Lauded sommelier Ian Trinkle opens boutique wine space Wineism in Albion
For the oenophiles of Brisbane, the name Ian Trinkle is synonymous with exceptional wine. The renowned sommelier was responsible for the curation of the award-winning wine lists at Aria Brisbane and Howard Smith Wharves, and is now turning his attention to crafting an expansive selection that knows no bounds, available to the public whenever they desire. Together with his wife Liz Trinkle and long-time family friend Aaron Mullan, Ian has launched Wineism, a first-of-its-kind boutique wine space in the heart of Albion.
To say that Ian Trinkle knows a lot about wine is a vast understatement. The renowned sommelier has spent the last 16 years honing his craft, curating multi-award-winning wine lists for some of the city’s best restaurants and dining precincts. He reached a point in his career, however, where he felt it was time to introduce a broader audience to the exceptional winemakers he had grown to appreciate and love. Working with his wife Liz and family friend Aaron Mullan, Ian conceptualised Wineism – a boutique wine space where both the wine adept and the wine curious could come and discover some of his favourite wines and winemakers. Now you may be thinking, what is a wine space exactly? You’re forgiven for asking, because it’s something that’s never been seen before in Brisbane. Wineism isn’t quite a bottle shop and isn’t quite a wine bar – its a sleek amalgamation of the two, housing a hand-picked selection of wines from around the world. Within a minimalist and modern converted industrial building in the Albion Fine Trades precinct, Ian, Liz and Aaron have created a truly elevated wine experience, which showcases the local and international winemakers that Ian has grown to know and discover over his years as a sommelier. Within the space you will find upward of 700 wines (which will continue to grow) – a selection that celebrates small artisanal producers who create wines of exception.
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The goal of Wineism is for Ian, Liz and Aaron to share their knowledge and passion of wine – both the cults and the classics, the serious and the smashable – and the best way to do that is through tasting. With this in mind, the trio assembles the ‘Sips for today’ list each day, featuring a selection of glasses to sample from the bottle or Coravin. Once you’ve made your choice, you can stand around the bar or take a seat to sip and enjoy in store, or if you’d prefer something different you can purchase a bottle from the shelves to enjoy. Alternatively, you can just pop in to grab a drop to take home. The space also doubles as the headquarters of Wineism’s soon-to-launch e-commerce site, with all stock housed in a precision temperature-and-humidity-controlled custom-built warehouse. The team is currently working with its neighbours and local makers, such as Saison Salumi and Jocelyn’s Provisions, to develop a perfectly paired snack menu to enjoy with your glass of choice – think salty, briny delights that go great with wine, such as charcuterie and anchovies on toast. Winesm is also working with Queensland wineries to make its own blends, the first of which are available now – a chardonnay and a cabarnet blend created in collaboration with winemaker Pete Wise of Terra di Granito. As if this wasn’t enough, Wineism will also host a number of winemaker events and features an in-house a classroom to run internationally recognised courses from The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), which specialises in training budding sommeliers in wine, spirit and sake education.
Images: Toby Scott