London-based Bar Douro has just launched Festa bottle shop, replacing its Bar Douro bottle shop.
It comes hot on the heels of Festa, the first-of-its-kind Portuguese wine festival which took place in June at London’s Tobacco Dock and showcases wines from the event.
With over 150 wines, 54 exclusive to Festa, it is home to the UK’s biggest range of Portuguese wines and broadest selection of producers (61).
Founder Max Graham commented, 'We are so proud that over 1,700 wine and food lovers were tuned in & turned on to Portuguese wine at Festa. Their excitement about and appetite for Portuguese wines was palpable.
'We are excited to continue spreading the spirit of Festa through our online shop and future events.”
The Bar Douro bottle shop was created in response to the lockdown in 2020, it saw Max continue to receive acclaim for his wine programme.
This then led to the creation of Festa wine and food festival curated by Festa wine director and Portuguese wine specialist Sarah Ahmed. The Festa Bottle Shop will continue to be a trailblazer for Portuguese wines.
Sarah said “Our selection of 55 producers from the length and breadth of Portugal created such a buzz for premium and cutting edge Portuguese wines; Festa’s pop up shop did brisk business.
'We have every intention of keeping our festival-goers' taste buds tickled at Festa online bottle shop and through Festa’s dynamic, quarterly Wine Club Discovery Box.'
Working alongside Max and Sarah to personally curate the selection available is Bar Douro’s Head of Operations Sol Leon and Ieva Markaityte who has joined the team as Head of E-Commerce and Sales.
Attended by over 1,750 guests, the Festa festival took place on the 24 - 25 June at Tobacco Dock and signalled a new wave of Portuguese wine representation within the UK, which will now continue to grow through the launch of the eponymous bottle shop.