Review 2020

Head sommelier, Julien Sahut was born in the city of Clermont Ferrand at France’s centre, home to the corporate HQ of Michelin tyres. “It’s known more known for cheese and ham than wine,” he says. Formerly of Auberge du Pommier, Toronto, and in London, Hibiscus and China Tang, Sahut, who has been at the venue since the launch, leads a five-strong sommelier army dispensing ferments. These are led by white wines such as the ever-popular white Chinese Cabernet from fantastical Ningxia estate, Moser XV, the restaurant’s own-blended house Sancerre, and limpid Japanese Koshu from Grace Winery. Red wines, meanwhile, may include Seña, Lynch-Bages and Stag’s Leap by the glass or carafe.

Newly expanded is the dazzling selection of Dom Pérignon, be it as a methuselah of 15-year-old “Luminous” or the rare Plenitude P2 from 1996. Other sparklers include Piper-Heidsieck’s Le Secret Goldsmith Edition in magnum, and Billecart-Salmon’s legendary Le Clos Saint-Hilaire as well as Hampshire rosé from Coates & Seely.

Dishes, by head chef, Bjorn Weissburder (formerly of Zuma) may include a snack of wagyu gunkan with miso and black truffle, salad of king crab and udon noodles, and USDA rib eye with seaweed butter. These may find harmony alongside the significant sake selection, or perhaps with a pick from the voluminous Japanese whisky collection, as well as the explorative and classic wine list.

During the lockdown, with co-founder, Josselin Guibert, Sahut continued to refine his third business, “Wine Picker”, an initiative to help wine producers sell more wine online while keeping buyers’ details via their own websites using location-based “chatbots”. The entrepreneur previously founded “Jumijam”, crafting and selling such delights as pineapple and rum jam online and in person. However, the latter did not always prove a gratifying experience. “I remember spending seven hours selling homemade crêpes with homemade jam at Herne Hill market and still making a loss of £7 when the stall’s rent was taken out!”

Instagram: @sexyfishlondon

By Douglas Blyde.

Review 2019

Not applicable.

Review 2018

Not applicable.

Review 2016/17

This is a serious list for seriously deep-pocketed people. A pantheon of the best wines from all the important wine-producing regions of the world, including Burgundy, Bordeaux and Rhône from pretty much all the best recent vintages, stare out at you with the monolithic self-assurance of Moai statues. ‘I am great and I am here. Your move,’ they seem to say.

Head sommelier Julien Sahut (formerly of Hibiscus and China Tang) has put together a well-calibrated selection of around 25 wines by the glass, including six blockbuster whites and reds by Coravin. 125ml of Château Palmer ’95 from Magnum can be yours for an even ton if you don’t have time or money or inclination to commit to a bottle.

While ‘bargain’ is not really in the lexicon of the (reportedly) £20m splurge that is Sexy Fish, something approaching decent value can be found among the New World offerings. Adi Badenhorst’s Secateurs white (£42), won’t break the bank, for example.

And at the top end? Woo haa. Romanée-Conti ’04 for £13k a bottle, Jeroboams of Mouton-Rothschild ’86 at £10.5k, Methusalehs of DP ’95 for £7k – fill your Gucci boots.

While it would be nice to see a bit more superstar Riesling given the Japanese fusion flavours on the food menu, the small but high-quality selection of hot and cold sakes – including the super-deluxe Junmai Daiginjo Super 7 – compensates.

Head somm Julien has plenty of plans in the pipeline, as he told Wine List Confidential: increasing the number of Champagnes, especially mature vintages, introducing producer profiles and showing their best vintages and cuvees, bringing in more large formats, offering exciting verticals and magnums by Coravin, and a greater focus on lesser-known regions and unusual wines.

If you’re rolling in it and looking for a crazy, carefree lubrication in Mayfair, Sexy Fish might just be the mermaid for you.

By Darren Smith