Oh boy... Sounds like you were the victim of the oh so common snooty wine bar. What a bummer. The thing is, they probably make tons of money off hot-shot Barcelona business execs who want to be wowed with a "pija" and "de moda" place to go and drink wine. Someone's gotta pay for those sliding doors! Olvidalo!
Ryan Opaz
· 1 year ago
Sadly it's not the "pija" part that gets me, it's the part where they don' t even know how to properly present a bottle of wine to a customer...No wine service makes for a bad wine bar!
Dylan
· 1 year ago
I'm sorry you had such an awful time. It had so much potential in the beginning of your description. It reminded me of the allure that many book shop/cafes carry in the US--except this time, you can trade in the coffee for wine. However, based on your review I don't think this is the spot to make said trade.
Joe Manekin
· 1 year ago
Oh well, all these new wine bars and restaurants can't be winners, I suppose. Further, I'd say that the flashier places, with the fancy buildouts in excess of $1M and the prime locations, overwhelmingly tend to underwhelm and deliver minimal value, as well as offer very little in the way of a warm, friendly atmosphere. All style, no substance, if you will. I'm glad that you were able to salvage the evening at C24.
Pep Vallbé
· 1 year ago
Unfortunately this kind of experience is not quite a surprise for the us who live around. i don't know why Barcelona is so prone to snobbish and unworthy places, specially for wine and food. I've had similar experiences in both wine bars and wine shops here.
gabriellaopaz
· 1 year ago
Thanks for your comment Pep! Interestingly, I would say that poor customer service is an issue of Spain; but from my experience, I've seen snobby behavior no matter where I travel - especially high end restaurants or bars. As Joe so accurately pointed out, the more expensive the built-out, the poorer the service. Hence, there is an illogical correlation between money and importance, making your everyday Joe feel unwelcome to simply try a new wine the minute he/she walks in the door. Having entered Monvinic the other night in nice/casual attire, I can most assuredly tell you that I was not welcomed, as expressed by the up and down stare complete with a crinkled nose. You could almost hear the host saying, "Dear Lord, please tell me this woman is NOT staying". That said, in several other restaurants/bars throughout Spain, the bill may have taken 30 minutes to arrive, but the server was generally attentive, sincere and helpful. In all honesty, a minimal level of kindness and sincerity is all I ask.
Pep Vallbé
· 1 year ago
Hi Gabriella, I think you're right, and it's true: I sometimes just look for a smile and a correct service of food and wine. You hit the point talking about a general issue in Spain, but I am a bit ashamed Barcelona does not offer a higher level. I must say I had a similar experience in Vila Viniteca.
Emilio Saez van Eerd
· 1 year ago
Wine bars in general still have a long way to go. I wonder when there will be a "Calle Laurel" for wines. Spain has enough variety. Imagine a town like Barcelona, with about 50 wine bars in a row in one street, each one serving one wine only (and any kind of tapa to go with the wine). You could hop from bar to bar and pick out the ones based on the wine they serve. If it works in Logorño with tapas, why wouldn't it work in a town like Barcelona with wine. If I was a tourist, I definitely would hang out there very night until I had tried all wines at least once. How simple can it be?
No that is a concept I would like for our wines!!!
Actually it is a great idea, and I haven't even had any wine with my meal today! ;-)
Isabelle Brunet
· 1 year ago
Hello Ryan,
My name is Isabelle Brunet and as responsible of the team of sommeliers at Monvinic, I sincerely apologize for the bad experience you had at the wine-bar. Each one of us feels concerned and this is exactly what we want to avoid.
Monvinic is a very seductive project which started many years ago with a lot of passion.
Actually, we are grateful to receive your comments, because they can help us to improve our service and see criticisms as a constructive way to do better. We are really sorry because our aim is to make this place accessible to everyone. I would like to invite you to come back and I would personally explain to you our project which is much more than just a wine-bar.
Best regards, Isabelle
Ryan Opaz
· 1 year ago
Isabelle this was a wonderful thing to find in my inbox, and I do hope to meet you and discuss my experience. That said I will remove the comments above if I find that they are in any related to Monvinic. A conversation here in the comments is welcome but having all of your friends, essentially spam this site is not appropriate.
Please let me know when we can talk.
