Member Article

Brand-new wine bar Vagabond opens in Birmingham City Centre

Colmore Row’s newest resident – wine bar, Vagabond – is opening its doors this weekend, serving up the finest wines by the glass (or the bottle). The multi-award-winning experiential bar sees guests pick and pour from over 100 wines, all stored in its innovative wine dispensers. Most impressively, its dispensers are controlled via its phone app or a Vagabond card, unlocking a journey of wine discovery unlike any other.

The first taste of Vagabond outside of London, the Birmingham bar brings the brand’s signature vibe to 92-98 Colmore Row and boasts space for 200. What’s more, the bar even features a hidden private tasting room for 20 in the building’s former bank vault, which will be available for private bookings from mid-November.

Its state-of-the-art wine dispensers allow guests to select from over 100 wines, sample a 25ml measure to find the perfect match, before self-serving medium or large glasses all at the click of a button. After the wine is poured, those using the app will have tasting notes available on their phones so they can learn as they sip; creating an interactive experience, the app even allows you to rate your wine, so that it can recommend others that suit your style.

In a bid to make wine discovery simpler, the wines are grouped by flavour-profile - rather than grape or vintage - encouraging visitors to try different varieties and find new favourites. Better still, a majority of the wines on offer are sourced by the in-house sommeliers, from small, independent wineries around the world, meaning they are often exclusive to Vagabond in the UK.

Speaking about what Birmingham can expect, Colin Thorne, wine buyer at Vagabond, comments:

“The Vagabond experience is truly about discovery and helping people to fall in love with wine. So much of the time, wine is seen as something to be studied or something that people show-off about; we want to change that and make wine-tasting accessible, interesting, and fun!

“There are so many gems amongst the wine list that we’ve crafted, all focusing on our ethos of sourcing interesting wines from little known grapes, producers and regions. It also includes my personal favourites: our own range of Vagabond wines, which we make ourselves in London. I am certain that we have a wine for every palate, every occasion, and everyone, and I’m excited to raise a glass (or two!) with Birmingham.”

Vagabond’s own range is made in its very own Urban Winery, located in Battersea Power Station, and will be available by the glass or the bottle in Birmingham. Launched in 2018, Vagabond’s Urban Winery creates wines with minimum intervention to make sure that the wine crafting process is as natural as possible, resulting in five different English wines including a selection of still whites, a rosé, an English red wine, and a natural sparkling wine.

For those looking for something different to wine, Vagabond does not disappoint: there will also be a selection of 10 self-pour local draught beers, hand-selected spirits, and an expertly crafted cocktail menu. Added to this, the bar will also serve food, including cheese and charcuterie boards, pizzas and an amazing steak sharer and fries.

Vagabond’s Managing Director, Matt Fleming, who grew up in Birmingham, expressed his delight at the opening of the new bar, saying:

“We’re so unbelievably excited to have our newest bar opening in Birmingham. We’ve wanted to expand the Vagabond name for some time now, and the city has always been my first-choice for our first non-London bar. Aside from my own personal love for the city, Birmingham is a cultural hub that is host to one of the best food and drink scenes in the UK. The recent growth of the sector here is really exciting, and we know there is so much that we can bring to the wine-loving residents of this beautiful city.

“We cannot wait to bring the Vagabond experience to the people of Birmingham. Wine discovery is such a big part of our lives here at Vagabond, and we love nothing more than sharing that same passion with the guests that enter our bars. We really hope to share that same love for wine with the people of this wonderful city and look forward to what the future holds.”

Vagabond Birmingham will be open seven days a week and will begin serving this weekend.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Lucy West .