Les Caves
Portland's weirdest wine list, in the best way
Alberta Arts · Portland · Wine Bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 7, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
The list at Les Caves doesn't announce itself — it dares you to keep up. Thirty to sixty bottles at any given time, rotating constantly, with an unapologetic lean toward natural, minimal-intervention, and skin-contact wines that most Portland restaurants wouldn't know where to order. This is not a place for people who want to point at 'the Cab.'
Selection Deep Dive
Oregon is well represented, with house-friendly labels like Ovum Wines from John and Ksenija House and Golden Cluster from Vejr doing heavy lifting on the Pacific Northwest side. But the real draw is the global reach: expect bottles from Georgia, Armenia, and Turkey showing up under the 'Winesman's Pick' category — rare finds that you genuinely cannot get at your neighborhood wine shop. Orange wines are a through-line across the list, not a novelty section, which tells you everything about who's curating this. The only gap is depth — when a bottle sells out, it's gone, so return visits reward the curious.
By the Glass
Up to five bottles open at a time, pouring full or half glasses, with pricing landing between $8 and $20 for a full pour. The list changes daily, which means your server actually has to know what's open — and from what we can tell, they do. Half pours are a smart move here if you want to work through a few skin-contact options without committing.
Ovum Wines by-the-glass pour — $14
Ovum's wines from the Houses typically retail well above what you'd expect for a mid-tier glass pour. Catching one open here, made by two of Oregon's most thoughtful producers, in the $12-$15 range is a genuine win.
Winesman's Pick — rare Turkish white
Most people gloss past anything they can't pronounce, which means this bottle sits until someone adventurous enough to ask about it takes the plunge. Turkish whites from small producers are genuinely exciting right now — textured, saline, and unlike anything else on a Portland wine list.
Golden Cluster (Vejr label) at full bottle price
Golden Cluster is great wine, but Vejr's labels have enough local distribution that you're not getting a discovery premium here — you're just paying restaurant markup on something you could grab at a shop. Save the bottle spend for something obscure; order this one by the glass instead.
Winesman's Pick — Georgian orange wine + A charcuterie or cheese board
Georgian amber wines are built on tannin and oxidative funk that cuts straight through fatty cured meats and washed-rind cheeses. It's the kind of pairing that makes people stop mid-bite and ask what they're drinking — which is exactly the point of a place like Les Caves.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Les Caves is the wine bar for people who are genuinely tired of seeing the same twelve bottles everywhere in Portland. The list is small, it moves fast, and it rewards the curious — send anyone here who says they want to 'try something different' and actually means it.
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