Kelley
· 1 year ago
Hi Gabriella and Ryan:
I read your post. We were the other part of your party that evening and had the most fantastic time. For all American tourists wanting to take part in upscale wine tasting, this did not seem the place to be. We also felt that we did not belong at this bar as there was an executive meeting at the same time. I seem to remember that you had to walk through their dinner party to use the bathroom. All-in -all we were happy to leave and relax at c24 where we had a fabulous time.
gabriellaopaz
· 1 year ago
It was fabulous to meet you as well Kelley, and we truly hope to catch up again upon our return to MN. Take care and please don't hesitate to leave more thoughts and comments on the site whenever the mood strikes you :-)
claudio hoyos
· 1 year ago
For me Monvinic was a great experience. Wines, service and food fulfilled my expectations each time I have been there. Since then, I recommend it to my wine lovers friends and everybody gets very excited to say the least with the experience. Great atmosphere and design, beautiful cellar, storage wine conditions impeccable and unique concept that Barcelona has been waiting for ages.. The city deserves "centros culturales" like this one. And what a delicious real Catalan food! Besides that, did you realized that it is the only place where you can enjoy good wines in Barcelona at a very inexpensive prices? They are barely more expensive than retail price! And this is what wine lovers want …. Did you have some time to enjoy the library with a glass of wine? Really amazing So my recommendation goes for a second visit.
Ryan Opaz
· 1 year ago
I'm glad you enjoyed it. Good to see that they are able to provide good service also. So as I too think it has potential, I would like to first know what you find as negatives. No bar in the history of the world is 100% perfect, and therefore your comment seems to be a bit lopsided.
Jose
· 1 year ago
Perdona que me explique en castellano .Mi ingles escrito no es bueno. So y un propietario de 4 bodegas en distintas denominaciones de origen ( rioja, navarra, rías baixas , ribera de Duero ) He visitado hace unos días Monvinic. Soy de Madrid y venia por asuntos de trabajo a Barcelona .Aproveche un rato libre para colarme es este lugar “Mágico” La primera impresión es de sorpresa cuando veo un local tan elegante y bonito en Barcelona y ¡además! , dedicado exclusivamente al vino .Estas cosas solo las ves en Londres , Paris ,Nueva York, Tokio… Lo primero que hice antes de ponerme realizar las típicos comentarios con los amigos sobre un local tan innovador y “impresionante” fue preguntar a la persona que está allí , que me explique la filosofía del lugar. Cuando me la explico ,es cuando empecé a comprender muchas cosas que anteriormente ni por asomo podía imaginarme .El que te expliquen las cosas hace ,si cabe, que conectes emocionalmente con lo que allí hay y comprendas la razón de su existir .ME di cuenta que este lugar se había creado para poder ofrecer un servicio exclusivo y donde la norma principal era cuidar hasta los más pequeños detalles .Si es cierto que es un lugar solo apto para personas con sensibilidad que sepan profundizar en las pequeñas cosas y tengan la capacidad de osbservar esos detalles tan sutiles . Me gusto ver un local tan grande , tan elegante y donde se nota que ha habido una gran inversión económica .Eso no hace más que alegrarme y aplaudir que personas amantes de los vinos adoren estas iniciativas que ennoblecen el producto que tanto sacrificio nos cuesta conseguir. Me quede sorprendido ver una biblioteca con maravillas de libros , en varios idiomas .Desde luego recomendare a mis enólogos que aprovechen cuando vengan a Barcelona, el pasarse por aquí, a ojear lao fabulosas textos que allí puede ver .Yo creía que había leído bastante pero viendo los libros Australianos , franceses,¬-Italianos etc. sobre viticultura y técnicas de elaboración de vino ,que allí se encontraban , sufrí de golpe una cura de humildad.
