{"id":991774,"date":"2025-07-20T16:00:53","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T13:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/?p=991774"},"modified":"2025-07-20T16:00:54","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T13:00:54","slug":"wayana-3-yasinda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/","title":{"rendered":"WAYANA TURNS 3"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

On the afternoon of Monday, July 18, 2022, we opened the doors of WAYANA. The venue itself was no stranger to us\u2014we had been running it since 2010\u2014but WAYANA felt like a newborn in our hands. With this post, we set out to share the \u201cCaptain\u2019s Log,\u201d stretching back to about a month before its birth and carrying us to the present day. But to truly tell our wine story, we thought it best to start before WAYANA.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>
\n\n\n

BUILDING A BUSINESS WITH WINE AT ITS CENTER<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before WAYANA, we had a ten-year journey with BEPPE Pizzeria. Before 2010, we were regulars at BEPPE\u2014our favorite neighborhood spot for pizza. Later, we took it over and ran it ourselves, and those years became a collection of cherished memories. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between 2010 and 2014, we pushed the boundaries of the classic pizza menu. We introduced a \u201cBeyond Ordinary\u201d section, featuring unexpected ingredients. Some of the boldest examples? Snail and eel (unagi) pizzas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once we felt confident with our creative direction in food, we turned our attention to what would complement it best\u2014and chose wine. That\u2019s when we began to understand how deep and vast the world of wine truly is. And eventually, that journey led us to create WAYANA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

OUR EARLY WINE DAYS<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We entered the wine world during a difficult time. Around that period, a nationwide alcohol advertising ban took effect. Small wineries\u2014already limited in reach\u2014suddenly had no way to promote themselves. Even tasting events, once their main avenue for visibility, became impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So we asked ourselves: how can we help?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We decided to build a wine menu where at least one bottle from each domestic winery would be represented. Our hope was to introduce our guests to producers they might otherwise never discover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To highlight this, we added a dedicated section in the wine list: \u201cProducers\u2019 Favorites.\u201d And we didn\u2019t make the selections ourselves\u2014the winemakers chose which wines they wanted to feature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By the time BEPPE closed due to the pandemic, our wine menu featured 270 wines from 70 producers. But like everyone else, our lives were dramatically altered by the global upheaval that was COVID.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE BIRTH OF WAYANA<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In June 2022, we had to decide what to do with the space we still legally owned but had left idle. We faced a clear choice: step away from the industry or give it another go. The decision to continue is what allows us to write these words today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A wine-focused concept had long been a sleeping dream for the author of this text. The uncertainty of the shop\u2019s future gave that dream the push it needed to come to life.\n

\nWe picked up right where we had left off at BEPPE, launching WAYANA with a wine list that already included 270 wines from 70 Turkish producers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At BEPPE, the kitchen workload had been intense. For WAYANA, we wanted to keep things simpler. Traditionally, the kitchen had been managed by Asuman Han\u0131m, the mother in our family team. She embraced the idea of a small-plates menu, and thus the foundation of our culinary identity was born\u2014where the richness of Turkish meze meets the Spanish tapas tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before we launched WAYANA, we invited back the team we had worked with at BEPPE. Having a crew that already knew each other made all the difference. All but one of those team members are still with us today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE STORY BEHIND THE NAME \u201cWAYANA\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naming the brand was no small matter. I explored names that reflected Anatolia\u2019s heritage\u2014Ottoman and pre-Ottoman\u2014and evoked wine.\n

\n We eventually agreed on WAYANA, a word derived from Hittite. The original form, WIYANA, was historically more accurate, but we decided against it for two reasons: first, it too closely resembled the name of the city Vienna, which could cause confusion; second, WIYANAWANDA, meaning \u201cLand of Wine,\u201d was already a registered trademark used by Likya Wines for their hotel business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I called Burak, the founder of Likya Wines, to get his blessing, then proceeded with the trademark application. In the end, we chose a name that both sounded good and honored our roots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we finalized the idea of a tapas-style menu, the team suggested giving each dish a name. We created a full menu using adapted Hittite terms, which we\u2019ve kept to this day\u2014and still love.\nWhen we opened WAYANA, we weren\u2019t sure if it would survive. We gave ourselves two years. If it couldn\u2019t stand on its own by the end of 2024, we would close it. That was the principle we began with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WAYANA\u2019S PHILOSOPHY ON WINE<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defining our service model wasn\u2019t difficult. We had spent years traveling and knew exactly what was missing. Our goal was simple: to offer what we couldn\u2019t find.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In every country we visited, we sought out places to taste local wines. We\u2019d ask the hotel concierge for suggestions, only to end up in spots that served wine\u2014but not in a way that allowed us to explore variety through tastings. Time and again, this left us disappointed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So we positioned WAYANA in that rare niche: a place where wine lovers can discover, explore, and taste Turkish wines. To achieve this, we made these commitments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Feature only Turkish producers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Strive to include all 200+ Turkish wineries<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Offer 500 wines, limited only by our space<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Serve every wine by the glass<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Serving every wine by the glass worried some on our team\u2014but we did it anyway, and never looked back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In fall 2024, we took it further: we began offering 1\/3 glass portions for tastings. Today, we are a destination for wine lovers who value exploration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We now work with 142 producers. Maintaining such a large portfolio isn\u2019t easy, but we do it with joy. And we\u2019re still on the lookout\u2014there are producers we haven\u2019t reached yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A 500-wine list, all served by the glass? It\u2019s nearly one-of-a-kind worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    OUR VIEW ON LOCAL GRAPES<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Turkey is one of the most grape-diverse countries in the world\u2014perhaps the most. Almost every year, we meet a new grape being vinified for the first time. And the thrill never fades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Back in 2014, our wine list included about 20 indigenous grape varieties. Today, we serve wines made from 72 local grapes. Being among the first to pour a wine made from a newly revived grape is a joy we find hard to put into words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Of course, our list also includes international varieties\u2014Cabernet, Chardonnay, Merlot, and others. But these aren\u2019t imported wines. These are global grapes grown in Turkish soil, processed by Turkish winemakers. And we proudly showcase their full potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    OUR INTERNATIONAL GUESTS<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nearly half of WAYANA\u2019s guests are from outside Turkey. You might have seen how much effort we\u2019ve put into social media\u2014but until now, our content was almost entirely in Turkish.\n

