Juniper
There’s a new sophisticated yet laidback wine bar to chill out in Bangsar. It’s a cosy place where you can indulge in some really fine wines and learn a thing or two about some new wines. La Cave is conveniently located along Jalan Telawi 5 (just opposite Guardian Pharmacy) and the founders are truly passionate about bringing in the finest wines for all to enjoy (there is even ‘Halal’ wine!).
La Cave means the “The Cellar” in French and that is what the founders, Florian Paul Raymond from France and Donnie Eugene Maclary from the US want their customers to feel when they walk in. La Cave is designed as a quintessential European wine bar in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur. Here, you can take your time to unwind and dine on cheese platters to pizzas. They carry wines from 14 different countries as well as Halal wines to provide diversity for the Malaysian market. Being importers as well, they have wines ranging from RM50 all the way up to RM400 with 200 labels. The walls of La Cave are lined with all sorts of labels, you are spoilt for choice here and you will have a hard time deciding which one to try first.
Some information on La Cave founders:-
Florian Paul Raymond is a Frenchman who was born into a family of winemakers (4th generation) from the Madiran region of Southwest France. With a Bachelor in Oenology and Viticulture with a specialisation in “organic and biodynamic” wines as well as another Bachelor from INSEEC, a prestigious wine business school in Bordeaux, France, in the business and marketing of wine and spirits, Florian has been in the wine business for as long as he can remember. Mentored by Alain Brumont, owner of Chateau Montus and Bouscasse, Florian advised, trained, sold and distributed wines in Vietnam for almost 2 years before relocating to Singapore where he worked for a premium Italian wine dispensing system, selling to an international clientele across Southeast Asia. Florian has imported and distributed wine for the past 5 years in Malaysia. A true wine connoisseur, he hopes to share his knowledge and experience of New World and Old World wines with Asia’s growing market of wine lovers.
Florian crossed the world being in France Madiran (first winemaking fortified wine with “Tannat”), Saint Chinian (Languedoc, thesis on organic and biodynamic wine), Morocco (thesis on the micro oxygenation on the grape ‘Syrah’) and in Australia (Connowarra) learn more about the Cabernet Sauvignon grape.
Donnie Eugene Maclary is from the United States where he grew up on the beaches of Virginia. He has always had the spirit of an entrepreneur. In fact he has been working since the age of 12 starting his first business as a landscaper. In his teens he was an Ocean Rescue Lifeguard protecting the shores of Virgina. While in college he was a national level swimmer. Most of his adult life was spent served in the US Army. Where he has served in Iraq, Kuwait and Korea as Combat Medic and Operations Officer.
While getting his MBA he did a case study on Southeast Asia which was the first time he thought about heading to Malaysia. After thinking it over for more than a year he decided to get out of the Army and move to Malaysia with just a bag of clothes and three surfboards.
Donnie was only in Malaysia not even a year before he felt Malaysia specifically Kuala Lumpur was home because of the easy accessibility of great beaches and surf breaks. Luckily, one of his co-workers was a rugby player because of it wasn’t for this him and Florian would have never met. After playing with a local rugby team Florian and Donnie found out that they shared a lot of the same passions especially for good wine and socialising. So they decided to invest in themselves and La Cave was made a reality.
