photo by O'Malley Photographers
Food & Drinks
14 U.S. Wine Bars That Are Perfect for Your Next Night Out With Friends
It feels like there are about a million holidays on the calendar these days, but the best of the best of them? National Wine Day, of course! Gotta get that wine, wine, wine! Whether you’re into pét nats, rosés and...
photo by O'Malley Photographers
It feels like there are about a million holidays on the calendar these days, but the best of the best of them? National Wine Day, of course! Gotta get that wine, wine, wine! Whether you’re into pét nats, rosés and orange wines or more interested in silky, rich, full-bodied reds, we’re pretty sure this is a holiday you can get behind too. Mark your calendars for this Saturday, May 25th, and rather than spending the day sulking with boxed wine and crying over the Game of Thrones finale, get your stuff together, call a friend and head out to your local. Don’t have a local? Check out one of these wine bars. All have good vibes, good wines and something special that makes you want to keep refilling that glass.
Reporter: Alyssa Brown
Set in the charming creative haven of Kingston, this Hudson Valley wine bar is a lovely small town surprise. Brunette offers a special list of bubbly, white, rosé, orange, and red wines by the glass along with beautiful charcuterie and cheese plates, buttery ramen noodles and petite french sandwiches.
For those who are stoked about natural wines, small producers and French wines from every region, this spot’s for you. Owned by a local sommelier, Primrose is a neighborhood wine bar with a warm setting and an extensive list of wines by the glass as well as a full dining menu with a French focus.
Part market and part wine bar, this Fredericksburg shop purveys fine wines in a variety of price points, house-cured Texan meats, artisanal cheeses and freshly baked breads. La Bergerie is a place to find some seriously obscure and impressive labels.
Ah, pretty little Bodega. We love this place. Set in Los Alamos, this spot is an open-air wine and beer garden with a long list of natural and organic wines. It’s a gorgeous place to spend an afternoon in the sunshine and pick up a few goodies and plants in the shop.
Head to this shop the evening before National Wine Day and you’re in for a treat. Light Years hosts parties and tastings every Friday from 5-8pm. All the wines here are natural and there’s a great bar to saddle up to.
Whether you visit the winery in Solana Beach, the tasting room in Carlsbad or the wine garden in San Diego’s Little Italy, Carruth Cellars has your local wine needs covered. Each spot is a little different in vibe, but we love them all. Besides, supporting your local urban winery is always a good way to spend National Wine Day!
Pictured: Carruth Cellars, Little Italy
Pictured: Carruth Cellars, Little Italy
Bacchanal is the kind of wine bar you’d want to stumble upon in any city, but it seems especially perfect for New Orleans. On any given night here, you’ll walk through the doors of what appears to be a wine shop, select a good bottle and a few cheeses to go with it, then you’ll walk through another set of doors to a spacious courtyard filled with tables of people laughing, listening to live music and sipping on wine or having a delicious meal.
A European-style enoteca in the heart of Dilworth, this tasting room has a beautiful courtyard outside that makes a perfect place to enjoy wine with friends this time of year. The wine list here focuses on low-production, high-quality wines, and you can expect to find lots of new favorites.
Love, love, love that this adorable Charleston spot offers flights of the sommelier’s choice. Josephine is one of those wine bars you walk into and just instantly feel lighter, brighter and excited about the wines you’re about to taste your way through. The wine list here relies heavily on French and Californian wines, but you’ll also find a bottle or a few from places like New Zealand, Portugal or Slovenia.
RELATED ARTICLES
You might be interested in…
Barcelona Wine Bar has locations in nine different states, including Connecticut, Colorado and Tennessee. The spaces are always nicely designed, the service is warm and there’s a solid list of 400 wines to choose from while you’re tasting your way through Spanish and Mediterranean style tapas. The wine list skews Spanish and South American, so you can expect lots of sherry, tempranillo, malbec and the like.
Pictured: Barcelona Wine Bar, Denver
Pictured: Barcelona Wine Bar, Denver
With locations in Chelsea Market, Charlotte and Union Square, it’s hard to pick a favorite Corkbuzz. The flagship location is in the Union Square neighborhood and offers a daily blind tasting happy hour from 4-6 with aperitivos during the week.
Pictured: Corkbuzz, Chelsea Market
Pictured: Corkbuzz, Chelsea Market
If you want to taste your way through natty wines, this is the place to go. A cherished wine destination, Ordinaire specializes in natural wines made with organic grapes and minimal intervention. The buzz here is a mix of wine shop and wine bar, so it’s just as easy to grab a bottle on the go or stick around a while.
This South Austin wine bar hosts a lot of great happy hours and winemaker events. The ambience is cozy and fun, the wine list has plenty of approachable options and the food is delicious too.
High Treason
San Francisco, California
Photo by Heather Ash
The project of a couple of locally acclaimed sommeliers, High Treason is a classic SF wine bar. It’s an easy place to spend a few hours tasting your way through different varietals, learning about lesser known labels and noshing on cheese, charcuterie, croquettes or whatever goes best with what’s in your glass.
Scroll for more
