The building is striking even before you enter. The facade of the Thonik building is based on the ‘Mexcellent’ typeface designed for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City: black and white, loud and pronounced. Inside, it's the exact opposite. Bottleshop has a minimalist interior in Japanese and Scandinavian style, with quiet lines and few frills. That contrast works.
Owner Seger Abels built a menu of more than 350 natural wines, all imported through Sec Wines. Formally, the menu is by the bottle, but if you ask for a glass, sommelier Niels simply pours based on what you want to drink. At least 30 percent of the selection consists of low-intervention or natural wines, but in practice the entire selection is along those lines. Abels also hosts regular vinyl parties where winemakers from abroad come to spin. Music, wine, the makers themselves at the table: the idea is that you get to know the people behind the bottles.
The space sits on the first floor of the Thonik building, designed by Studio Thonik. Inside, you can see the Japanese and Scandinavian influence in every detail: clean materials, little color, lots of tranquility. It feels like a place where you can pull open a bottle without someone explaining something you didn't ask. At the same time, the knowledge is there if you ask.
Abels regularly hosts vinyl parties where winemakers from abroad come to spin: music, wine, the makers themselves at the table.
Wibautstraat has gotten a lot in recent years: hotels, offices, new construction. Bottleshop fits into that change, but does its own thing. It's in one of the most recognizable buildings on the street, and from the inside you sense that there is someone behind it who knows what he wants. Not a trendy concept that will be gone in two years. Just good wine, good food, and the occasional winemaker putting on a record.