No. 36 - Mad Med Cans, Product Finds, Passione Vino
Orange wine in a can, a handful of product finds, an Old Street wine bar
Mad Med L’Orange
Mad Med is a new venture by the team behind Domain de la Mongestine, a Provençal vineyard. They’re the makers of one of my favourite wines from last year, which I first tried in Marseille, and which I wrote about in dddelects No.8. I spotted the attractive little 250ml cans on the Gnarly Vines newsletter last week and made a beeline for Clapton Craft to pick up a can. Along with this orange number, the range also includes a red, a rosé and a sparkling rosé, all of which I’m looking forward to trying and writing about in future posts.
The orange is a 100% vermentino grape version, which I tried last night basking in early evening spring sunshine. It’s a crowd pleaser orange wine this one, very dry, and pretty acidic but far from being polarisingly funky. Very drinkable, with citrus fruit and some of the savoury, herby flavours which make orange wine so gluggable. You’ll have to look out for that, as a 250ml can is obviously a third of a bottle. Somehow from a can it doesn’t feel like that though, and I’d drunk the full can in a quick sitting.
I’m sure you’ll be spotting these everywhehre in picnic totes and parks across London in the coming warmer months. They’ll certainly be in mine. They’re £6.50 a pop.
I’m such a fan of Clapton Craft and Gnarly Vines, as you can probably tell from their frequent mentions in this newsletter. If you’re into interesting drinks, keep an eye out on anything they launch, it’s pretty much guaranteed to be well thought out, high quality and most importantly, very tasty. I’m yet to try this collaboration, but it’s high up my list to try.
Find the full range of cans here and here, and more about the brand here.
Product Spots
Haeckels Innovation Subscription Box
Haeckels is probably the closest the UK has to a homegrown Aesop, complete with the pronunciation conundrum. Is it “Hackels”, “Heeckels” or a “Hayckles”, “Eesop” or “Asop”. The Haeckels stores in Margate and London are great examples of retail design, and their locavore-style product development ethos really pushes the boundaries, with some packaging even being home compostable. Most of their products are based on seaweed, harvested by hand just metres from their Margate store. It’s a great brand, with beautiful design that is deservedly finding fans overseas too. Their massive soap bars smell amazing and last a good while too.
They recently launched a subscription box which includes rare items that are not usually available to buy, along with a main collection product and other random treats for £28/month. Included in the subscription is a 15% discount code for all orders on the site too. Probably predictably, demand for this deal seems to have been huge, and they’ve now had to implement a waiting list to join up. So if you’re a fan and want to try their products before anyone else, sign up!
Join the waiting list here.
adidas Terrex x and wander
Another Gorpcore collaboration for you! This time from adidas Terrex and Japanese outdoor brand, and wander and featuring ankle high hiking trainers, fleeces, raincoats, t-shirts, trousers and a backpack. The rain jackets look great, and I like the men’s fleece too. See the full range here.
Stubble & Co Backpacks
Instagram must be listening in on me again. Despite turning off microphone access, its adverts are uncannily accurate and timed suspiciously soon after conversations I’ve had about needing particular products, like a new backpack for weekend trips. One of these ads was from a backpack brand called Stubble & Co. A quick look at their site and I like the look of their bags - waterproof, lots of pockets, laptop compartment etc. The Roll Top looks great, and isn’t crazily expensive either.
More info here.
Passione Vino
Passione Vino is a 100% Italian wine bar on Leonard Street, just around the corner from Old Street station. There’s no wine list, but on hand are attentive and enthusiastic staff who’ll let you try tasters until you find something you like. With black and white checkered tiles, walls with floor to ceiling shelves of wine and a funky neon light installation above the main room, it’s a welcoming little spot.
On my visit, just before 5pm it was nearly full already, but I managed to secure a perch for a quick glass as I was flying solo on this occasion. It’s very highly reviewed on Google, so at least three of the table around me seemed to be visiting tourists. I tasted a few whites/oranges and went for a "Leukò" Vino Bianco, A'vita (2020) from Calabria. It was nice and dry with sweet citrus flavours, but also a bit of salty earthiness.
There’s a huge selection, so I could easily imagine spending a happy night sampling lots of wines here, and they also serve food, which is in their words “solid, unpretentious, proper Venetian Grandma’s inspired food.” Sounds ace to me. It’s certainly on my list for another visit with a group of fellow wine lovers.
More info here.