The best places to drink wine in London

London’s wine landscape has had a major facelift in recent years, with an explosion of hip neighbourhood wine bars and bottle shops serving up subscription services, chef residencies and expert tastings. Sure, the global boom in biodynamic and natural wines has attracted a new generation of wine enthusiasts, but a post-pandemic shift in the way we talk about and celebrate wine has been a key player in the movement, too.

Here, we spotlight a neighbourhood wine bar that’s grown a cult following for its quality merch and Michelin-starred takeovers, a bistro with a community-first roster of creative events and a cutting-edge wine rave concept that’s uncorking lesser-known bottles in a club setting. Read on to discover the best places to shop, drink and enjoy wine in London.

12 of the best bottle shops and wine bars in London

Oranj, Shoreditch

Best for: Small-scale producers and chef residencies 
Location: 14 Bacon Street, London, E1 6LF
Price: Bottles from 12 GBP; monthly subscription from 30 GBP 

Oranj’s gritty, graffiti-strewn exterior contrasts with the whitewashed brick walls, concrete floors and wooden tables inside, decorated with old wine bottles for candleholders. Founder Jasper Delamothe meticulously curates and updates the wine list to champion independent producers with a quality selection of natural, biodynamic and rare wines, which can be delivered to your door with Oranj’s monthly subscription service. There’s a guest chef series here, too, with Toronto’s favourite culinary trio See You Soon and former Bubala head chef Helen Graham recent highlights.

Peckham Cellars, Peckham

Best for: Expert tastings and female producers
Location: 125 Queen’s Road, London, SE15 2ND
Price: Bottles from 40 GBP; monthly subscription from 88 GBP  

If you fancy a sharing-style feast while you sample different wines, Peckham Cellars delivers with its modern seasonal plates. You might find grilled prawns sizzled in chilli oil, or a beef cheek risotto with red pepper aioli on chef Pablo Urain Alfonso’s menu, to pair with a zippy white or chilled red during your visit. The low-intervention bottle list is hand picked and intricately annotated by co-owners Helen Hall, Luke West-Whylie and Ben McVeigh, with a global selection of wines and a section dedicated to female producers in a powerful nod to those often underrepresented in the winemaking industry. As for the vibe, floor-to-ceiling shelves are brimming with bottles, and walls are lined with (purchasable) abstract posters by local graphic designer Adam Flanagan. Don’t miss the tastings and workshops announced over on Peckham Cellar’s Instagram, and be sure to check out neighbouring sibling bistro Little Cellars and online bottle shop Cellar Next Door.

Ria’s, Notting Hill

Best for: Natural wines, Detroit-style pizza
Location: 29 All Saints Road, London, W11 1HE
Price: TBC 

This charming wine bar sits at Notting Hill’s culinary heart on All Saints Road, right next door to Empire Empire and The Pelican. Ria’s specialises in natural wines with a rotation of fresh orange, fruity white and nutty sparkling wines served alongside a concise menu of pillowy, cheesy Detroit-style pizzas. There’s fried potatoes with garlic-infused whipped feta and a green salad topped with aged parmesan for those that prefer a lighter bite with their wine. The beauty of Ria’s is that, while craft beers and cocktails from east London-based Black Lines (margaritas are just 5 GBP on Mondays) are guaranteed, the wine menu remains a complete surprise upon arriving at its cosy, low-lit space – think blue wall panels and potted plants flanked by low-hanging pendant lights. Make it your choice for date night and snag the vanilla ice cream with a deep-fried Mars bar to share.

Half Cut Market, Islington

Best for: Community vibe, nifty merch
Location: 396 York Way, London, N7 9LW
Price: TBC

Islington’s Half Cut Market burst onto the city’s food and drink scene with a refreshingly modern attitude towards wine. Something which is traced in its low-intervention and natural wine list curated by co-founder and north London local Holly Willcocks, where wines are accompanied by bold tasting notes and playfully organised by colourful magnetic letters with headings like weird whites, bubbles and orange. There’s more of a community vibe to this place with loyal visitors often nicknamed as ‘cutlets’ and dressed in merch such as graphic tees and custom caps. Adian Richardson (previously of BRAT and Embla in Melbourne) captains the kitchen with a seasonal menu of grilled flatbreads, housemade dips and experimental mains like mackerel with lovage and dandelion.