Hablando de elaboraciones , me gusto ver la cantidad de vinos nacionales e internacionales que llenaban los huecos de la bodega y se plasmaban en unas maravillosas cartas electrónicas ,con fotos etc. .Incluso me sorprendió el ver vinos de dos bodegas nuestras , Un albariño y un Ribera de Duero en la carta y con mi foto. Me impacto ver nuestro vino a 20€ .En pocos sitios de Barcelona he encontrados mis vinos a ese precio .El albariño ,repito ,estaba a 20 € cuando lo normal es estar en un local como este a 30€ o más .La comida fue increíble , la calidad primaba sobre todo lo demás. Incluso , La calidad humana de las personas que allí se encuentran y las ganas que tienen de agradar al cliente , me sorprende positivamente. .Mirando la carta de vinos me di cuenta de la gran cantidad de oportunidades que uno tiene para poder descubrir tesoros en el mundo. Tome un espumoso ingles que me maravillo . Son de esos productos que ni te imaginas que pueden existir .Estaba servido a la temperatura exacta, perfecto. Para terminar decir que este lugar es para tener una visión global del vino , es entrar en un lugar donde se ama el vino por encima de todo. Es un lugar para poder adquirir cultura sobre el mismo , un lugar para disfrutar comiendo con productos de altísima calidad ya que la carta es extraordinaria. Es un lugar de y para la cultura del vino, donde he salido aprendiendo una cosa nueva. Un lugar Mágico.
Ryan Opaz
· 1 year ago
Jose your English is poor(as poor as mine is written) and looks to be translated from google, so I removed the English version to save space and not to confuse anyone.
want to ask you what are the negatives that you find they could improve upon? No bar/restaurant is 100% correct. I therefore feel like this comment is not 100% genuine, and I also wonder why you failed to mention or talk about anything I wrote. Please tell me some of your non-glowing endorsements, such as what they could improve.
Jose
· 1 year ago
Ryan, antes de todo decirte me gusta el respeto con el que tratas los comentarios de las personas que escriben en el blog , no todo el mundo es tan correcto en sus formas y en sus palabras. También decirte que me gusta Cata vino ,lo conocí por mis amigos y me gusta por lo mismo que me gusta Monvinic, se nota que hay mucho esfuerzo detrás y las cosas se piensan mucho antes de hacerlas. Por cierto cuando quieras venir a alguna de nuestras bodegas de visita , estas invitado, y sé ,que te gustaran .Ah, no me importa que las critiques :-) ( broma). Son bodegas con viñedos ( producción propia) y vinos complejos de gama alta. Mi email ya lo tienes y no te digo las marcas que tenemos por no hacer publicidad en este medio. Contestando a tus preguntas, efectivamente nada en el mundo es perfecto, siempre uno puede ser crítico con algo. Entiendo tu postura de critica porque es tu trabajo, pero, igual que dices que yo escribo solo cosas buenas , tu solo lo haces comentando aspectos negativos y tampoco es así .Yo solo hablo de las cosas buenas ,por dos razones ,una porque no soy periodista o critico de vinos y por eso solo hablo de lo bueno y la critica la dejo para mi mis asuntos y segunda ,porque yo solo he visto cosas buenas en ese lugar .Lo único que puedo decir ,si se puede definir como malo, que no lo es , es que Monvinic, La maquinaria que es el capital humano , tiene que pulirse,ponerse a punto , tiene que coordinarse, hacerse equipo etc. para que todo vaya perfecto en tiempos , servicio, atención y algo muy importante, comunicación .Para que haya una simbiosis entre cliente y personal . Y eso solo lo da el tiempo, si acaso ,unos meses , como es normal en cualquier hotel , bar, restaurante etc. que abre sus puertas el primer día .. Por lo demás el potencial que tiene este lugar es infinito, yo diría que es un lujo encontrar un lugar barato y a la vez lujoso ,elegante , donde se respira calidad en cada rincón. Exquisito en cuento a trato , precios de los vinos , biblioteca especializada con ¡todos los libros especializados que tú quieras! y si no lo tienen ,lo pides que te aseguro que lo compran, con una variedad de vinos en carta infinita ,no solo de España sino del mundo, incluso…por decir un pequeño detalle, con un equipo de música es extraordinario y ya no hablo de la música… ..En definitiva , tiene todo lo necesario para poder acompañar al vino y pasar un rato agradable. Sería bueno que volvieras a visitarlo , un día solo no es suficiente para poder valorar el trabajo de muchos años .Cuando vienen a mis bodegas , digo lo mismo a las personas que a veces ven más aspectos negativos que positivos. Creo que en el mundo somos muchas personas ,con muchos gustos , formas de ver las cosas etc. y de ahí su riqueza. Creo que no existe la verdad absoluta pero sí creo que a cada persona le puede gustar cosas distintas incluso opuestas, lo cual también es maravilloso ya que da lugar a la discusión ,y de ella ,si se hace con respeto ,se pueden sacar muchas conclusiones . Un saludo
Ryan Opaz
· 1 year ago
Your partially right. I didn't say enough good about the place, though I did have a bad experience. Then again to quote: "The list is wide ranging, and for someone who lives in Spain, this is a treasure since it’s unusual for us to have so many choices."
