Most days aren’t Sundays – just regular weekdays. It happens to the best of us. But we’re lucky, because the line between work and play occasionally blurs in the best kind of way in our profession. We’ll go about our day when, suddenly, adventure is in the air, along with sunshine, pizza, and alcohol-free red wine!
On an ordinary office day, for example, an unfinished review with an urgent deadline might “force” us to hop on an e-bike at the last minute. Meanwhile, our colleagues over at DOWNTOWN Magazine have been hoarding stacks of boxes filled with alcohol-free drinks for the last few days, waiting for a big taste test. In another corner, a hot new pizza oven is being set up, ready for its review. With a scenario like this, it doesn’t take long for all the test teams to join forces with a master plan: why not test everything at once? What starts as a normal workday soon escalates into a full-blown outdoor party.
Combining bikes with pizza and alcohol-free wine might sound unconventional, but upon closer inspection, it suits our lifestyle to a tee: laid back, yet active, and all about enjoying the moment – without regretting it the next day. Our eMTBs give us wings on the trails, pizza brings everyone together, and the alcohol-free red wine proves that you can unwind without alcohol. That’s the theory, at least.
The fact that bikes and pizza are a great match is pretty obvious. Speaking of which, if you haven’t tried a pizza oven yet, check out our review of the Gozney Arc XL – with more pizza oven reviews coming up. After all, we’re always up for some Italian goodness.
But why alcohol-free red wine? Well, a lot has changed in this space over the past few years. More and more winemakers are offering de-alcoholized versions of their premium wines, supposedly packed with enough tannins and complexity to maintain their sophisticated character.
So, we pop the first bottles with high expectations, but the first sips quickly turn into disappointed frowns. It doesn’t take long to realize that while the industry is evolving, it’s still got a long road ahead of it, but more on that in our big alcohol-free wine group test. Spoiler: the list of truly recommendable wines is short. Very short. But here’s a quick tip – serve alcohol-free red wine slightly chilled, as it tends to taste overly sweet at room temperature.
Sunday is a state of mind
A workday? Technically, yes, but one that lingers. When the air smells of freshly baked dough, with Italo-disco beats pumping from the boombox, the sun setting, and everyone chatting without a care in the world, it could just as well be Sunday – no matter what the calendar says.
Breaks like these clear the mind, recharge our creative batteries, and fuel the next big project. That’s the magic of it – life isn’t just about deadlines and work; it’s the moments we create. Sometimes, all it takes is a little nudge to turn an ordinary day into a Sunday – and that’s exactly what we’re all about at DOWNTOWN Magazine. So, if you haven’t yet, give it a read. 😉
Words: Jonny Grapentin Photos: Peter Walker, Julian Schwede
About the Author
Jonny Grapentin
Jonny Grapentin is an editor at 41 Publishing for E-MOUNTAINBIKE and DOWNTOWN. His background as a publisher in digital education explains his didactically grounded approach. He is responsible for "The MIRROR" column, focusing on development logic and the long-term relevance of products beyond launch cycles. His expertise lies in evaluating technological innovation and everyday utility, which he demonstrates in his numerous product tests. Whether it’s kids' bikes, pizza ovens, or espresso machines, he consistently tests innovations for real-world value, and critically questions market trends.