Carousel, Fitzrovia

Best for: Biodynamic wines, delicious small plates
Location: 19-23 Charlotte Street, London W1T 1RW
Price: Wine-glass from 8.50 GBP; bottles from 30 GBP

Carousel has been a fixture of London’s dining scene since its debut over a decade ago, so much so that it outgrew its original outpost in Marylebone and relocated to a larger spot on Fitzrovia’s bustling Charlotte Street in 2021. The move saw the addition of a sleek wine bar – alongside event spaces, a private dining room and designated area for its guest-chef residencies – where brick walls are lined with biodynamic bottles and a mix of cosy wooden tables and counter seats are made inviting by a feel-good techno playlist. The seasonal menu presents innovative snacks and small plates that are ideal for sharing such as hash brown with ‘nduja, pickled mussel and anchovy, and honey-drizzled fried chicken. Larger plates like tempura pumpkin with sesame yoghurt or brown crab rice with chipotle might also make an appearance. The bottle list is organised by sparkling, white, orange, pink, and red wines. We opted for a South African rosé, specifically Yo El Rey’s Good Luck, which paired nicely with the olive oil-coated chocolate mousse.

Cave Cuvée, Bethnal Green

Best for: A wine bar and bottleshop with a house-party vibe
Location: 250A Bethnal Green Road, London, E2 0AA
Price: Bottles from 16.50 GBP; four-bottle bundles from 65 GBP 

Cave Cuvée is the sort of place you plan to drop by and end up staying the entire evening. On the ground floor, a bottle shop is stacked floor-to-ceiling with wines, tote bags and illustrated prints in the same bubble writing font as the brand logo. Here, co-owners Brodie Meah and Max Venning are on hand to help select a bottle suited to your preferred flavour and finish with wines of all colours, house vermouth and no- and low-alcoholic options. There’s a fair few bundles that you can grab to go, including a party pack of four house cuvée bottles. Or venture downstairs to find an intimate dining space with street-food bites – the hot dog, packed with onion, lettuce and Swedish pickles gets our vote. As for the vibe, expect a high-energy playlist of hip-hop and disco classics and a relaxed crowd seated, standing and draped over countertops enjoying a glass of wine. If you’re based in North London, check out Top Cuvée and its bottle shop Shop Cuvée in Highbury.

Shrine to the Vine, Bloomsbury

Best for: Monthly tastings, organic wines
Location: 48 Lamb’s Conduit Street, London, WC1N 3LH
Price: Bottles from 8 GBP; monthly subscription from 95 GBP 

It’s little surprise that Dan Keeling and Mark Andrew, founders of award-winning restaurant group and magazine, Noble Rot, are the brains behind two supreme bottle shops in London. Their address on Lamb’s Conduit Street is particularly worth howling about, partly for its stellar selection of wines, but largely for its prime position just a cork’s throw away from their original Noble Rot wine bar and restaurant. We strongly recommend swinging by for the bar snacks alone. Here, shelves are neatly organised by style, region and grape, with a clear focus on sustainable farming – Keeling and Andrew carefully vet every producer themselves to promise quality, balance and texture. Sign up for the Shrine to the Vine monthly subscription service to receive three bottles to your door, and bag yourself complimentary tickets to their monthly tastings held in store – glasses are poured from 5pm until wine runs out.

Henny’s, Balham

Best for: Gorgeous interiors, creative workshops 
Location: 195C Balham High Rd, London SW12 9BE
Price: Bottles from 9.95 GBP 

Henny’s graduated from a pop-up in Tooting Broadway Market to a permanent site on Balham High Road in 2023, and it’s fast become a south-west London institution. Inside, walnut bar stools, mustard banquettes and peach shelves are decorated with organic, biodynamic and sustainably produced wines from Turkey, France, Austria and South Africa. Henny’s, named after founder Niall Penlington’s grandfather, has a particular focus on beaujolais – a young French red wine that’s celebrated for its fruity and light-bodied quality. The menu changes weekly and features oranges, reds, whites and sparkling wines that can be ordered by the glass, carafe or bottle, and a handy barcode to order Yard Sale Pizza straight to your table can be found on the snacks menu. Check out Henny’s events page for supper clubs, sip and paint sessions, tarot readings and candle-making workshops.

