This is where Lupé Wines come in. The idea for single-serve wines struck Georgia Beattie, founder of the product, at the 2008 Melbourne Music Festival where she was told that wine was unavailable because it was too difficult to serve, mainly due to the health and safety concerns involved with glassware. Beattie was studying an Entrepreneurship Degree at RMIT at the time and wrote an extensive market analysis and business plan to market a single-serve glass of wine. And the rest, as they say, was history, as Lupé got off the ground when Beattie met James Nash, a UK entrepreneur who also came up with the single-serve concept but whose pitch was rejected by the TV show Dragon’s Den.

Lupé fittingly means ‘lone wolf’ in Latin and the wines currently available in the single serve collection were selected by the Beattie family, who are themselves wine connoisseurs and winemakers. There are currently four choices available, with the New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and Victorian Rosé chosen for a daytime light lunch, and the Victorian Chardonnay and Coonawarra Shiraz picked to go with dinner.

Naysayers might dismiss of the novel invention as a travesty and argue that wine should and could only be enjoyed from the bottle. But Beattie says there are plenty of benefits beyond that of outdoor festivals. “I’m often outdoors enjoying BBQs and picnics with friends, I’ve always found wine incredibly frustrating to serve outdoors. Now there isn’t a chance of me breaking a glass,” she says.

“I can also keep track of my alcohol consumption as the standard drinks are clearly marked on the side of the glass.”

We’ll let you be the judge. Lupé Wines will be launched soon at Kubik, the new open-air music arena at Birrarung Marr installed for Melbourne Music Week.

lupéwines.com.au