I would consider this a positive complement that shows I wanted to say some good things, though I did fall short admittedly. If I were to go farther and expand the quote "nice glassware" to read that I am always happy to see a place like this to have nice glassware. As to prices they are fine for a restaurant though I don't think they are anything special.
Other things, I would love to comment on the food, though I was never offered a menu or even saw anyone eating at the time. So hopefully in a follow up, I will be able to taste the food and offer a note on it.
Finally I never had the library explained to me, so I can't comment on it, though I did state that it was something us "geeks" would enjoy another positive note, albeit small.
Thank you for participating on Catavino, I really do appreciate the effort made and would encourage you to leave more comments and to challenge us further. Oh and feel free to email me at anytime: ryan(at)catavino.net
Adolfo
· 1 year ago
Hi Ryan, my name is Adolfo,
First of all, thanks for your blog, your coments and your reviews, I find them to be very useful. As many people, I use the internet to research before traveling or visiting a place, just to check traveller´s opinions about the place that I am about going to. Some friends from Barcelona had told me about Monvinic, as an "Innovative, suggestive and new concept of bar in town" they said, so, I decided to show up there in me near visit to Barcelona. Afther that, I knew about your blog and I could read your review regarding to Monvinic. My expectations were downright shattered when I read your bad experiences there. I expected to find a sort of labyrinth full of trap-doors, hidden toilettes and unconfortable sitting places. The right place to drink a cup of nice wine ruined by a bad service and a worse knowledge of the proper way to deal wiht wine. I got so upset that I canceled my visit to Monvinic, but my friends insisted on me in trying the place and make our opinion about of it was like. Well, once there, I made sure my self I didn´t need to use the toilettes, and after having been able to deal wiht the evil entrance door, I found a modern, charming, and well decorated place which atmosphere encouraged you to remain there for a long while, without any hurry. I gess the owner has put a huge effort and money in decorations and desing just to provide a suitable place to enjoy fine wines that wouldn´t be avaliable somewere else and may not be affordable for many people. For me, this very is nice from him. Something to be grateful for. Don´t you think?. In my case, I am from Andalusia, I have been living all my life in an area where wine is culture and tradition at same time, and I was nicely surprised by such mixture between traditions, modernity and new technologies. That´s cool form me!! About the waiters and service, I must say that I am not at all a worldwide wine expert, but I can recognized when someone knows about what he is talking about. So, I decided to ask the sumiller an let him to guide me throught their wine list menu. After having talked to him for some minutes, he told me that I should try some wine not easily found in most of places in my home town area, "something that fits in Monvinic philosophy", he said. We were offered a bottle of Caverne-Sauvignon, (sorry, I don´t remember its name) that I had missed out if I haden´t gone to Monvinic, because I haden´t seen it before and heard about either. Wow, what a delicatessen! Thanks Sir summilier!! To keep talking about service, I found it to be kind and helpfull, always ready to attend any request from customers. Friendly but not too close. Regarding your unfortunated and embarrasing incident with the sliding doors, I agree 100% with you if it was the way you wrote in your blog. If they were watching you and they just stayed looking at you without doing something else, this is really a negative point to be remarked. Nevertheless, as I love to talk wiht people who work in different places I visit, I told them about your comments as I read them in your blog. I mentioned the episode of the entrance door an the rest of the story, and they were perfectly aware of it. I think the boss must have told them off about their way of treating you, or they have themselves realized about their bad reaction. Anyway, the staff boss asked to me to write my own comments an encourage you to give Monvinic a second chance. They are sure of being able to shift your first negative impression.
A last point about prices. Don´t you think that a place like that in a city as Barcelona could be dramatically expensive? That is not the case, isn´t that?.
To finish my comment, I think is good to complain when something doesn´t work in the right way, only in that case they can solve problems and correct mistakes, but is also a question of justice giving a second chance to those who did something wrong at a first moment. Don´t you agree with me??
That´s all Ryan. Just let me to tell you to visit Jerez and try our wines in your next trip to Spain, as Alexander Fleming said once, "Penicillin can cure those who are ill, but Sherry con bring the dead back to life".
