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Among my other favorite wine bars, all worth visiting, are:
- Caves Petrissans, 30 bis Avenue Niel, Paris 17. In the same family since 1895,
this is a place where clochards and millionaires stand side by side at the bar
sipping whatever wines that the Petrissan brothers and sisters have just added
to their list or tasting the best of the 1985 Bordeaux vintage. Daily offerings
such as the rabbit terrine, lamb stew or rabbit with mustard make for great and
reasonable priced lunches or dinners. Some say that the place looks run down.
They are probably right, but regulars know that this illusion is maintained primarily
to keep too many tourists from invading. Directly attached to the bar is a wine
store in which you can find some excellent bargains.
- Cafe de la Nouvelle Marie: 19 rue des Fosses St. Jacques, Paris 5. Not far
from the Pantheon and the Luxembourg gardens, and offering just twelve wines daily
(many from Chinon, Saumur-Champigny, and Sancerre), this always crowded but always
friendly place is a great place to pass a few hours. If you are hungry feast while
standing at the bar on the mixed hors d'oeuvres, the carpaccio of duck breast,
or the country style pates. (Prices are nearly double if you take a table).
- Les Pipus: 2 rue de l'Ecole Polytechnic. Paris 5. With its old, well worn
wooden bar and 1930s atmosphere, this is the kind of wine bar you would expect
to find more in a tiny village than in Paris. That should stop nobody from visiting
be- cause one of the specialties here are the best of the least known wines of
Bordeaux, and the Loire and Rhone valleys. The Alsatian style food (choucroute
garni, pork braised in beer, and quiches) are all worth trying and all cost remarkably
little.
- Jacques Melac, 42 rue Leon-Front, Paris 11. 0ZÌ Not far from Place de la Bastille,
this intimate and lively wine bar specializes in wines from Chinon, Beaujolais,
Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise, Vouvrey and Beajolais. Wine is taken so seriously
here that a sign on one wall tells you that "If you want water, you must place
your order one day in advance". Lunch time is very crowded here, but you can almost
always get a place alongside the bar, there to enjoy either the cold meats or
cheeses (try especially the bleu des Causses and the Saint- Nectaire) for which
the place is renowned.
- Willi's Wine Bar, 13 rue des Petites-Champs, Paris 1. More expensive than
most, largely because it attracts the yuppies of Paris and many visiting tourists,
but worth visiting anyhow, this bright, airy place serves great wines and excellent
foods. On my own last visit, I sampled four different Hermitage wines, two excellent
Julianas, and three really interesting white wines from Chateauneuf du Pape. Food
is somewhat expensive here, but if you're on a budget, don't hesitate to order
the mixed plate of cold meats and cheeses which will be served with what may be
the most delicious bread in all of Paris.
- Le Tartine: 24 rue de Rivoli, Paris 4.
- Bistro des Augustins, 39 quai des Grands Augustins, Paris 5.
© Daniel Rogov
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