WE like wine bars. We didn't used to, but we do now, and when we find a good one, we are happy.

The idea of a wine bar used to make us shiver. We're talking the late 1980s, when they first became a thing, when displays of money without class were rife.

High stools, white stilettos, Sade on the speakers, and salesmen in shiny silver suits, who, come 9pm, have ties tied around heads Rambo-style. Overpriced plonk, awful cocktails, nasty lager and bags of ready salted crisps.

Thatcher's tasteless Britain.

Times have changed - thank the Lord - and wine bars have moved on.

Find a good one now and it's a lovely experience, where class is understated but genuine.

We found a good one - which some York folk will know about and some won't.

Half hidden down Castlegate, with an elegant yet down-to-earth ambience and without a luminous light in sight, is Pairings - so named because of its penchant for pairing wines with food delights.

A quick look at the wine list shows it has a fine selection.

It's not overly cheap - with whites from £19 to £43 a bottle (prices by the glass available too of course), reds from an £18 Tempranillo to a £46 grand cru from Burgundy, and fizz from a £24 Prosecco to a salmon rose Champagne at £87 - but it's decent value for what you get, where you get it and the waiter service that gives you it.

And it's fair to assume it won't have just been thrown together either, given that Kelly Latham - who launched the bar with sister Kate last autumn - was previously head sommelier at Hotel Du Vin in York and wine champion at the Star Inn The City.

Now this is an upmarket bar where locals, shoppers, theatregoers and tourists alike can call in any time for a quality tipple, with bites to eat like cheese boards and charcuterie too - or desserts on an evening.

But Pairings' website says the sisters "discovered the joys of pairing delicious foods with an array of fabulous wines, spirits and even coffee while travelling in alluring far-flung places" - so we put that to the test with one of their wine and food "experiences".

This amounts to half a dozen taste delights each paired with its own glass of wine - not an evening meal as such but effectively two or three hours' indulgence and chat for a competitive price of £29 per person.

For starters came a Bruno Paillard brut premiere cuvee Champagne, a biscuity, toasty sparkler, along with quality dark Iberico shoulder ham. The acidity in the fizz cut through the cured meat without overpowering it - a high-class pairing that set the tone.

Then followed a Pencarrow Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand with apply goats cheese, before a surprising shift saw a quaffable red Petit Papillon grenache, with its low tannins and cherry fruit, brought out with lightly spiced flavoursome pork pie.

A buttery, slightly oaky Chardonnay from the Napa Valley followed - the kind that gives Chardonnay a good name and proves growing wine in California was a good idea - was served with aged Cheddar and chutney, before we switched back to red, with a Dinastia Vivanco Rioja reserva.

For the strong Spanish wine, Spanish chorizo, manchego and chilli chutney.

And there was afters too - quality ten-year-old tawny port with devilish shortbread, and a bonus Tannat from Uruguay, a rich, high-tannin number with cocoa notes paired, fittingly, with sumptuous dark chocolate.

All in all, it's a tasting session to savour - with jugs of water too for obvious reasons... and not a white stiletto in sight.

PS. Menus and lists can be found at pairings.co.uk, though rumour has it further wines will be added in the near future.