Want to buy some wine, but can’t always get up to wine country? The Bay Area has so many awesome wine shops which carry unique wines and wines at all price points. I love shopping at smaller specialty wine stores not only for selection but also the customer service. You can ask the staff questions and they are so knowledgable, providing customers with recommendations based on their desired region, varietal, budget, or even meal pairings. You just can’t get that level of expertise at your ordinary grocery store. It’s also great to support small and independently owned shops!
Best Bay Area Wine Shops: North Bay
Bottle Barn
Imagine BevMo meets a warehouse, with real friendly employees who are passionate about wine and spirits, and you’ve got Bottle Barn! They feature thousands of wines and spirits from all over, with an amazing selection of California produced wines which I always love getting lost in. Hit this spot on your way out of town after wine tasting in Sonoma County!
3331-A Industrial Drive, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
Best Bay Area Wine Shops: South Bay
Vintage Wine Merchants
This is a wine shop and wine bar on Santana Row with an insane selection of French wines and wines from all over the world. They also offer a wine club membership and perks include purchase discounts, free tastings, and special events. I went to a Burgundy themed tasting here on my birthday weekend a few years ago and it was a ton of fun.
377 Santana Row #1135, San Jose, CA 95128
Best Bay Area Wine Shops: East Bay
Oddlots
This is my newest discovery, courtesy of my mom! Oddlots has a rotating inventory of unique wines from around the world for nearly wholesale prices. It’s a perfect place to go if you know exactly what type of worldly wine you like, or you just want some amazing recommendations to explore something new. When you walk in you’ll see crates upon crates of bottles from places around the globe.
1025 San Pablo Ave, Albany, CA 94706
Best Bay Area Wine Shops: San Francisco
K&L Wine Merchants
Think BevMo, but better. K&L has aisles upon aisles of wine, plus spirits, at all price points. When I lived in San Francisco, this was my go to spot to buy my favorite Sonoma and Napa wines. Need affordable French rosé that’s anything but basic? Shop here. They have free parking, too!
855 Harrison St, San Francisco, CA 94107
Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant
The Ferry Building is full of amazing specialty shops, so of course there’s one for wine. The Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant is both a shop and wine bar in a really unique setting.
One Ferry Building #23, San Francisco, CA 94111
Due to current events, most wine shops won’t be hosting tastings. Definitely bookmark them for planning future outings. And don’t be surprised if you see me shopping there wearing one of my wine graphic tees!
Do you have a favorite wine shop in the Bay Area? Let me know so I can drop in. Cheers!
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