Departures Australia Spring 2016

BLACKBOOK U R B A N P R

BLACKBOOK U R B A N P R I M E R HETEROCLITO In any other city, this location would be a Starbucks: in Athens, it’s a cracking little bar with serious Greek wines and a few tables on the street. Charming, knowledgeable service, with wines to take away at retail prices. $ heteroclito.gr BY THE GLASS Elegantly housed on one side of a pretty colonnade near Omonia Square, the spacious bar has more than 50 wines on tap (the clue’s in the name) and another 200 or so by the bottle. The food is excellent as well. bytheglass.gr OINOSCENT A great place to explore the full gamut of Greek wines: let one of its clued-up staff take you through a tutored tasting, or sit on the pleasant terrace with a glass of moschofilero and watch the world go by. oinoscent.com FABRICA DE VINO The trendsetter of the city's new-wave wine bars, opened way back in 2011 just off Omonia Square, is home to moody lighting, loud music (tranquillity can be found in the basement), eccentric decor and a long, great-value wine list. It is open until 3am on weekends, a feature fully embraced by Athens hipsters. $ fabricadevino.gr BRETTOS BAR In the heart of touristy Plaka, and more famous for its extraordinary, technicolour selection of spirits and liqueurs than for its 200-strong wine list, Brettos is an Athenian institution and no visit to the city would be complete without trying a glass of something here. brettosplaka.com Low-lit interiors at the subterranean Hamam Jazz Bar Dispatch PRISTINA’S NEW BEAT Moving beyond its conflict-ridden past, Kosovo’s capital is embracing the spontaneous harmonies of jazz like nowhere else in Europe, says ROB CROSSAN Outside, there may be sagging telegraph wires and potholes in the road, but inside the Hamam Jazz Bar (+377 44 222 289) a new kind of sound, that of trumpets and snare drums, is replacing the disquieting soundtrack of Kosovo’s past, from bullets to overhead war planes. Pristina, the diminutive capital of this tiny » CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: © HETEROCLITO, © BRETTOS BAR, © FABRICA DE VINO, LAURA STEVENS, © OINOSCENT, LEFTERIS PARTSALIS 30 DEPARTURES-INTERNATIONAL.COM CONTACT PLATINUM CARD SERVICE FOR BOOKINGS