Wine Stores in DC?

I am in the DC area a number of times each year, but haven't explored what the District has to offer. What wine stores do you recommend? Are there stores that specialize in particular wine regions? Thanks.

Greg

[James Roscoe]

The DC area is a pretty big area. What part do you mean? Are you in the city itself? Are you in northern Virginia? Montgomery County? The diversity is wide and varies. The two best known stores in the city are probably MacArthur's and Calvert-Woodley. There are a number of other great stores in the city as well, Pearsons, Weygants, Schneiders, the list could go on. Tell us where you will be and we can let you know the nearest stores. Also if you are here at the right time, we do the occasional offline.....

I visit both College Park and Rockville, but would be free to explore DC.

[James Roscoe]

I am in Bowie so I rarely get downtown much. From College Park you might want to head over to Annapolis and explore the Wine Cellars. You might also try I. M. Wine up in Howard County. If you are looking for a large selection and relative value the Total wine Empire has a branch called Corridor up in Laurel that I used to frequent, but their service has gone down hill. Montgomery County is crap for wine. Go downtown

The obvious choices are McCarther's (which is impressive in it's large selection and often prices), Calvert Woodley, Schnieder's, and (to a lesser extent) Bell Liquors, Wide World of Wines, and Pearson's. Google 'em. These are all, to my tastes, very conservative stores that specialize in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Cali Cabs, etc. etc. These stores are meccas for people that hunt for Parker Points and trophy bottles. Perhaps this sounds unkind? In any event, they are, even to my tastes, all quality stores worth checking out.

Some stores with fun selections of more off-the-beaten track stuff and "hipster" wines include: Ace Beverges, the Weygandt (importer) store, Arrowine (in VA), and any number of boutique stores that are popping up around the city (like Cork Market on 14th)

What Ed said.

With regard to MacArthur, while this is an accurate description of the store overall, they have a very wide selection and often some terrific wines at relatively reasonable prices. You can get Lapierre, Roilette and Vissoux Cru Beaujolais there, for example; a decent selection of Loires (by D.C. standards, that is); a bunch of Austrians that are hard to fine elsewhere; and the occasional obscure Spanish wine, like Ribeira Sacra and from the Basque region. I've even found the occasional Edmunds St. John there. But it only works if you have a car, because it's not anywhere near the metro.

If you're in College Park, you could take the Green Line directly to U Street, walk a few blocks south on 14th and go to Cork. I have yet to visit the retail wine store but have had a terrific dinner at the wine bar and was very impressed at the wine selection there (again, by D.C. standards), which should bode well for the market.

If you're in Rockville, you could take the red line to Van Ness/UDC for Calvert Woodley or, better yet IMO, one stop further to Cleveland Park where you can go to Weygandt Wines and, half a block away, Cleveland Park Wines which has a pretty offbeat selection, too.

Thanks, all. You have been very helpful. I could have done a better job of writing my original post, I should have been more specific and your suggestions of stores that carry a more eclectic selection are particularly interesting. I will have a car and I am familiar with the area (I lived in Bethesda for four years, but long enough ago that my knowledge of wine stores is very dated).

Any of the wine stores already mentioned in DC that have a nice representation of Mosel Rieslings or Italian wines from areas other than the Piedmont or Tuscany? How about grower champagnes?

I'll second all those mentioned above. The ones I use most:

Weygandt's. I shop a lot here. If you like their portfolio you can't go far wrong. Tastings every day! It's right on Connecticut Avenue and is relatively easy to get to and from, they even have parking which is tough in the Cleveland Park neighborhood. You get free parking with a sale.

Cleveland Park Liquor & Wine On the block down from the above. I get more of the "standard" stuff here. They also have a good beer selection.

Cork Market Very high on the hipster meter befitting it's 14th Street address. Just down the street from the Black Cat if alternative music is your thing. Not a deep selection but appears to be very well curated. Lots of oddball varietals and some little known appellations.

D'Vines Two locations, one in Columbia Heights the other in Adams Morgan (so good luck parking). As with Cork small but thought went into their selections. A little pricier than I care for. I actually buy far more beer here.

MacArthur Beverage Probably the best stocked pound for pound in the city. It's a bit hard for me to get to in its Palisades location. One of the few places in town with a good selection of German and Austrian wines.

Ace Beverage Very small shop, but the staff go out of their way for you. All the serious drinks folks I know in town frequent this place. Near American University. My take was it was heavy on the California but they've got some of everything, though weak on German/Austria/Alsace.

Schneider's of Capitol Hill Cramped but well stocked. IIRC they have lots of collector's wines stashed away. Not far from Union Station.

I've also had good luck with good prices on workable wine at the Whole Foods on P Street.

Thanks, all. You have been very helpful. I could have done a better job of writing my original post, I should have been more specific and your suggestions of stores that carry a more eclectic selection are particularly interesting. I will have a car and I am familiar with the area (I lived in Bethesda for four years, but long enough ago that my knowledge of wine stores is very dated).

Any of the wine stores already mentioned in DC that have a nice representation of Mosel Rieslings or Italian wines from areas other than the Piedmont or Tuscany? How about grower champagnes?

You'll do well at McCarther's for Rieslings and Italian. Not sure about their grower champagnes; you might want to check Arrowine or Cork market for that. Cork, like Ace, has a fun selection of hipster stuff from the Loire, Jura, etc. It's a relatively small store, but my memory is that they had some very interesting sparking stuff. Its worth going for the Tissot Cremant alone!

What everyone else said, PLUS

... avoid buying from stores in Montgomery County. Their prices are high and the selection not so good (as all must buy from the approved county wine list).

Schnieder's was my "epiphany" wine shop back in 1985 so I have to put in a plug for Jon and Rick, the owners. If you're there on a weekday, drop me a PM and maybe we can have lunch.

Agree with Macarthur's for German wines. I know Macarthur's (and possibly Calvert-Woodley as well) have wines in offsite storage in addition to what is on the shelves. You might want to go online and see what they have (search Italian wines, German wines, etc.) and request that they have particular wines on hand at the store to pick up the date you are going to be there. Also, Macarthur's has regional specialists who might be able to advise you in picking out Burgundies, Tuscans or whatever you are seeking.

Schnieder's also has off site storage of old vintages, for whatever it's worth.

[James Roscoe]

I think MacArthur's carries a decent list of grower champagne as do most of the stores in DC. If Calvert-Woodley is having it's Fall sale it is pretty much a must-visit.

Thanks all. You have been most helpful.

The place for grower champagne is Wide World of Wines. MacArthurs, although it showcases bordeaux and CA wines, has probably the best selections of German, Italian, Rhone and Burgundy in the city and some of the reliably best prices. They also have Dressner muscadets and good Beaujolais stuck away in various corners. Arrowine in VA also has very good and off the beaten track wines. As others have said, if you like a Weygandt wine, Weygandt has it. As they have not said, they carry their wines at the most expensive prices you can find, unless you wait for a sale or buy by the case. I'm less impressed by Ace than others are, though they do have wines you won't find elsewhere. For large selection, you should also visit Calvert Woodley, which also has a great cheese store.