Cheers.
Anna
· 1 year ago
Hello Ryan,
My name is Anna, I am a wine lover and my family has vineyards in the DO Cava. I have been to Monvínic three times already, and based on my experience –and that of my friends- I am deeply surprised by your negative comments about this place. First of all, because all the sommeliers and the rest of the team have always been very friendly and humble, and I have never had any problems with the wine service … on the contrary, it is always a pleasure to taste fine wines in such nice Riedel glasses!! You make no comments about the fact that Monvínic is not just a wine-bar, but much more than that: it is a true wine cultural centre, as it is perfectly explained in the website. In this sense, the library, with all the leading technical magazines and books available today, is just so helpful … and I can assure that just like me and my friends, thousands of wine lovers, including wine professionals, enjoy very much having the chance to browse through “The Oxford Companion to Wine”, among hundreds of other books and publications. Also, it is so nice to have the chance to taste wines from all over the world, with their more than 4.000 references, specially knowing that they are obsessive about the provenance, the shipping and storage conditions … and the unbelievable prices!!!!!!!! And what about the digital wine list, with the digital maps and the pictures of the people behind each wine? It is so much fun and a great way to learn! This is a totally unique possibility in Barcelona!! Also, you do not talk about the culinary space, where you can enjoy great traditional catalan food for less than 50 euros, and where the tables have been designed in all details to maximize the enjoyment of wine; nor about the conference and tasting room, where soon masterclasses will be given; nor about the delicious zen-style interior garden, where you can relax … just in the heart of Barcelona! Unfortunately, I have never been to New York, Tokyo or London, but many of my friends, who have been lucky enough to visit these wonderful cities, tell me that this centre, with its spectacular and warm contemporary interior design, makes you feel as if you were in any of these cities. Anybody can have a negative experience once, but, honestly, with all due respect, considering the whole picture, how much effort and passion for wine has been put into this place, for all of us wine geeks to enjoy, we think it is not fair nor impartial to reach the conclusion to discourage people from going and enjoying Monvínic. And I also think it would be nice of you to visit these people again: they no doubt deserve it. Anna
Your review of Monvinic was very disheartening for me. I just returned from Spain two days ago and one of my strongest and most positive memories was my accidental run-in with that sliding glass door, that opened my world to Monvinic. I have to admit from the outside I couldn't tell what it was, originally thinking it was a chic modern hotel, I popped in to check out the lobby. However, once inside, I QUICKLY realized my assumption was wrong. I was greeted very promptly, in English I believe, a relief since I don’t speak Spanish or Catalonian, by a wonderful, friendly woman named Nereida, whom I later found out was one of their newer sommeliers. She explained the whole concept and offered me a tour of not only the library area, the back room where they conduct their wine tasting, and the “culinary space”, but also offered to take me into the back to check out the wine cellars (WHO DOES THAT?!). She blew my mind. It was a long day, I was down to my last few Euros, Nereida, all the other Sommeliers there took me, and my Euros on a journey I nor my pallet will not soon forget. Every person is a product of his or her experiences and I honestly believe you deserve to experience Monvinic once again.
All Comments
No that is a concept I would like for our wines!!!
Actually it is a great idea, and I haven't even had any wine with my meal today! ;-)
My name is Isabelle Brunet and as responsible of the team of sommeliers at Monvinic, I sincerely apologize for the bad experience you had at the wine-bar.
Each one of us feels concerned and this is exactly what we want to avoid.
Monvinic is a very seductive project which started many years ago with a lot of passion.
Actually, we are grateful to receive your comments, because they can help us to improve our service and see criticisms as a constructive way to do better.
We are really sorry because our aim is to make this place accessible to everyone.
I would like to invite you to come back and I would personally explain to you our project which is much more than just a wine-bar.
Best regards,
Isabelle
Please let me know when we can talk.
I read your post. We were the other part of your party that evening and had the most fantastic time. For all American tourists wanting to take part in upscale wine tasting, this did not seem the place to be. We also felt that we did not belong at this bar as there was an executive meeting at the same time. I seem to remember that you had to walk through their dinner party to use the bathroom. All-in -all we were happy to leave and relax at c24 where we had a fabulous time.
Besides that, did you realized that it is the only place where you can enjoy good wines in Barcelona at a very inexpensive prices? They are barely more expensive than retail price! And this is what wine lovers want ….