107 Wine Shop & Bar, Clapton

Best for: Sustainably farmed wines and expert tastings
Location: 107 Lower Clapton Road, Lower Clapton, London E5 0NP
Price: Wine-glass from 7 GBP; bottles from 14 GBP 

Following a successful crowdfunding campaign, Clapton’s favourite wine shop and bar P Franco resurrected at its original location in 2023, with the same dedicated team under the new name of 107 Wine Shop & Bar. Sustainably farmed European wines are the focus, with regular tastings from producers and sommeliers held alongside an excellent food menu from a rotation of guest-chef residencies. Chef Julie Heytei is heading up the kitchen until March 2025 with a weekly changing menu of modern French plates. It’s worth noting that while the bar operates as a first come, first served walk-in service for food, you can drop in from midday to pick up a bottle. If you’re seeking more advice on what bottle to go for, the team offer ten different wines to taste daily and provide a walk through on flavour and finish to help find the right bottle for you.

Sol’s, Bayswater

Best for: Seasonal wines and pantry essentials 
Location: 25 Leinster Terrace, London, W2 3ET
Price: Wine-glass from 8 GBP; bottles from 18 GBP 

This stylish new wine bar on the doorstep of Hyde Park is from the same team behind Margate’s stunning Fort Road Hotel. Sol’s takes inspiration from southern Europe’s convivial dining with communal-style seating, Iberican small plates and a European wine list curated by food writer Mina Holland. The all-day deli serves delicious focaccia sandwiches and pantry staples such as cheeses, pastas, noodles and display-worthy condiments. The weekly changing evening menu might include patatas bravas, lamb neck with salsa verde, or a chocolate mousse drizzled in olive oil. The low-intervention bottle list spotlights natural wines from Holland’s favourite European destinations with seasonal additions like a silky, biodynamic Tuscan red for cooler weather and a tannic Carambouille for sunnier days.

Close Ties

Best for: Lesser-known labels, rave-style supper clubs
Location: Various London-based locations 
Price: Tickets from 5 GBP 

This new ‘anti-supper club’ collective is disrupting London’s food and drinks scene one wine rave at a time. The brainchild of Joshua Bratt and Jake Norman (of Carousel and Trullo), Close Ties swaps traditional sit-down meals for feel-good events centred around great wine, live music and quality food. Their most recent event saw a takeover at east London’s Shoreditch Arts Club, where underground selectors including Secret Sundaze took to the decks, delicious undiscovered wines lined the tables, and chef Naz Hassan (of Crispin and Pidgin) cooked up a four-course feast inspired by his Bengali and Milanese roots. The dishes included spiced lobster and prawn rolls, beef tacos and deep-fried dumplings. Event details are announced on their Instagram, but note that tickets sell fast.

July, Fitzrovia

Best for: Low-intervention wines, date night
Location: 10 Charlotte Street, London, W1T 2LT
Price: Wine-glass from 7 GBP; bottles from 35 GBP

July is the neighbourhood restaurant and wine bar from partners Julian Oschmann and Solynkya Dumas on Charlotte Street in Fitzrovia. Chef Holly Haynes (previously of Bermondsey’s 40 Maltby Street) steers the Alsatian-inspired menu with weekly-changing small plates such as lemon sole schnitzel with sauce gribiche and bratwurst sausage with beetroot ketchup. The all-day dining space is defined by antique furnishings and a soothingly warm palette of yellows and oranges cast alongside a rotation of contemporary artwork and a striking hand-painted mural by London-based artist Orfeo Tagiuri. Sommelier Honey Spencer has curated the low-intervention bottle list of sparkling, white, rosé, amber and red wines – the Himmel Auf Erden rosé by Tschisa Christian is an excellent place to start, particularly as it translates as ‘heaven on earth’ in German. Be sure to save room for the madeleines with citrus curd and whipped cream.

Still thirsty? You can find out more insider information on London with our insider guide to the best cocktail bars, museums and galleries and monthly round-up of the hottest things to do.