These are the best places in Los Angeles to taste world class wines and expand your palette.
If you are anything like me, you crave a neighborhood spot that you can just pop into for a fantastic, familiar glass of wine and a quick bite. Or maybe you want a place to taste interesting new styles and expand your palette and knowledge. Whatever you are looking for in a wine bar, the best wine bars in Los Angeles can provide in spades.
Covell
Covell is a small, eclectic and urban hangout in Los Feliz with a broad cheese and charcuterie selection, and elevated bar bites like a Veggie Flatbread, Croque Monsieur and Tortilla Española. What is unique about Bar Covell is that they do not actually have a wine list! Instead, you converse with the bartender about what you like and they make suggestions. They have a pretty broad selection and great taste so they can help you find something familiar, or something adventurous that introduces you to exciting new varietals and producers. The staff are so passionate about wine and love to give their patrons new experiences so we recommend going for a few glasses and see where the journey takes you!
Hours: Mon - Sun 4:00pm - 12:00am PT
Address: 4628 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Melanie Wine Bar
Melanie Wine Bar is a quaint wine bar and restaurant on West 3rd that has a much more personal, homey touch than most other wine bars. All wines are by the glass and by the bottle and they offer 50% off bottles every Monday! Their selection includes eclectic varietals such as Khikhvi from Georgia, Pais from Chile and Refosco from Italy. As for the food, they have a small but varied menu with veggie, fish and meat options. The Melanie Double Smash Burger is especially tasty - one of the best in the city. Every Saturday from 4:00 - 5:00pm they host Melanie Talks Wine - a rotating tasting series led by Wine Director Stephen Sherry that explores a region or varietal and comes with paired Cheese and Charcuterie. Stephen and his staff are very knowledgable and happy to share that knowledge so whether you attend an event, or just pop in for a glass this is a great place to go expand your horizons.
Hours: Mon - Sat 5:00 - 11:00pm PT; Sun 5:00 - 9:00pm PT
Address: 8310 West 3rd Street Los Angeles, CA 90048
Tabula Rasa Bar
Tabula Rasa Bar is a cool, dimly lit wine bar in Thai Town complete with lux leather booths and a covered patio. They have a selection of around 150 bottles and their by the glass selection rotates through those weekly. They pick wines from sustainable producers that use organic, biodynamic, etc. practices, but not all of their wines are explicitly "natural" if that is your preference. Their list is always a good mix of global classics, but usually features rarer varietals like Romorantin and Croatina. Unlike most wine bars that double as restaurants and close early, Tabula Rasa serves small bar bites and cheese and charcuterie, but they do make a mean Cuban sandwich! They also have 8 beers on tap if you go with friends who are not partial to wine. On weekends they are open until 2am so this is a place to have a good time late into the night. We also recommend checking out their Jazz Nights on the last Sunday of every month from 7:00 - 9:00pm PT!
Hours: Sun - Thurs 2:00pm - 12:00am PT; Fri - Sat 2:00pm - 2:00am PT
Address: 5125 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Wally's Beverly Hills
Wally's Beverly Hills is the mecca of wine in Los Angeles. The retail store has a mind boggling selection, and their by the glass list is the best of any wine bar in the city. It is a very popular, no reservation restaurant and has a very casual and communal vibe. We are especially fond of their brunch with standout items like Wood Oven Brioche French Toast and Truffle Benedict, and their cheese and charcuterie selection rivals the best cheese shops in town. As for the wine, Wally's is a place to have a glass of the classics - Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Napa, etc., and their selection is phenomenal. They often feature legendary wines such as 1996 Château Lafite Rothschild and 2013 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Grand Cru. If you feel like getting a bottle, you can always peruse their 100 page wine list (one of the best wine lists in Los Angeles) or ask their very knowledgable sommeliers for guidance.
Hours: Sun - Wed 11:30am - 10:30pm PT; Thursday 11:30am - 11:00pm PT; Fri - Sat 11:30am - 12:30am PT
Address: 447 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Wine House
The Wine House's retail store has perhaps the best wine selection in Los Angeles, and there are three ways to taste while you are there. The first option is to head into the downstairs retail section, get one of their prepaid cards and pour for yourself at their automated tasting machines. They offer 30+ white, rose, orange and red wines from around the world with most pours costing less than $3.00. The second option is one of the events that Wine House hosts - they partner with producers and distributors to put on 2 or 3 per week. The ticket prices range from $30 to $200. The third option is at their upstairs restaurant Wine House Kitchen and Bar. They have a smaller, more curated selection of wines by the glass and bottle that features some less popular varietals such as Petit Manseng, Picpoul and Négrette. The kitchen also whips up some fantastic French-Vietnamese food so we recommend grabbing a few bites!
Retail Hours: Mon - Fri 11:00am - 6:00pm PT
Restaurant Hours: Wed - Thurs 5:30 - 10:00pm PT; Fri - Sat 5:30 - 10:30pm PT
Address: 2311 Cotner Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90064
Honorable Mentions:
Augustine Wine Bar (Still closed due to a kitchen fire as of 10/25/2023)
Esters Wine Shop & Bar
Melody
Mirabelle Wine Bar
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