Downtown Wayne just got its first subterranean speakeasy. This week, a first-of-its-kind wine bar opens a few doors down.
Talk about a tippling point.
Nature’s Vin has beautifully transformed the venerable old Cowan’s Flowers…
…into a tastefully green, women-fueled, health-conscious oenophile’s idyll. To which we say, Salut!
One side is a charming wine bar – enjoy a glass or sample a flight at a stool, cozy loveseat, or banquette.
Champions of natural wine and women in winemaking, Nature’s Vin Director of Operations/Sommelier Elyse Lovenworth shares a glass with owner Ragini Parmar behind the lively bar.
The other side houses a bottle shop and private tasting/event area.
Joining them is hallway lined with green bottles with a curved wooden seat that screams “Instagram me!”
Owner Ragini Parmar in the bottle-bedecked hallway. Opening week visitors will be invited to put notes inside the bottles.
“We want to be warm and accessible – when you walk in, you feel included,” says owner Ragini Parmar, who lives in Villanova. “You can come here for an educational experience with our sommelier or come in with a girlfriend, your mom or for date night and just enjoy a glass of wine with a small charcuterie board.”
Upcoming sessions include a Cheese Class with a featured cheesemonger, Build-Your-Own-Host Gift, Guest Som Thanksgiving Tasting and Wreath-Making.
As for the wine, well, no Whispering Angels or Kim Crawfords here. Nature’s Vin pours only natural, organic and/or biodynamic wines from exclusively women-led wineries from around the world.
Natural wines are made without the manipulation or sulfites used in conventional winemaking and are typically lower in alcohol, Parmar explains. “As I was getting older, I realized my body was processing wine differently. I was getting headaches and I couldn’t drink my red wine as much.” Her doctor turned her onto natural wines and she hasn’t looked back.
At the time, Parmar was working in tech in San Francisco which was dotted with natural wine bars. (Her dog, Ruby, is named after her favorite.)
When she moved back to the Philly burbs during the pandemic, she was stymied. “I couldn’t find natural wines anywhere. I would ask and they were giving me organic wines or biodynamic wines, which are still great but they’ve been manipulated a little bit.”
She offers all three styles at Nature’s Vin because there wasn’t enough variety in the women-owned natural winemaker space.
Girl power infuses every nook of Nature’s Vin.
After 20 years building culture and community around empowering women in tech, Parmar wanted to “translate that passion to my own community – to celebrate the area’s women-owned businesses and artists.”
Naturally, her sommelier, staff and suppliers are all women.
And “anything you point to” at Nature’s Vin – every colorful canvas, stick of furniture, pendant lamp, wine glass, book and bottle – was produced by a woman. There’s even a decanter shaped like a Fallopian tube.
“Are men welcome?” we ask Parmar, only half joking.
“Of course! Allyship is important,” she deadpans.
Nature’s Vin, 193-197 E. Lancaster Ave., Wayne, [email protected], opens Friday Nov. 7 and Saturday, Nov. 8, 2 to 8 p.m. by reservation only. Regular hours: Tues. – Thurs. noon to 9 p.m., Fri – Sat noon to 10. Educational events calendar online. Private tastings available.
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