After working as distributors and agents for natural winemakers (Farid Yahimi, Vanessa Letort, Adrien Delval, etc.), night owls Julien Mercier and Aurélien Salomé embarked on an early morning adventure on Rue Riquet, transforming their wine storage space into a lovely little neighborhood café. Saddled up at the bar, around a pile of boxes or seated on the bench outside, early or late morning risers sip on a cup of joe (drip coffee, served sans sugar, at the pairs’ insistence) made using a Moccamaster, and as soon as apéro hour strikes (no matter the actual time of day), wines made by their friends get popped open for the bottle price plus an €8 corkage fee – P’tit Nouveau, a grolleau from Vincent Wallard (€17), Guet-Apens, an Alsatian white blend from Vanessa Letort (€20)… Need something to sponge it all up? There are eggs on toast (scrambled, seasoned with coarse salt and olive oil) served with cow’s milk tomme cheese, creamy panisse fritters, aged Savoie and Auvergne cheese plates with jam, deviled eggs, grilled cheese sandwiches, etc. // Sofia Sétif 

THE BULLET-PROOF BOTTLE: Sauvage, the Alsatian vintage from the aforementioned winemaker Farid Yahimi, the man behind the Sons of Wine winery (€19).