BEIRUT: “Wine is the new alcohol,†says Michel Gibran, who, along with his business partner Tommy Tabib co-owns a wine bar, L’Osteria, in the emerging Beirut district of Mar Mikhael. Despite the enduring popularity of arak and beer, Gibran was not worried about attracting customers when the bar was opened two years ago.
“Lebanon was the first country to make wine. Lebanese people like wine,†he states simply.