In this week’s Uncorked episode, Polly Hammond sits down with Diva Giles, co-owner of Beau, an award-winning wine bar and restaurant in Auckland, New Zealand. At just 26 years old, Diva and her team are flipping the script on how younger audiences engage with wine. With a 160-bottle list, minimalist marketing, and a deeply empathetic approach to customer service, Beau proves that millennials don’t hate wine—they just need wine to meet them on their terms.
A Wine Bar Run by Millennials, for Everyone
Beau’s wine list is serious—think 160 bottles, 24 by-the-glass pours, and bottles priced up to $700 NZD. But the vibe is anything but exclusive. “We’ve got 70-year-olds next to 28-year-olds,” Diva explains. “We don’t cater to one group—we build a space that makes everyone feel welcome.”
That inclusivity extends to pricing too. While many younger guests regularly order bottles in the $90–$120 range, Diva sees older guests more likely to treat themselves with high-end Burgundy less frequently. “It’s not about age—it’s about approach.”
Selling Wine Without the Wank
Diva and her team don’t use traditional wine jargon. In fact, they actively avoid it. “We just want to make it easy and chill,” she says. That means staff focus on storytelling and emotional resonance, not soil types or fermentation details. “We talk about how the wine makes you feel, or we share the story of when we first drank it.”
One example: selling a pet-nat because of a shared travel memory—not a production method. “Our staff tell real stories—sometimes it’s about the winemaker, sometimes it’s just about a moment.”
No Somms, No Problem
Despite a deep, well-curated wine list, no one on the Beau team has formal wine qualifications. And it doesn’t matter. “It’s not about how much wine you know—it’s about how well you can listen,” Diva explains. Staff are trained to taste often, ask questions, and help guests find what they love without judgment. “If someone doesn’t like the wine, we just take it back and find something better. That’s hospitality.”
Organic, Vegan, and Intentional
Beau’s younger drinkers gravitate toward wines with values, especially organic and vegan offerings. “We get asked about vegan wines a lot, and not just by younger people,” Diva says. The team makes space for classics and funky newcomers, but the throughline is intention. People want to know where their wine comes from and what it stands for, even if they’re still learning how to talk about it.
Empathy as a Business Model
Perhaps the most revolutionary part of Beau isn’t the wine list—it’s how the business operates. Diva and her co-owner Logan run the restaurant with transparency, care, and humanity. They close the doors when staff need space. They prioritize emotional well-being. They share behind-the-scenes moments on Instagram stories rather than polished posts.
“I didn’t think we were doing anything special until people started telling us it was,” Diva says. “But we just treat people with care—our staff, our customers, ourselves.”
Minimalist Marketing, Maximum Word-of-Mouth
Beau doesn’t advertise. Their website is sparse. They don’t use Facebook. They don’t run ads. Their only channel is Instagram, and even there, they post primarily to Stories. “We just want people to feel like they’re bumping into us online the same way they would in real life,” Diva explains. “It’s not curated or perfect because we’re not curated or perfect.”
Key Takeaways from Polly and Diva’s Conversation
- Empathy drives everything: Whether it’s guest service or team management, Beau is proof that kindness and care aren’t just values—they’re business strategies.
- Wine knowledge isn’t a prerequisite: Beau proves that hospitality and emotional intelligence matter more than certifications when selling wine to diverse audiences.
- Millennials do drink wine—often: Younger guests at Beau regularly purchase bottles in the $90–$120 range and are open to trying new styles, especially if it comes with a story.
- Stop talking down to people: “You don’t sell wine by making someone feel stupid,” Diva says. Instead, her team treats guests like peers on a shared journey.
- Marketing doesn’t have to be complicated: Beau grew without a budget. Community, storytelling, and authenticity fueled the brand—more than any strategy could.
As Polly puts it, “If we want to sell wine to millennials, we need to stop trying to teach them and start trying to understand them.” Beau offers a compelling model for what that looks like—one bottle, one story, one act of empathy at a time.
If you want to learn more about today’s guest, you can by visiting: www.beauponsonby.co.nz/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/beauwinebar/
