Drury Lane in London has welcomed Damn Yankee, a wine bar and shop owned and run by Jen Avina.
Avina had a decade of wine and hospitality experience in her native Los Angeles before moving to London with her husband five years ago. With the ambition of eventually running her own business, Avina spent time working at Bottle Apostle, Philglas & Swiggot and Drop before officially taking on her new premises, which was previously a branch of Drop, in March.
“When I left LA, that was the goal,” she says. “I knew I wanted a retail and wine bar space. I had the experience and I was ready to do it. It was just about timing and finding the right location, but finally the stars aligned and I was able to take the space over from the Drop guys. It was a quick turnaround, and I officially opened on May 19.”
Before reopening as Damn Yankee, Avina ensured her premises had maximum visual impact by securing the services of street artist Lula Goce.
“Lula is a really impressive artist,” says Avina. “Her work is all over the world, in New York, Miami, California, Berlin and all over Spain, but this is her first piece in London.
“We were pretty chuffed to get her. The feedback has been very positive: we’ve had so many compliments from the locals about how we have done something for the street and elevated the neighbourhood. It’s been quite humbling to be so well received.”
The wine range will focus on minority and female producers where possible and, while there will be wines from all over the world, there is likely to be a bias towards American wine.
“We’re hoping by next year to be able to start doing some direct importing ourselves and I’m excited by that possibility,” says Avina. “I grew up in Los Angeles and I spent a lot of time in Santa Barbara and that’s where I fell in love with wine. To be able to bring some of my home here would be very special to me.
“The UK is such a great consumer of wine, especially the younger audience who are so much more open to what is out there. People want to try stuff from all over the world and they’re very adventurous. It’s almost like travelling around the world; you can drink the wine and pair it with the right food to have that experience. I find that all very romantic.”
Not just a pretty shop front, Damn Yankee has already embedded itself further into the neighbourhood by supporting local charities.
“It’s really important for us to create a space that is very inclusive to everyone,” says Avina. “Even though we’re quite new, we did a Pride event with Mosaic Trust and over Christmas we’ll be donating care packages to [homelessness charity] St Mungo’s, which is just around the corner from us. We want to make sure that we’re giving back and being a positive part of the community.”