Did you have some time to enjoy the library with a glass of wine? Really amazing
So my recommendation goes for a second visit.
So y un propietario de 4 bodegas en distintas denominaciones de origen ( rioja, navarra, rías baixas , ribera de Duero )
He visitado hace unos días Monvinic. Soy de Madrid y venia por asuntos de trabajo a Barcelona .Aproveche un rato libre para colarme es este lugar “Mágico”
La primera impresión es de sorpresa cuando veo un local tan elegante y bonito en Barcelona y ¡además! , dedicado exclusivamente al vino .Estas cosas solo las ves en Londres , Paris ,Nueva York, Tokio…
Lo primero que hice antes de ponerme realizar las típicos comentarios con los amigos sobre un local tan innovador y “impresionante” fue preguntar a la persona que está allí , que me explique la filosofía del lugar. Cuando me la explico ,es cuando empecé a comprender muchas cosas que anteriormente ni por asomo podía imaginarme .El que te expliquen las cosas hace ,si cabe, que conectes emocionalmente con lo que allí hay y comprendas la razón de su existir .ME di cuenta que este lugar se había creado para poder ofrecer un servicio exclusivo y donde la norma principal era cuidar hasta los más pequeños detalles .Si es cierto que es un lugar solo apto para personas con sensibilidad que sepan profundizar en las pequeñas cosas y tengan la capacidad de osbservar esos detalles tan sutiles .
Me gusto ver un local tan grande , tan elegante y donde se nota que ha habido una gran inversión económica .Eso no hace más que alegrarme y aplaudir que personas amantes de los vinos adoren estas iniciativas que ennoblecen el producto que tanto sacrificio nos cuesta conseguir.
Me quede sorprendido ver una biblioteca con maravillas de libros , en varios idiomas .Desde luego recomendare a mis enólogos que aprovechen cuando vengan a Barcelona, el pasarse por aquí, a ojear lao fabulosas textos que allí puede ver .Yo creía que había leído bastante pero viendo los libros Australianos , franceses,¬-Italianos etc. sobre viticultura y técnicas de elaboración de vino ,que allí se encontraban , sufrí de golpe una cura de humildad.
Hablando de elaboraciones , me gusto ver la cantidad de vinos nacionales e internacionales que llenaban los huecos de la bodega y se plasmaban en unas maravillosas cartas electrónicas ,con fotos etc. .Incluso me sorprendió el ver vinos de dos bodegas nuestras , Un albariño y un Ribera de Duero en la carta y con mi foto. Me impacto ver nuestro vino a 20€ .En pocos sitios de Barcelona he encontrados mis vinos a ese precio .El albariño ,repito ,estaba a 20 € cuando lo normal es estar en un local como este a 30€ o más .La comida fue increíble , la calidad primaba sobre todo lo demás. Incluso , La calidad humana de las personas que allí se encuentran y las ganas que tienen de agradar al cliente , me sorprende positivamente.
.Mirando la carta de vinos me di cuenta de la gran cantidad de oportunidades que uno tiene para poder descubrir tesoros en el mundo. Tome un espumoso ingles que me maravillo . Son de esos productos que ni te imaginas que pueden existir .Estaba servido a la temperatura exacta, perfecto.
Para terminar decir que este lugar es para tener una visión global del vino , es entrar en un lugar donde se ama el vino por encima de todo. Es un lugar para poder adquirir cultura sobre el mismo , un lugar para disfrutar comiendo con productos de altísima calidad ya que la carta es extraordinaria.
Es un lugar de y para la cultura del vino, donde he salido aprendiendo una cosa nueva.
Un lugar Mágico.
want to ask you what are the negatives that you find they could improve upon? No bar/restaurant is 100% correct. I therefore feel like this comment is not 100% genuine, and I also wonder why you failed to mention or talk about anything I wrote. Please tell me some of your non-glowing endorsements, such as what they could improve.
También decirte que me gusta Cata vino ,lo conocí por mis amigos y me gusta por lo mismo que me gusta Monvinic, se nota que hay mucho esfuerzo detrás y las cosas se piensan mucho antes de hacerlas.
Por cierto cuando quieras venir a alguna de nuestras bodegas de visita , estas invitado, y sé ,que te gustaran .Ah, no me importa que las critiques :-) ( broma). Son bodegas con viñedos ( producción propia) y vinos complejos de gama alta. Mi email ya lo tienes y no te digo las marcas que tenemos por no hacer publicidad en este medio.
