramel. So bloody good
There’s no better value on wine list or in a bottle-shop in Victoria than …
Caleb: For the types of wines that I enjoy the most I am always impressed with the list the legends at Brico have on offer. Always a fantastic selection at very reasonable prices.
My favourite place to buy booze is…
Josh: Look, Caleb and I might not be the most unbiased correspondents here; we spend our days surrounded by incredible boutique wine, beer and spirits at Mr West. But when we do get out, we love Tom’s Liquor Merchants in St Kilda. The team there just make it a blast – I never leave without a smile (and a bottle or three).
I’d love to see people planting more…
Caleb: Nerello mascalese. As I understand it, the Chalmers family have successfully imported and planted nerello in recent years and we will start to see some wines being made from this wonderful Sicilian grape in the not-too-distant future. I think there are certain regions of Victoria that will be extremely suitable for growing this variety and I am excited to see what Victorian winemakers can do with it.
My guilty pleasure in the fridge/drinks cabinet/at the bar is…
Josh: Despite being born after 1950, I have a real soft spot for sherry and apera. Give me a sherry and tonic on the balcony in the sunshine and I’m in heaven. My recycling bin is often filled with empty bottles of fino or amontillado from Pennyweight at the end of the week.
The best or most important change to the way people drink in Victoria in recent years has been…
Caleb: People embracing booze made from well farmed produce. There continues to be a shift towards a focus on sustainable, organic and/or biodynamic farming and fewer additives in production. More growers and producers are seeing the benefits of this both for the environment and for the quality of the final product. Hospitality venues are embracing it and so are consumers. For us, we’re extremely passionate about terroir-driven wines made from well-farmed fruit that are spontaneously fermented with little or nothing added. We truly believe that there is no better way to showcase the beauty of terroir than wines (and other beverages) made this way. And I’m not talking about wild, funky, faulty wines, I’m talking about pure, clean, vibrant, terroir-driven wines coming from a backbone of excellent quality fruit. The hype of weird, funky, natty wine is over, but people are starting to understand that ‘natural’ doesn’t mean funky and I am all about it.
For me, the most inspiring person in the Victorian drinks world is…
Josh: Nick Tesar – hands down. One of the hardest-working legends in the industry. From Bar Liberty to World Class Bartender to co-founding Marionette Liqueur, his résumé is stacked, but he remains one of the most genuine and humble people I’ve ever met. There’s something about his curiosity and playfulness that is infectious. He’s an inspiration to so many – and he probably doesn’t even realise it.
Mr West, 106 Nicholson Street Mall, Footscray, mrwest.com.au, @mrwestbar; Bar Spontana, 4 Saxon St, Brunswick, barspontana.com, @barspontana