11 Dazzling Wine Bars In Asheville We Love As Locals
Is there good wine in a city known for its craft breweries? From cozy underground lounges to secret gardens, these are the best wine bars in Asheville we love as locals.
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True to our namesake, Tom and I enjoy a good glass of wine. After visiting our favorite wine bars, you might also enjoy our guide to wineries under 2 hours away from Asheville – across Western North Carolina – including Stone Ashe and Souther Williams. Explore all of our local food and drink guides filled with recommenations.
Table of Contents
Zambra
One of the most romantic places in Asheville, Zambra promises a Western Mediterranean ambiance, curated wine menu, and sharable tapas. Whether you head here for a special occasion or to catch up with friends, enjoy wine by the glass or bottle, cocktails, and contemporary plates with local ingredients.
Expect exceptional service, and we appreciate the gluten-free, dairy-free menu items as both a Celiac and lactose-intolerant household. During peak season, make advanced reservations (Resy). We promise: Zambra is a wine bar in Asheville you won’t soon forget. Order a bottle of Spanish wine with seasonal risotto.
Zambra | 85 W Walnut St, Asheville, NC 28801
Explore more of Downtown Asheville: Don’t miss these terrific Downtown restaurants including Bouchon, Jerusalem Garden Cafe, Huli Sue’s, and Limones. For rooftop bars in and around Downtown Asheville, check out Capella on 9 and The Social Lounge. After dinner, take a popular spooky guided ghost tour.
Leo’s House Of Thirst
For wine bars in Asheville with the best outdoor ambiance (pet-friendly), West Asheville’s Leo’s House Of Thirst is a must for a tapas-themed dinner paired with a unique wine selection. Enjoy a beautiful outdoor wine garden with heaters, hanging lights, trees, and picnic tables. Or, sit inside their intimate space. It’s one of our favorite weeknight and Saturday spots in Asheville.
Choose from a small wine glass list or an extensive bottle list. Find orange and pink wines as well as half-carafes (no wine flights). For food, enjoy desserts, cheeses, handhelds, olives, fresh fish, soups, and charcuterie.
Leo’s House Of Thirst | 1055 Haywood Rd, Asheville, NC 28806
Explore more of West Asheville: Check out all of West Asheville’s great restaurants while you are here, including Thai Pearl, Gypsy Queen Cuisine, Mizu, and Haywood Common. For great Asheville bars, the quirky, LGBTQ+ Odd is next door. You might also enjoy our guide to all of West Asheville with shops, parks, and more.
Bottle Riot
Head to the colorful River Arts District for one of the most atmospheric Asheville wine bars, Bottle Riot. This local spot features rotating red, orange, and white wines by the glass with “baller” bottles for fancy spenders. Encounter wine glasses as big as your face. Or, enjoy classic cocktails alongside an impressive international spirits list.
Bottle Riot boasts a vibrant bar, spacious indoor seating, and two levels of outdoor patio seating (pet-friendly) perfect for weekly events and DJ music. They share a free parking lot with Wedge Brewing Co. This is local Asheville at its best.
Bottle Riot | 37 Paynes Way #009, Asheville, NC 28801
Explore more of the River Arts District: We just love RAD’s stellar restaurants like RosaBees (Hawaiian), Baby Bull (burgers), Bull & Beggar (fine dining meats), or the Chop Shop Food Truck (meats). Stroll the RAD Riverwalk after dinner, catch live music at the Guitar Bar, and dip in and out of breweries for the city’s best craft beer selection. Consider taking an insider RAD walking tour.
5 Walnut Wine Bar
Our go-to Downtown Asheville wine bar, taste your way through an eclectic list of wines in a rustic, pastel, and brick-walled establishment. Check out the specials, including $5 glasses of wine. Grab cheese and small bites next door at 5 Walnut Cheese Bar. During the weekdays, we appreciate their quieter ambiance and massive windows perfect for people-watching. Shop for books at Malaprop’s Bookstore & Cafe.
5 Walnut Wine Bar | 5 W Walnut St, Asheville, NC 28801
Battery Park Book Exchange
One of the most famous bookstores and wine bars in Asheville, the Battery Park Book Exchange promises a ritzy champagne bar, impressive wine list, and literary cocktails surrounded by rare and used books. Their charcuterie boards keep getting better, and this is a perfect Sunday brunch tapas spot. Across the street, head to Cultivated Cocktails, a fabulous Asheville distillery, and Hemingway’s Cuba rooftop bar.
Battery Park Book Exchange | 1 Page Ave #101, Asheville, NC 28801
La Bodega by Cúrate
James Beard award winners and owners of Cúrate, one of Asheville’s most unforgettable, “must” restaurants, Félix Meana and Chef Katie Button opened Spanish wine bar, café, and specialty marketplace, La Bodega. Enjoy an impressive and highly curated wine list without emptying your wallet.
