10 years of Vintage Roots
Here at Grow, every decision we make is driven by our fundamental founding principles: people and planet before profit. It’s why we pay London Living Wage, why we’re powered by solar power and green energy, and why we commit to accessible ticket prices for all of our events.
Aside from all of the theoretical and conceptual matters, though, of course: we are a bar and venue. So every decision to partner with a supplier undergoes a team examination of the brand’s ethos, size, and - who could forget? - taste.
Every product you find at Grow has a deliberate story and has been actively curated as to how it matches our experiment in ethical business. We’re proud of what we have on offer, and we’d love to help you try it!
We have recently celebrated our Tin Anniversary (10 years!) working with wine supplier Vintage Roots. Chris Dormer of Vintage Roots is equally excited about our relationship.
“We have been working with Grow since 2015, and it has always felt like a very natural partnership. There is a genuine alignment in values, particularly around sustainability, thoughtful sourcing and supporting independent producers. It has always felt like more than just a supplier relationship; there is a shared approach to how things should be done.”
[Editor’s note: Listen, we’re not all that with it with all the wine lingo so a glossary will be below! We want you to demystify the wine world, so that everyone can approach a wine list with confidence.]
Part of that celebration includes a new batch of wines each season, to focus on a specific and dynamic vintner or co-operative négociant.
This Spring, and for a limited time, we are hosting the Mitchlits family’s phenomenal Meinklang estate wines. A chilled red Mulatschak, sparkling wine made in a very old, natural way (Pét-nat, short for pétillant naturel), and a natural orange Weisser Mulatschak, all three capture the essence of the holistic philosophy that is so much a central core of Meinklang’s biodynamism. This is integrative agriculture that nourishes the land as it nurtures production.
We’ll let the expert (Chris!) chime in again:
“Our wines come from organic and biodynamic producers who farm with long-term sustainability in mind. This means healthier soils, better biodiversity, and wines that reflect where they come from in a more honest and expressive way. Just as importantly, it is about the people behind them, many of the producers we work with are small, family-run estates who are deeply connected to their land.”
“Working with Grow feels like a natural extension of what we do. It is a great platform to showcase wines with a story behind them and to engage with customers who are genuinely interested in where their products come from. That makes a real difference, both for us and for the producers we represent.”
Our entire wine-list at Grow is organic and supported by Vintage Roots’ unique “vine to lips carbon offset” environmental policy, which is only a part of their B-Corp certified business practice.
If you’re interested in learning more about Grow’s ethical vision, taste some phenomenal wine, and hear directly from Vintage Roots about our working relationship, please visit Grow on May 10thfor our Hackney Council-support Sustainability Fair.. We wanted to create a community of sustainable businesses, creatives, and ethical practice. Come and see what that means for us.
Glossary:
Négociant - the French term for a wine merchant who assembles the produce of smaller growers and winemakers and sells the result under its own name. Some of our seasonal specials come from collectives of small-acreage farmers who form cooperatives to manufacture and sell their wines. It is an older form of winemaking that is rooted in community, and which Wine Merchant Berry Bro’s & Rudd call “the answer to one of the wine industry’s most pressing ethical questions of the last few years: social sustainability.” Neat, huh?
Mulatschak - don’t worry this isn’t an obscure wine term. “Mulatschak” is a Hungarian slang term meaning “party” or “celebration”. True of the Meinklang wines at Grow, and the nights that follow!
Biodynamism - We’re not talking about astrological sowing. For us, biodynamism means the treatment of animals, crops, and soil as a single system. At the Meinklang estate, livestock roams freely around the vineyards, acting as natural pest control and soil treatment agents. Think of it as advanced companion planting. Sounds simple, but it is an ecological cheat-code that is underused. (Unlike the one I’d use on Sims 4. (Other gaming behemoths are available.)