Contestando a tus preguntas, efectivamente nada en el mundo es perfecto, siempre uno puede ser crítico con algo. Entiendo tu postura de critica porque es tu trabajo, pero, igual que dices que yo escribo solo cosas buenas , tu solo lo haces comentando aspectos negativos y tampoco es así .Yo solo hablo de las cosas buenas ,por dos razones ,una porque no soy periodista o critico de vinos y por eso solo hablo de lo bueno y la critica la dejo para mi mis asuntos y segunda ,porque yo solo he visto cosas buenas en ese lugar .Lo único que puedo decir ,si se puede definir como malo, que no lo es , es que Monvinic, La maquinaria que es el capital humano , tiene que pulirse,ponerse a punto , tiene que coordinarse, hacerse equipo etc. para que todo vaya perfecto en tiempos , servicio, atención y algo muy importante, comunicación .Para que haya una simbiosis entre cliente y personal . Y eso solo lo da el tiempo, si acaso ,unos meses , como es normal en cualquier hotel , bar, restaurante etc. que abre sus puertas el primer día .. Por lo demás el potencial que tiene este lugar es infinito, yo diría que es un lujo encontrar un lugar barato y a la vez lujoso ,elegante , donde se respira calidad en cada rincón. Exquisito en cuento a trato , precios de los vinos , biblioteca especializada con ¡todos los libros especializados que tú quieras! y si no lo tienen ,lo pides que te aseguro que lo compran, con una variedad de vinos en carta infinita ,no solo de España sino del mundo, incluso…por decir un pequeño detalle, con un equipo de música es extraordinario y ya no hablo de la música… ..En definitiva , tiene todo lo necesario para poder acompañar al vino y pasar un rato agradable.
Sería bueno que volvieras a visitarlo , un día solo no es suficiente para poder valorar el trabajo de muchos años .Cuando vienen a mis bodegas , digo lo mismo a las personas que a veces ven más aspectos negativos que positivos.
Creo que en el mundo somos muchas personas ,con muchos gustos , formas de ver las cosas etc. y de ahí su riqueza.
Creo que no existe la verdad absoluta pero sí creo que a cada persona le puede gustar cosas distintas incluso opuestas, lo cual también es maravilloso ya que da lugar a la discusión ,y de ella ,si se hace con respeto ,se pueden sacar muchas conclusiones .
Un saludo
I would consider this a positive complement that shows I wanted to say some good things, though I did fall short admittedly. If I were to go farther and expand the quote "nice glassware" to read that I am always happy to see a place like this to have nice glassware. As to prices they are fine for a restaurant though I don't think they are anything special.
Other things, I would love to comment on the food, though I was never offered a menu or even saw anyone eating at the time. So hopefully in a follow up, I will be able to taste the food and offer a note on it.
Finally I never had the library explained to me, so I can't comment on it, though I did state that it was something us "geeks" would enjoy another positive note, albeit small.
Thank you for participating on Catavino, I really do appreciate the effort made and would encourage you to leave more comments and to challenge us further. Oh and feel free to email me at anytime: ryan(at)catavino.net
First of all, thanks for your blog, your coments and your reviews, I find them to be very useful.
As many people, I use the internet to research before traveling or visiting a place, just to check traveller´s opinions about the place that I am about going to.
Some friends from Barcelona had told me about Monvinic, as an "Innovative, suggestive and new concept of bar in town" they said, so, I decided to show up there in me near visit to Barcelona.
Afther that, I knew about your blog and I could read your review regarding to Monvinic. My expectations were downright shattered when I read your bad experiences there. I expected to find a sort of labyrinth full of trap-doors, hidden toilettes and unconfortable sitting places. The right place to drink a cup of nice wine ruined by a bad service and a worse knowledge of the proper way to deal wiht wine.
I got so upset that I canceled my visit to Monvinic, but my friends insisted on me in trying the place and make our opinion about of it was like.
Well, once there, I made sure my self I didn´t need to use the toilettes, and after having been able to deal wiht the evil entrance door, I found a modern, charming, and well decorated place which atmosphere encouraged you to remain there for a long while, without any hurry. I gess the owner has put a huge effort and money in decorations and desing just to provide a suitable place to enjoy fine wines that wouldn´t be avaliable somewere else and may not be affordable for many people. For me, this very is nice from him. Something to be grateful for. Don´t you think?.
