Bar Crawl - Sane is Islington's new sake and wine bar, from a hugely talented sommelier

The shop and bar at SANE

So this is the second sommelier-run wine bar to open in London in as many months?

It's true, SANE does have some definite similarities with Ebi in Clerkenwell. Both have been opened by sommeliers at the top of their game. Here, the man behind it is Maxime Maiano, who has a CV as long as your arm. Most recently, he curated the sake and no-and-low programme for Row on 5 for Jason Atherton. He also built the list at the Michelin-starred (but now closed) Somssi at the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair.

A proud Maxime and one of the wines he's made himself.

Where is this one?

You'll find it in Islington, on Camden Passage. It's taken over the site of another short-lived wine bar, Must, and is only a five-minute walk from Angel tube.

Good news for any wine bar opening in London this summer: SANE has both air conditioning and a terrace. 

And they're doing both wine and sake?

Yes, they say this is London's first dedicated sake and wine bar. And while there are obviously plenty of premium sakes to try here, you'll also find some amazing wine too, including some that Maxime himself is responsible for. Unlike many other sommeliers, he's actually walked the walk, having been responsible for blending his own wines.

So it's a good wine list?

Of course, and its focus is on small producers that Maxime knows personally. But what makes this list just as noteworthy is that as an importer, SANE benefits from lower costs, which they can then pass on to you, the guest. Every wine on the shelves can either be bought to take away, or you pay just £15 extra to have them in.

What's on offer in terms of food?

There's actually a surprisingly expansive menu, making this much more than just a bar snacks offering. And the menu continues the partnership between Europe and Japan. So you'll find olives and mixed nuts alongside Japanese rice crackers and Kyoto cucumber (the must-order snack). We also tried the following:

Roasted pepper dip with gochujang is served with their Italian flatbreads (£7)

Salmon aburi with an orange, yuzu and wasabi sauce (£10)

Nasu Dengaku (£7) hands-down some of the best miso-glazed aubergine we've had in London for a while. The texture was so good.

Room for dessert?

We swerved dessert for a cheese pairing with sake instead. Maple Lau is Sane's sake specialist and she and Maxime have put a list of sakes and sojus that are available by the glass, carafe and bottle.

If you want to try a few, then the cheese and sake pairing is the one to go for. That's £15.00 for the sake flight, and the three cheeses are an extra £10. Yoigokochi Yuzu was a citrus sake (£14 for 100ml) that went really well with the goat's cheese. Then we tried Kinka, an unpasteurised sake from the Yoshida Sake Brewery in Daiginjo (£15 for 100ml) to pair with the Manchego, and finally red rice Junmai sake from Ine Mankai (£19 for 100ml) to accompany the Colston Bassett.

Our sake and cheese pairing plate. 

Anything else we should know?

Yes, there's a huge space downstairs complete with tasting room and private dining that would be a great space for parties if you and your friends love your wine.

The tasting table downstairs

Overall thoughts:

If you're looking for a new London wine bar to try out that's a little bit different to everything else out there right now, then SANE is the place to go. Maxime has surrounded himself with like-minded, experienced hospitality folk who are all about making sure you're having the best time. It's a stellar addition to this part of Islington and well worth a look.