The plan to open a retail business in Sydney specialising in wine & food-related antiques had been an idea of wine enthusiast John Cunnington for decades.
From a large old wooden box of corkscrews, a collection of early drinking glasses & decanters, years of interest in wine-related antiques & Australian wine & its history, The Art of Wine & Food opened in Sydney in 1990. The business soon became a favourite for 'foodies' & chefs from around the world. Local wineries, food stylists, 'props' buyers, & collectors of old menus, corkscrews, early glassware, cookbooks, decanters, champagne coolers, absinthe-related material, vineyard implements, copper cooking pots, or books on winemaking & viticulture became regulars. In the past three decades a number of memorable items have flowed through the business. These included a well-provenanced 19th century duck press identical to the first one used at La Tour d'Argent, a full-size cider press from Normandy, first edition books by Escoffier, absinthe glasses featured in the movie Moulin Rouge, two complete sets of cooper's tools sold to a local vineyard & Air France posters by Roger Bezombes. Today areas of interest include foie gras, the truffle, early books on viticulture and winemaking, old menus, the history of the duck press, absinthe, champagne ephemera, Les Chevaliers du Tastevin, 19th century French faience with culinary themes & Australian wine ephemera. |