In my case, I am from Andalusia, I have been living all my life in an area where wine is culture and tradition at same time, and I was nicely surprised by such mixture between traditions, modernity and new technologies. That´s cool form me!!
About the waiters and service, I must say that I am not at all a worldwide wine expert, but I can recognized when someone knows about what he is talking about. So, I decided to ask the sumiller an let him to guide me throught their wine list menu. After having talked to him for some minutes, he told me that I should try some wine not easily found in most of places in my home town area, "something that fits in Monvinic philosophy", he said.
We were offered a bottle of Caverne-Sauvignon, (sorry, I don´t remember its name) that I had missed out if I haden´t gone to Monvinic, because I haden´t seen it before and heard about either. Wow, what a delicatessen! Thanks Sir summilier!!
To keep talking about service, I found it to be kind and helpfull, always ready to attend any request from customers. Friendly but not too close.
Regarding your unfortunated and embarrasing incident with the sliding doors, I agree 100% with you if it was the way you wrote in your blog. If they were watching you and they just stayed looking at you without doing something else, this is really a negative point to be remarked.
Nevertheless, as I love to talk wiht people who work in different places I visit, I told them about your comments as I read them in your blog. I mentioned the episode of the entrance door an the rest of the story, and they were perfectly aware of it. I think the boss must have told them off about their way of treating you, or they have themselves realized about their bad reaction. Anyway, the staff boss asked to me to write my own comments an encourage you to give Monvinic a second chance. They are sure of being able to shift your first negative impression.
A last point about prices. Don´t you think that a place like that in a city as Barcelona could be dramatically expensive? That is not the case, isn´t that?.
To finish my comment, I think is good to complain when something doesn´t work in the right way, only in that case they can solve problems and correct mistakes, but is also a question of justice giving a second chance to those who did something wrong at a first moment. Don´t you agree with me??
That´s all Ryan. Just let me to tell you to visit Jerez and try our wines in your next trip to Spain, as Alexander Fleming said once, "Penicillin can cure those who are ill, but Sherry con bring the dead back to life".
Cheers.
My name is Anna, I am a wine lover and my family has vineyards in the DO Cava. I have been to Monvínic three times already, and based on my experience –and that of my friends- I am deeply surprised by your negative comments about this place.
First of all, because all the sommeliers and the rest of the team have always been very friendly and humble, and I have never had any problems with the wine service … on the contrary, it is always a pleasure to taste fine wines in such nice Riedel glasses!!
You make no comments about the fact that Monvínic is not just a wine-bar, but much more than that: it is a true wine cultural centre, as it is perfectly explained in the website. In this sense, the library, with all the leading technical magazines and books available today, is just so helpful … and I can assure that just like me and my friends, thousands of wine lovers, including wine professionals, enjoy very much having the chance to browse through “The Oxford Companion to Wine”, among hundreds of other books and publications.
Also, it is so nice to have the chance to taste wines from all over the world, with their more than 4.000 references, specially knowing that they are obsessive about the provenance, the shipping and storage conditions … and the unbelievable prices!!!!!!!! And what about the digital wine list, with the digital maps and the pictures of the people behind each wine? It is so much fun and a great way to learn! This is a totally unique possibility in Barcelona!!
Also, you do not talk about the culinary space, where you can enjoy great traditional catalan food for less than 50 euros, and where the tables have been designed in all details to maximize the enjoyment of wine; nor about the conference and tasting room, where soon masterclasses will be given; nor about the delicious zen-style interior garden, where you can relax … just in the heart of Barcelona!
Unfortunately, I have never been to New York, Tokyo or London, but many of my friends, who have been lucky enough to visit these wonderful cities, tell me that this centre, with its spectacular and warm contemporary interior design, makes you feel as if you were in any of these cities.
Anybody can have a negative experience once, but, honestly, with all due respect, considering the whole picture, how much effort and passion for wine has been put into this place, for all of us wine geeks to enjoy, we think it is not fair nor impartial to reach the conclusion to discourage people from going and enjoying Monvínic. And I also think it would be nice of you to visit these people again: they no doubt deserve it.
Anna
A simple man with complex taste,
GVG