Winston-Salem Goes Full Austria, No Apologies
· Winston Salem · Wine Bar / Bottle Shop · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 22, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Caviste’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
You open the list and it's basically an Austrian wine seminar in seven bottles — and we mean that as the highest possible compliment. There's no filler here, no obligatory California Cab to appease the nervous drinker. Someone made deliberate, opinionated choices, and the prices are so low they feel like a clerical error.
The Caviste has gone all-in on Austria, and the edit is tight but genuinely sharp. You've got three different takes on Grüner Veltliner — from Bründlmayer's L+T at $27 to Ott's Am Berg at $32 to the Schplink in a 3-liter bag-in-box at $37, which is a wild and correct thing to stock. The reds lean into Zweigelt and Burgenland blends via Berger and Meinklang, both producers with serious natural-leaning credibility. Claus Preisinger's Rozsa Libre! rounds things out with a skin-contact rosé that most wine bars in much larger cities wouldn't bother carrying.
We don't have confirmed by-the-glass info, and given the bottle shop format, it's possible pours work differently here than at a traditional wine bar. If you can snag a glass of the Meinklang Frizzante Prosa Rosé at the counter, do it — that's exactly the kind of low-intervention fizz you want to start with. Worth asking what's open.
The Bottom Line
The Caviste is doing something genuinely weird for Winston-Salem — a curated, Austria-only bottle shop with prices that should embarrass most restaurant wine lists. If you're even slightly curious about Grüner Veltliner or natural-leaning reds, this is a low-risk, high-reward detour.
· Winston Salem · Bakery / Cafe
Camino Bakery shouldn't have a wine list this considered, and yet here we are. Bottles top out at $29, most land between $14 and $19, and the selection skews curious rather than safe — Txakoli and orange wine at a Winston-Salem bakery is genuinely unexpected. If you're nearby and want a low-pressure bottle without the restaurant markup, this is a legitimately good stop.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Winston Salem · Thai
Thai Harmony is genuinely worth visiting for the food — the khao soi and kai yang have real fans for a reason, and the downtown space is one of the better dining rooms in Winston-Salem. But come for the kitchen, not the cellar. Until the wine program shows us something specific worth recommending, you're better off ordering a Thai iced tea and saving the wine for another night.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Winston Salem · Modern Mexican
Alma Mexicana is a genuine wild card — a modern Mexican restaurant in Winston-Salem with a wine program that's quietly pointing at Old World Europe instead of the expected California house pour. We need the full list to give you the real numbers, but the instinct here is good enough to warrant ordering something other than a margarita.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
· Winston Salem · Winery Tasting Room / Light Bites
Divine Llama is a fun, farm-genuine detour if you're exploring North Carolina wine country and want something local and unpretentious. Don't come for depth or discovery beyond the estate — come for the story, the setting, and a glass of Traminette you probably wouldn't have ordered anywhere else.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
· Winston Salem · American Cafe
West End Cafe isn't a wine destination, but it's a perfectly decent place to drink something decent without overpaying for it. Send a friend here if they want wine with dinner and aren't looking to make an event out of it.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Winston Salem · Wine Bar / Market
Little Pep is doing something genuinely uncommon for Winston-Salem: a short, confident, all-by-the-glass natural wine list with real producer cred and fair prices. Send a curious friend here; skip sending someone who wants a Napa Cab.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Marcos · Wine Bar / Bottle Shop
Cape Bottle Room is a genuinely weird and wonderful find — a hyper-focused South African bottle shop in a college town that somehow landed one of the best Alheit Vineyards selections in Texas. If you care about Chenin Blanc at all, you should make the trip.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Henderson · Wine Bar / Bottle Shop
Azzurra punches above its Henderson address, especially on bubbles — this is the kind of thoughtful small list that rewards people who actually read it. We'd send a friend here without hesitation, as long as they stay away from the $28 Merlot.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Arlington · Wine Bar / Bottle Shop
Flight Wine Shop is doing something genuinely rare in the DC suburbs: a tightly curated, fairly priced bottle shop that treats obscure regions and natural producers as the main event, not a novelty section. If you're tired of the same ten wines and want a shop that will actually teach you something, this is your spot.
Deep & Eclectic
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
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