Wine bars have been gaining attention and popularity in recent years and are elevating wine tasting to a new level. From full-bodied merlots to crisp chardonnays, Louisiana has what you’re looking for. If you want a place that offers opportunities to try fine international wines and sample extraordinary foods at the same time, choose any of the 8 best wine bars in Louisiana below.
Blend is not your typical watering hole. Located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, you’ll feel right at home as soon as you step through the door. The brick and wood décor is inviting and there’s upstairs seating in the loft overlooking the open room below. Offering international wines, specialty cocktails, and amazing charcuterie plates and other locally sourced menu items, Blend is the perfect location for a night out with your special someone or a casual business meeting.
Combining Spanish cooking styles with Mediterranean influences produces some of the best tapas, especially when local ingredients and flavors are added. What makes dining at Pamplona Tapas Bar in Lafayette, Louisiana, a rare treat is that everything inside reflects an international ambience, from the rich wood and stucco décor to the colorful bull and matador pictures on the walls. Imagine a meal starting with a Spanish sausage and white bean stew, followed by a roasted beet and smoked goat cheese salad. Your selection of tapas might include bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with blue cheese over a rich almond sauce, baked snails in a lemon butter sauce, and spicy beef meatballs cooked in ginger, green onion, and jalapeno peppers. You can make your choice of accompanying drinks from the extensive list of red and white wines, then end with apple bread pudding with whiskey sauce and cinnamon gelato or a traditional Spanish flan.
With a heavy European influence, Swirl Wine Bar & Market in New Orleans, Louisiana, is an eclectic mix of the Old World and new ideas. This is the perfect place to go before or after a jazz event, and you can excite and enrich your palate with wines that sparkle, bubble, and fizz, and come in red and white varieties. Small plates and bar bites can also be purchased.
Asian fusion is the way to go if you want great Vietnamese comfort food. The Blu Basil Wine & Grill in Lafayette, Louisiana, is a casual yet sophisticated restaurant that crosses international boundaries with traditional favorites and creative cooking. Pho is a popular dish here, as is the Blu Basil martini. They offer healthy alternatives to frozen and packaged foods, and can cater to vegetarian or pescetarian requests. They have a great kid’s menu, too.
Beautiful indoor or outdoor seating is what you notice first at Tallulah Crafted Food & Wine Bar in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The second thing you’ll notice is that no matter what you order, your food arrives presented as a work of art on a plate. Considered a modern Louisiana kitchen, local ingredients are used with an infusion of Asian flavor. Offering a variety of salads, fresh oysters, small plates, handhelds, and entrees, you’ll find an extensive selection of red and white wines, premier Scotch, Bourbon, and Cognac.
Barbeque shrimp. Crab cakes. Rack of lamb. These are just some of the entrées that are on the French-inspired menu at Orleans Grapevine Wine and Bistro. Located inside an 1808 building, you can indulge your taste buds with fine food and over 375 choices of wine. Only fresh local and U.S. seafood is served here, and it won’t take you long to understand why Orleans Grapevine and Bistro is one of the most popular restaurants in the area.
Wine Institute of New Orleans (W.I.N.O.) offers an entirely different approach to appreciating fine wines with special self-service features like automated pouring machines and tasting cards. Visitors can sample any of the 120 international wines on tap by using their open tab tasting cards, selecting the ounce, and taste your wine. Only open Sunday and Thursday, you can choose from a limited menu of accompanying appetizers.
If you want an elegant and relaxed atmosphere where you can join friends for a glass or two of your favorite wine, Patrick’s Bar Vin in New Orleans, Louisiana, is the place for you. Voted a “Top 10 Wine Bar in the U.S.” by Gayot and Fox News, you’ll be in the center of the French Quarter. Your time at Patrick’s will be an experience to remember and is a great stop before or after a night on the town.