Wine Lovers Have Lots Of Options Near Nation's Capital

WASHINGTON — What explains the stream of wine bars into the Washington area in the past few years?

Mark Kuller, owner of the wine-themed restaurant Proof, thinks the intellectual and social aspects of the drink appeal to many of us. Wine gives people the chance to think about geography and vintages, he says. Its air of sophistication also encourages leisurely consumption. "You don't get that with a sports bar," he says.

Proof and the neighborly Cork Wine Bar are the most accomplished of the area's wine bars, but there are others worth trying:

At Enology, the spare, glass-wrapped younger sibling of Veritas, patrons are put in a California state of mind. Wines from the Golden State dominate the list and are best enjoyed with cheese or charcuterie rather than anything requiring an actual cook.

Dark wood, stained concrete floors and a great soundtrack lend an air of sophistication to Evo Bistro in McLean, Va., which serves a worldly selection of wines with its generous small plates. Thanks to a handsome wine dispenser to the side of the bar, patrons can try fine wines by the single-ounce taste. See what goes best with the saffron-rich paella, one of the kitchen's best efforts.

Like a lot of the competition, the sleek Grapeseed in Bethesda, Md., offers a lot of its grape juice by the taste, the glass, the flight and the bottle. But it also passes out tasting notes with those flights and introduces customers to up to five high-end wines on the third Thursday night of every month. The restaurant's "Taste & Mingle" costs $30 and includes substantial snacks.

The Iron Bridge Wine Co. in Warrenton, Va., the horse-country cousin of the popular Iron Bridge Wine Co. in Columbia, Md., ranks as one of the handsomest watering holes. It's also among the most entertaining, thanks to a rooftop deck and a new wine-dispensing system on the balcony level that allows sippers to try a changing selection of 16 whites and 16 reds in three portion sizes at the push of a button.