In this new city guide, we take wine enthusiasts – that’s you - to Amsterdam so that you can meet the people with the fine-tuned palates – the sommeliers, wine merchants and chefs – who put on the feast. The ones who, just like Crozes-Hermitage, have a taste for good wine and care about friendship! Admittedly, the city is not the first in our line-up of getaways (Paris, Brussels, London, Berlin, Stockholm, Copenhagen…) but it is incredibly endearing and brimming with vibrant energy. Amsterdam here we come!
Amsterdam’s wine bars
A selection of 9 wine bars in Amsterdam’s most on-trend districts: Jordaan, Amsterdam Noord, De Pijp, Amsterdam Oost…
Every part of Amsterdam, but usually off the well-trodden tourist path, is home to wine bars with huge curb appeal that are often a cross between a bar, an eatery and a wine store. You meet few tourists here – most of the patrons are locals drawn to the positively bohemian spirit and the thorough sourcing, both for the wines and what’s on the plate.
Behind the counter, young, open-minded professionals with a sharp palate are busy serving a selection of wines that are invariably very personal to them, and feature a great choice of Crozes-Hermitage!
“Young Dutch people want to drink wines that are good... but in a cool way!”
Thijs Van Vugt, wine merchant
Amsterdam's restaurants
The culinary scene in Amsterdam is constantly heating up. Great venues abound and Amsterdam is now firmly on the food map.
Amsterdam long had a reputation for being a gastronomic wasteland. But that was then. Now, the culinary line-up is impressive, offering a mix of trailblazers and a highly motivated upcoming generation.
Depending on the venues, the sources of inspiration vary, drawing both on the country's roots (regional produce, fishing industry) and influences from far and wide, which is exactly what you would expect of a city that combines a powerful sense of identity with an unmistakable cosmopolitan edge.
“In Amsterdam, Crozes-Hermitage is always on the wine list of my favourite restaurants!”
Harold Hamersma, author of the De Grote Hamersma
Déborah Schilperoort
The owner of the aptly named wine store Au Paradis – or In Heaven - has something angelic about her, like a messenger from the gods. But her god is Bacchus!
As the last rays of sunlight linger over the trellis on the façade walls, Joris, her partner, puts a plate of liver sausage, an Amsterdam speciality, on the table. Déborah then uncorks a bottle of wine and recounts their story. “Five years ago, we started importing a few wines ourselves. We only work with French winegrowers, either organic or biodynamic, and always buy straight from them. It's a very deliberate choice, and matches our tastes and our beliefs, because we want to know and meet the winegrowers. We want to understand their approach, their vision”. In a city that is still too sensible sometimes, Déborah and Joris see themselves as mouthpieces for a particular vision of wine.
“We must continue to introduce people to wine and convince them. Wine needs to be talked about, it has a story to tell. That narrative and task of conveying the story is our job. And I think things are really starting to change here in Amsterdam. In years to come, we will feel these changes even more strongly”. Night has now fallen on the Lijnbaansgracht as Bob Dylan's voice resounds like a distant echo from the sky: “Trying to get to heaven before they close the door”. The door of Au Paradis is not closed yet – here, there is always time to open another bottle. And outside, the timeless steeple of the Westerkerk continues to watch over the Jordaan...
Joris Bijdendijk
Known in France for his stint on Top Chef, the classy chef at the Riks and the Wils is also a passionate activist, and intends to take his country's culinary traditions to new heights.
In France, he did a stint with the Pourcel brothers in Montpellier, at the Clos des Sens in Annecy and even during season 4 of Top Chef. After his gourmet equivalent of Erasmus, back in his native country, the exuberant Joris Bijdendijk has experienced a meteoric rise to the top, placing him at the forefront of the new generation of Dutch chefs.
After earning his first Michelin star at Bridges, he really got into his stride at the Rijks, the Rijksmuseum restaurant where his performance is impressive. With another Michelin star under his belt, he also proved that you can serve 130 people every day but still provide top-notch cuisine.
