The Emerald City wine scene provides a refreshing change from the crowded and sometimes snooty spots elsewhere. These wine bars don’t offer Tuscan villas, manicured landscapes and neat rows of vines clustered with grapes — but instead, thoughtfully sourced wine served in spaces devoted to welcoming wine aficionados as well as newbies.
Rapport
This Capitol Hill wine bar features 90 self-serve wine taps. Customers can dispense a tasting or a full pour from an array of offerings that includes everything from a Willamette Valley Pinot Noir to an Italian Pinot Grigio. There is also a selection of natural wine as well as unusual and rare pours. Meat and cheese boards, small bites like roasted shishito peppers, flatbreads and housemade sweets round out the menu.
700 Broadway E., Suite A | rapportseattle.com
Flight Wine + Chocolate
Everyday feels like Valentine’s Day at this aviation-themed wine and chocolate bar. Two flights of wine curated by owners David Wildman and Kevin Morton — along with dark chocolates made by Morton — are offered here. The First Class flight features exclusive and small production wines; Business Class flight offers carefully chosen value pours. Tastings typically last 1½ to 2 hours, reservations are encouraged and available through the website.
1300 E Pike Street, Suite 103 | flightwineandchocolate.com
The Coupe & Flute
Bubbles and bites are on the menu at this charming North Beacon Hill champagne tavern. Visitors can sip glasses or bottles of champagne, prosecco and lambrusco as well as sparkling and still cocktails. Small bites are also served, like duck mousse, deviled tea eggs and crispy prawns. A long well-stocked bar and small marble-topped tables fill the charming, intimate space.
3015 Beacon Avenue S | instagram.com/thecoupeandfluteseattle
Left Bank
A short, rotating list of natural wines by the glass or bottle flow through this South Park wine space. The name is a double entendre: Campbell Scarborough stocks this neighborhood gem on the left bank of Duwamish Waterway with many bottles from France (that place with the other Left Bank in Paris). In addition to a thoughtfully curated selection of bottles, the shelves are filled with vinyl records. Music varies, as it’s chosen by whoever is pouring wine.
8526 14th Avenue S | leftbankseattle.com
Princess & Bear
Carol Bailey (The Princess) and Steve Medwell (The Bear) opened their bright, plant-filled South Park wine shop to share wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. Princess & Bear is the only venue in the United States specializing in bottles from this esteemed wine region known for affordability as well as beautiful flavor profiles. Originating from artisanal vineyards, handpicked wines from this region are primarily from small, family-run, organic and predominantly female-owned producers.
Check out their new Root-to-Sip wine series kicking off on March 23rd featuring Women in Wine History. Find the full lineup and more details here.
309 S Cloverdale Street, Suite A1 | theprincessandthebear.com
Molly’s Bottle Shop Ballard & MoRA in Roosevelt
Molly Ringe opened her compact space in Ballard in 2019 to share the natural wines she found when traveling in Europe. She sources each bottle by traveling to meet with winemakers and visiting their cellars. Her traditional wine background draws her to natural wines with classic flavors that express the places where the grapes are grown, such as France, Italy, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Australia, as well as California and Washington. Ringe will soon be opening her second business, MoRA, with coffee expert Rachel Skibo (formerly of Millstead & Co.). She’s modeled this larger space after the wine bars she visited in Europe.
6406 32nd Avenue NW | 6105a Roosevelt Way NE
mollysbottleshop.com
Footprint Wine Tap
Owner and winemaker Ken Dillon opened his intimate Capitol Hill space dedicated to his love of wine with a focus on sustainability and reducing the carbon footprint. To meet these goals, keg wine flows from dozens of taps on a copper wall behind the bar. Wine is sourced based on proximity, vineyard management practices, transportation of products, ethical and equitable treatment of employees, and the use of salvaged and repurposed equipment.
1222 E Madison Street, Suite C | footprintwine.com
La Dive
When La Dive opened in Capitol Hill four years ago, the goal was to create an approachable space that welcomed customers who just want to sip a glass of wine as well as those who want to nerd out with the bartender. Unusual offerings like champagne bongs (chambongs) and the Long Day Home Pour — a generous glass of red, white, rosé or orange wine filled to the brim — create a playful vibe. A new Queen Anne location opened in February with a large kitchen.
721 E Pike Street | 532 Queen Anne Avenue N
ladiveseattle.com
Seattle’s wine bar scene continues to grow. A couple notable businesses are in the works.
Half Seas
Jen Doak is preparing the space across from her Ballard-based restaurant, Brimmer & Heeltap, to house her popular wine program. This former employee of the Washington Wine Commission sources her wine based on sense of place, varietals and a good story with a focus on farmers who are kind to the earth. The bright, cheerful 12- to 14-seat space will allow customers to enjoy sips from the bottles on the shelves.
5413 6th Ave NW | halfseaswine.com
Lucy’s Bottle Shop
Alyssa “Lucy” Lisle has worked with Thomas Keller at Bouchon and Walter Manzke at Republique. She then served as Chef De Cuisine at Tartine, followed by stints at Le Grand and Le Clown Bar in Paris. She’s seeking funding to build out Lucy’s Bottle Shop in lower Magnolia by Fisherman’s Terminal to celebrate the unsung heroes of the wine world — small-batch makers, BIPOC artisans, queer- and woman-owned vineyards in a space that’s welcoming to everyone.
4036 23rd Ave W, Seattle, WA | lucysbottleshop.com
