Nine Pours, Zero Apologies, All Natural
· Los Angeles · Wine Bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 18, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Buvons’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Take Vibe Match and we’ll tell you what to order here.
Wingman Metrics
Nine wines on the whole list — and we mean the whole list. That kind of restraint either signals laziness or conviction, and at Buvons it's clearly the latter. Every slot is earning its place.
This is a tightly curated natural wine bar doing exactly what it says it's doing. You've got grower Champagne from Emmanuel Lassaigne, a skin-contact orange from Mae Son, a macerated Chardonnay from Les Lunes, and Marcel Lapierre's Raisins Gaulois holding down the Gamay corner — this is not a list built by a distributor rep on autopilot. The geographic spread is real: Loire, Beaujolais, Abruzzo, Catalonia, and beyond. What's missing is depth in any single region, but that's the trade-off when you curate this tight.
Everything is by the glass — all nine, every time — which means there's no bottle program to fall back on and no hiding. At $14–$25 a pour, the pricing is honest for what you're getting, especially when Lassaigne Champagne tops out the list rather than some anonymous Prosecco. Rotation appears limited, but the current lineup doesn't need much help.
Marcel Lapierre Raisins Gaulois 2025 — $14/glass
Lapierre is one of the foundational names in natural Beaujolais, and getting his Raisins Gaulois for $14 a glass is genuinely good value. Light, crunchy, carbonically charming — this is the pour you order twice.
Oriol Rossell Cava Brut Nature 2024
Most people sleep on Spanish sparkling wine and reach for the Champagne. Don't. This Brut Nature Cava from Catalonia is bone dry and textured in a way that punches well above its $14 price point. It's the smartest order on the menu.
Emmanuel Lassaigne Vignes de Montgueux
This is genuinely great Champagne — Blanc de Blancs from a top grower in the Aube — so 'skip' is relative. But at $25 a glass you're paying restaurant Champagne pricing for something you could find retail. Order it if you're celebrating; otherwise the Cava at $14 scratches the same itch for a lot less.
Nicolas Reau Attention Chenin Mechant 2024 + Any cheese or charcuterie board on offer
Loire Chenin with real texture and acid is basically built for a spread of aged cheese and cured meat. The wine's tension cuts fat and the fruit plays off savory without getting in the way.
The Bottom Line
Buvons is for people who already know what natural wine is and want nine well-chosen pours without a 50-page list getting in the way. If that's you, you'll feel right at home.
Los Angeles · Los Angeles · French Bistro / Wine Bar
Bar Etoile is doing exactly one thing, and it is doing it with conviction — if you want grower Champagne from serious small producers in a French bistro setting, this is your room. If you want options, look elsewhere.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Los Feliz · Los Angeles · Wine Bar
Tabula Rasa is the kind of wine bar that rewards regulars — the list rotates, the prices are fair, and the room alone is worth the visit. We'd send friends here on a Tuesday without hesitation.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Los Angeles · Los Angeles · Sushi / Japanese
Sushi Note is doing something genuinely uncommon: a thirteen-bottle list with no dead weight, fair prices, and the confidence to put Greek orange wine next to bluefin. If you let the list guide you, you'll drink better than you expected.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Santa Monica · Los Angeles · French-leaning fine dining
Citrin isn't trying to be all things to all wine drinkers — it's built a serious Champagne cellar and committed to it. If you're celebrating, curious about prestige cuvée verticals, or just want to drink the good stuff with a great meal, this list rewards you. Come with a budget and a plan.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Varietal Specific
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
· Los Angeles · Fine Dining / Tasting Menu
Seline is what happens when someone building a fine-dining list actually drinks wine and has opinions about it — the grower Champagne depth alone puts it ahead of most restaurants in Los Angeles, and the by-the-glass program has enough personality to carry you through a full tasting menu without a single boring pour. Send a friend here for wine without hesitation.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Los Angeles · New American / Tasting Menu
Meteora is doing the opposite of what every other LA restaurant thinks a wine list should be, and it's more interesting for it. If you trust the kitchen to make decisions for you, trust the wine list too.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Jose · Wine Bar
Little Wine House is doing something genuinely rare: a small list that actually required thought, priced like someone who wants you to come back. If you're in San Jose and want a glass of something interesting without a lecture attached, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
John Wayne Airport – Terminal B · Santa Ana · Wine Bar
Vino Volo clears the airport bar bar by a comfortable margin — better-than-expected service, a list that at least tries, and a seat that makes a delay feel like less of a punishment. Just don't look too hard at the markup and you'll be fine.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· St. Paul · Wine Bar
Small Hours is the rare Minneapolis wine bar that feels like it was built for people who actually love wine, not just the idea of it. If you're showing up for a bottle and some duck leg confit with a record on in the background, you're going to have a very good night.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
List Variety
Markup
Glassware
Staff
Specials & Deals
Storage & Temp
