Grand Avenue's Best-Kept Wine Secret
Cathedral Hill / Summit Avenue · St. Paul · Wine Bar / Retail with Food Pop-Ups · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 25, 2026
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Solo Vino, you're immediately reminded that this is a retail shop first — floor-to-ceiling bottles, serious labels, the kind of place where you actually want to read the shelves. But tucked in the back is a tasting bar that quietly punches above its weight class, pouring from a rotating cast of 20–40 bottles that shifts with what's interesting, not what's easy to sell. It's Cathedral Hill's answer to 'what if your wine shop also wanted to hang out with you?'
The retail inventory runs 200–500 bottles deep, with a backbone built on France — Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Provence all represented with purpose — and a solid Spanish wing anchored by Rioja. The tasting bar selection rotates enough to keep regulars on their toes, pulling from that broader inventory rather than defaulting to the same safe pours every week. A 2014 Margaux and 2015 Bandol sharing shelf space with a 2016 Chablis tells you this isn't a grocery store wine wall dressed up fancy. There's real curation happening here, overseen by staff who actually know what they're looking at.
Eight to sixteen options by the glass puts Solo Vino comfortably above the neighborhood average, and the rotation means you won't find the same list two visits in a row. Tasting events — priced accessibly and tied to shop inventory — essentially function as a bonus BTG program, letting you work through the cellar in guided sips. It's a smart model: buy a bottle of whatever you loved, walk out the door.
Bodegas LAN Rioja Reserva 2018 — ~$20–$28
Rioja Reserva at this price point is almost always a value play, and LAN is one of the region's more reliable producers — serious oak integration, red fruit depth, and enough structure to feel like you spent more than you did. In a shop with 2014 Margaux on the shelves, this is the one to grab on a Tuesday.
2015 Bandol
Most people walk past Bandol because they don't know it, and that's their loss. Provence's most serious red — built on Mourvèdre — needs time, and 2015 was a superb vintage in the appellation. The fact that Solo Vino is stocking it at all says something about the shop's intentions. This is a wine for people who think they don't like Provence.
2014 Margaux
It's a great wine from a great vintage, no argument there. But if you're popping into a neighborhood tasting bar, dropping serious money on a classified Bordeaux isn't the move — you're not in the right setting to give it the attention it deserves, and the markup on trophy bottles rarely rewards the buyer. Save this one for a dinner at home with the right glass and a real occasion.
2016 Chablis + Food pop-up oysters or charcuterie
Chablis and oysters is one of those combinations that exists for a reason — the wine's austere minerality and bright acidity cut through brine and fat without stepping on either. Solo Vino's rotating food pop-ups lean into exactly this kind of snackable pairing territory, and a proper Premier or Village Chablis from 2016 is drinking well right now.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Solo Vino is the kind of wine shop that moonlights as a destination, and the tasting bar makes it worth the trip even if you don't buy a bottle — though you will. Send your wine-curious friends here before they spend the same money on something forgettable at a restaurant down the street.
Payne-Phalen · St. Paul · Italian
Yarusso Bros is a St. Paul institution worth visiting for the food, the history, and the vibe — just don't make the wine the reason you go. Order a glass of whatever's cold, eat the meatballs, and enjoy it for what it is.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Macalester-Groveland · St. Paul · Mediterranean and Middle Eastern
Shish is a genuinely good casual Mediterranean spot — the food earns its reputation on Grand Avenue. But the wine list is strictly utilitarian, and you'd be better served ordering a beer or skipping the wine altogether until they decide to put in some effort.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Macalester-Groveland · St. Paul · French Bistro
Bon Vie Bistro isn't trying to be a wine destination and doesn't pretend to be — but it gets the fundamentals right, keeps prices honest, and makes an easy case for a $10 Bordeaux with your quiche. Send your friends here when they want a relaxed weeknight pour without the markup guilt.
Plays It Safe
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · St. Paul · New American
Citizen is a competent hotel wine list doing exactly what a hotel wine list is supposed to do — keep everyone comfortable and no one too excited. If you're here for the view and a pre-dinner glass, the rosé section will take care of you; just don't come expecting discovery.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Cathedral Hill · St. Paul · American, gourmet burgers & pub fare
Red Cow St. Paul has no business having a wine list this good, and that's exactly why we like it. Send a friend here — just make sure they know to skip the Bollinger and go straight for the Muscadet.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Downtown · St. Paul · Italian
Buca di Beppo's wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a corporate Italian chain: safe, familiar, and overpriced for what you get. Order the Chianti, enjoy the meatballs, and don't overthink it — but don't come here expecting the wine to be part of the experience.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.