Central Provisions
Old Port's Best Kept Wine Secret
Old Port · Portland · Internationally-inspired small plates · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 7, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
The wine list at Central Provisions lands like a gut punch — in the best way. You're sitting in a cozy Old Port brick room, ordering small plates, and suddenly there's a 1999 Borgogno Barolo Riserva and a Clos Uroulat Jurançon Sec staring back at you. This is not a list assembled by someone who just Googled 'popular wines.'
Selection Deep Dive
With 80-120 bottles, Central Provisions punches well above its weight class for a small-plates spot. The French backbone is serious — Burgundy (both village and premier cru territory), Northern Rhône from Eric Texier, and a Jurançon Sec that most Portland diners have never heard of. Austria shows up via Bauer's Rosenberg Grüner, and Italy earns its place with a 15-year-old Barolo that could anchor a much fancier list. The gaps are minor — no real New World representation to speak of — but honestly, when the Old World is this well-curated, we're not complaining.
By the Glass
Twelve to twenty pours by the glass is generous, and the selection isn't just a house red/house white situation. The Bauer GrĂĽner and the Dampt Bourgogne Tonnerre on the glass list are genuinely interesting picks, not filler. At $12-$14, these are priced to actually get ordered, which is exactly how a by-the-glass program should work.
2009 Gaunoux Meursault — $80
Retail on this bottle sits around $150, making Central Provisions' $80 ask nearly half what you'd pay elsewhere. Aged Meursault from a solid producer at this price is a rare restaurant find — order it before they wise up.
2010 Clos Uroulat Jurançon Sec
Most diners skip right past Jurançon because they've never heard of it. That's a mistake. This dry white from southwest France — made from Gros Manseng — has a tension and grip that makes it electric with seafood and rich small plates. At $32 it's nearly a steal, and it's exactly the kind of wine a knowledgeable staff member should be pushing on every table.
1999 Borgogno Barolo Riserva
Look, it's a phenomenal bottle — but at $110, it's the one place on this otherwise value-forward list where the markup climbs to 56% over retail. If you're going to drop three figures, know what you're getting into. For most tables ordering small plates, there are better-value paths through this list.
2012 Texier Brezeme Northern RhĂ´ne + Bone marrow toast
Brezeme is a tiny, mostly forgotten Northern Rhône appellation that produces Syrah with real savory, meaty depth. Against the rich, fatty unctuousness of bone marrow toast, it's a natural — the wine's dark fruit and peppery edge cuts through the fat and makes both better.
🔥 The Bottom Line
Central Provisions is doing something genuinely rare: running a thoughtful, fairly priced, adventurous wine program inside a casual small-plates restaurant in Maine. Yes, send your friends here for wine — and tell them to ask about the Jurançon.
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