His iconic beetroot, tomasu, white butter and sunflower oil millefeuille is even regarded as the emblem of a style of gourmet, upbeat Dutch cuisine that has successfully reconnected with its roots. But for Joris, this is not the end of the road. Since October, he has also been a part of Wils, the new venture he heads up. “Rijks will always be my baby, I'll always be there, but here I can try other things”, he explains. “Friso Van Amerongen and Erwin Oudijk handle the cooking on a daily basis, but we work as a team. Also, the cooking range has been fitted around the old Godin wood stove I brought from my parents' house in the country. My cuisine is also about roots!”
Elske Mostert
The self-taught sommelier, who now sets the tone for Maris Piper's wine list, is the tacit ambassador for the new generation of Dutch sommeliers.
Maybe it’s because her origins go back to the city of Gouda, Elske Mostert is a sommelier with just one metaphorical compass - taste. Petty regional quarrels are like water off a duck’s back to Elske. “The main thing is the wine, and the men and women who make it. Those are the cues for my choices and that's what I want to pass on to others. The only questions I ask myself are: is this wine meaningful? Does it have an energy unto itself? Can it converse with the chef's cuisine?”
Elske has been a member of the Breda Group for four years and now oversees the wine list in the various locations belonging to the group founded by Guillaume De Beer, Johanneke Van Iwaarden and Freek Van Noortwijk, which include the Maris Piper. She also helps the front-of-house staff become well-versed in food pairings. “We want our entire team to be able to talk about the wines and proffer advice depending on the desired pairing... And we do this in a very friendly way, by sharing our impressions of the wines among ourselves. This is another way of passing on knowledge”.
Guillaume De Beer, Johanneke Van Iwaarden
& Freek Van Noortwijk
In less than five years, these three have become “ring-leaders” blurring the boundaries of taste, in a good way.
The three are lifelong friends turned wine and food fanatics. Their story in Amsterdam began in 2015 when Guts, their first venue at the top of the bustling Utrechtsestraat, opened. Very soon, they became second-time offenders, opening a neo-bistro-style venue: Breda, named after the city where they grew up. Breda truly is a great place. Guillaume, who attends to the cooking, concocts remarkably well-judged locavore cuisine. The food is impeccable – it sits deftly balanced on the tightrope of modernity, is never pretentious and always generous. The recipe is a success and there is a constant line-up of willing pundits.
Since then, the trio has rolled out more projects. And has inspired others, spreading a new mood across the entire city, fuelled by quality sourcing that values the country’s different regions. “We didn't really plan all this”, admits Johanneke. “Our priority was to follow our heart and not ask ourselves too many questions. And although we are now a group with several restaurants and over 80 employees, we have never made any concessions on quality or consistency”. Freek concurs: “We're old friends, we can tell each other everything without having to tiptoe around. When something doesn't work, we change. There are no issues with pride”.
Daphne Oudshoorn
At just 32, the female sommelier of 212 is already a prominent member of the Dutch sommelier profession.
Like all good students, this fan of top terroir-driven wines learnt the ropes alongside Amsterdam's finest culinary ambassadors, including Bord'eau, long a top venue along the banks of the Amstel where she worked with chef Bas van Kranen. Their collaboration was a success, pushing the concept of fine dining all the way to the ultimate level of refinement.
Here, she also met Richard Van Oostenbrugge. The couple, who dreamed of breaking away from conventions, also aspired to going it alone. The 212 is the result. Along with their friend Thomas Groot, they opened it in 2018, a few hundred metres away from Bord'eau, along the same banks of the Amstel.
“In Amsterdam, the Dutch culinary scene is still fairly classic, but patrons are increasingly willing to discover new things”. At 212, the layout - a bar surrounds the kitchen - and the service - by the chefs - leave time for the front-of-house staff to look after the guests and introduce them to the extensive wine list. “Now, we all have a bit of the sommelier in us...” For each dish, Daphne suggests several ideas for pairing with a selection of wines served by the glass, which she lists in two price ranges. “In the beginning, our suggestions were very varied, and some of them could be confusing. So we reverted back to a slightly more conventional choice, but continued to venture into new territory and always spoke about it with Richard. Because at 212, the wine is chosen primarily to match our cuisine”.