    \nTo mark our fourth year, we launched a brand-new Instagram account with posts exclusively in English: @wayanaistanbul\n

    \nLet\u2019s see if this new platform helps us reach more global wine lovers. We hope you\u2019ll join us there and continue this journey together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    OUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    WAYANA still hasn\u2019t reached the level of financial sustainability we aim for. In Turkey, there is a serious lack of high-quality publications about wine. One of our dreams is to contribute to filling that gap\u2014but for now, we simply don\u2019t have the resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We often discuss expanding WAYANA to other locations. But unless we find people who share our passion, we put that idea on hold. Perhaps one day, we\u2019ll find those kindred spirits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In the past, many professional wine events were held for the industry. Those days are mostly gone. So we created a micro-scale version: once a month, we host \u201cProducers at WAYANA\u201d tasting events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Each event features 15\u201320 wines from a producer, with representatives present to meet and connect with wine lovers.\n

    \nWe also care deeply about oenotourism. Many Turkish producers have invested in vineyard hotels, and we\u2019re glad to see growing interest. There\u2019s also a noticeable revival of historic wine routes. Maybe one day, WAYANA will play a more active role in wine tourism collaborations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A FINAL WORD<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We love what we do. We believe in it.\n

    \n It\u2019s thanks to the support of wine lovers like you\u2014who recognize the heart in our work\u2014that we\u2019ve come this far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We hope we have the breath, energy, and means to keep going, and to bring even more of our ideas to life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    To the glasses that brought our paths together\u2014cheers.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    2022 y\u0131l\u0131n\u0131n 18 Temmuz Pazartesi g\u00fcn\u00fc \u00f6\u011fleden sonra saatlerinde WAYANA\u2019n\u0131n kap\u0131lar\u0131n\u0131 a\u00e7t\u0131k. D\u00fckk\u00e2n uzun y\u0131llard\u0131r, 2010\u2019dan beri, i\u015fletti\u011fimiz bir yerdi, her \u015feyine a\u015finayd\u0131k ama WAYANA, sanki ana rahminden yeni \u00e7\u0131km\u0131\u015f bir bebek gibiydi ellerimizde. Bebe\u011fin do\u011fumundan yakla\u015f\u0131k bir ay \u00f6ncesinden ba\u015flay\u0131p bug\u00fcne kadar uzanan \u201cKaptan\u0131n Seyir Defteri\u201dni sizler i\u00e7in kaleme almak \u00fczere yola \u00e7\u0131kt\u0131k ama…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":991775,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-991774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nWAYANA 3 YA\u015eINDA - Wayana Wine Bar<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"WAYANA 3 YA\u015eINDA - Wayana Wine Bar\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"2022 y\u0131l\u0131n\u0131n 18 Temmuz Pazartesi g\u00fcn\u00fc \u00f6\u011fleden sonra saatlerinde WAYANA\u2019n\u0131n kap\u0131lar\u0131n\u0131 a\u00e7t\u0131k. D\u00fckk\u00e2n uzun y\u0131llard\u0131r, 2010\u2019dan beri, i\u015fletti\u011fimiz bir yerdi, her \u015feyine a\u015finayd\u0131k ama WAYANA, sanki ana rahminden yeni \u00e7\u0131km\u0131\u015f bir bebek gibiydi ellerimizde. Bebe\u011fin do\u011fumundan yakla\u015f\u0131k bir ay \u00f6ncesinden ba\u015flay\u0131p bug\u00fcne kadar uzanan \u201cKaptan\u0131n Seyir Defteri\u201dni sizler i\u00e7in kaleme almak \u00fczere yola \u00e7\u0131kt\u0131k ama...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wayana Wine Bar\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-20T13:00:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-20T13:00:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21-27-Temmuz-WAYANA-3-YASINDA-1-scaled.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1792\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\">\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"8 minutes\">\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Wayana Wine Bar\",\"description\":\"Wayana Tapas\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\",\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/21-27-Temmuz-WAYANA-3-YASINDA-1-scaled.png\",\"width\":1792,\"height\":2560},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\",\"name\":\"WAYANA 3 YA\\u015eINDA - Wayana Wine Bar\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-20T13:00:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-20T13:00:54+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/851ceffa51197e2af70b71c125f2bd04\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"item\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Anasayfa\"}},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"item\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wayana-3-yasinda\/\",\"name\":\"WAYANA 3 YA\\u015eINDA\"}}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/851ceffa51197e2af70b71c125f2bd04\",\"name\":\"Cenap Kuzuo\\u011flu\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/509c698570a62b522be70b8c4d2aab53.jpg?ver=1776721493\",\"caption\":\"Cenap Kuzuo\\u011flu\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/991774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=991774"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/991774\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":991777,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/991774\/revisions\/991777"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/991775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=991774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=991774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wayanatapas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=991774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}