The most authentic wine bar, without a doubt, is Cave de la Tour, run by a couple of Old Town denizens who cater to a mostly local clientele. They speak no English, close promptly at 7pm, and if you bring in your empties they will fill them with house wine from the casks while the house cat rubs against your legs. Enjoy a coup de rouge at the little wine bar or sit at one of the wine casks, where you can also have a little home cooked lunch. Things haven’t changed much here in 70 years.
The Wine Room takes the wine scene up a notch: high-tech stainless steel wine dispensers that allow the wine to be sampled without affecting the rest of the bottle. The Wine Room takes full advantage of this system, offering small tastes starting at 1€50, and ‘flights’ to compare several wines side-by-side. The decor is modern, the music loud, and the ambience tres branche, with live bands playing jazz and blues Thursday and Fridays.
Just outside the Old Town is Cave Wilson, a traditional style wine bar that has been pouring since 1904. Now run bysommelier Antoine Barussaud, it has a warm and welcoming atmosphere, an extensive wine selection, a menu of simple food made with quality products, revolving exhibits by local artists, occasional tasting soirees, and live jazz on Wednesdays and weekends. Located just off Place Wilson at 16 rue Gubernatis, 04 93 85 33 10.
Another popular traditional-style wine bar/resto is Vinavore on Avenue de la Republique, with a wide array of carefully chosen wines and cheeseboard-and-charcuterie type fare to compliment their selection.
Effervescence is a hip Champagne bar hidden up a side road in the Old Town where you can sip the bubbly and graze on all manner of delectable surprises.
Photos credits: rosé by Jeremy Atkinson, licensed under Creative Commons
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