La Bodega by Cúrate boasts upstairs table service and an even more casual downstairs café. Open all day, along with wine, choose from Spanish tapas and lighter fare like olives, melons covered in meats and cheeses, and delicious brunch options like omelets and handhelds. With an ever-changing seasonal menu, La Bodega also serves up charcuterie, dessert croissants, salads, burgers, and Spanish-inspired desserts.
La Bodega by Cúrate | 32 S Lexington Ave, Asheville, NC 28801
Marked Tree Vineyard Tasting Room
Situated in the former Rustic Grape and located behind the Aloft Hotel, enjoy an intimate atmosphere at Marked Tree. Sit at the high top or along the walls, and select from Marked Tree’s white and red wines. For years, we were wine club members.
Marked Tree Vineyard | 14 Aston St, Asheville, NC 28801
More wineries and vineyards: If you have time, we highly suggest visiting Marked Tree’s Flat Rock vineyard and tasting room. We love the gorgeous Hendersonville wineries and also recommend St. Paul.
Wine Bar At Biltmore Winery
Talk about Asheville wine bars with history: Did you know that Biltmore’s winery used to house the former dairy? That beautiful tunnel you walk down to enter the winery in Antler Hill Village used to be full of cow….yea…
Biltmore offers a variety of activities for wine lovers, including a wine bar, tipsy tours, and complimentary wine tasting at Biltmore winery. You will need a ticket, overnight property reservation, or an annual pass to enter the estate. You can also grab wine at The Creamery.
Biltmore Estate Winery | 1 Lodge St, Asheville, NC 28803
explore Biltmore to the fullest (We are Passholder Pros)
The Aventine Wine Bar (& pleb urban winery)
Pleb boasts a hipster River Arts District winery as well as a Downtown Asheville wine bar. Most notably, they practice minimal intervention winemaking with a focus on responsible planting. The Aventine serves up more traditional wines, but their wines might not be for everyone, especially if steel fermentation and cans are not your jam; give them a try. The winery space is wonderful.
pleb urban winery | Winery: 289 Lyman St, Asheville, NC 28801 | The Aventine: 25 Page Ave, Suite 102, Asheville, NC 28801
Walls Wine Bar
One of the best wine bars in Asheville tucked inside of a breathtaking art gallery, head to Walls Wine Bar to drink wine among photographer Benjamin Walls’s gorgeous nature photos. The Smithsonian exhibits his works, and don’t miss a photo of Walls with Jane Goodall.
Staff will hand you a credit-card-charged card, and wine dispenses from the machine. Choose from just a tasting to a half or full-size pour, including wine from New Zealand and Bordeaux, France. Now is your chance to try that Italian Brunello.
Walls Wine Bar | 38 Broadway St Suite 3, Asheville, NC 28801 (also The Windsor Boutique Hotel)
Wine Sage & Gourmet (Hendersonville)
Head to our favorite wine bar near Asheville in Downtown Hendersonville, Wine Sage & Gourmet, which is about 35 minutes by car. With two floors, visit this quaint wine shop complete with a massive wine bar. Sit amongst the wine bottles, including local North Carolina wine and meads.
Wine Sage and Gourmet also sells boozy gifts, drunk wine art, olive oil, olives, and local coffee. They host a variety of events for the community, including workshops with food. Tell our friend and the owner, Merit, that we say hello! We dare you to leave empty-handed. We never do.
Wine Sage And Gourmet | 416 N Main St, Hendersonville, NC 28792
Explore more of Hendersonville (HVL): HVL is another one of WNC’s gorgeous mountain cities filled with museums, shops, breweries, and seasonal apple orchards. While Downtown, don’t miss Hendersonville’s popular restaurants, including Umi Sushi, Shine, and Haus Heidelberg, and their breweries like Oklawaha.
Before You Go: Where Else To Drink In Asheville
Christine Frascarelli
Christine (pronouns: she/her) is the owner and lead writer of Uncorked Asheville. After falling in love with those gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains, Christine and her husband Tom decided to call Asheville, North Carolina home. When her pointy Italian nose isn’t stuck in a book, Christine is adopting all of the kitties, getting lost in the forest, and drinking an ESB. She has a BA in English and History from Smith College, her MLIS from USF-Tampa, and is a former U.S. Fulbright Scholar - Indonesia. Christine also owns The Uncorked Librarian LLC with books and movies to inspire travel.
Ridiculously useful list. I really enjoyed Bottle Riot and I’m looking forward to trying Leo’s. Thank you Christine!
I’m so glad! Those are two of our favorites. Leo’s is the best. I hope you love it!