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The reputation as a party city that seriously knows how to drink lingers on in Newcastle. I argue that there’s more of a gulf than ever here between the bottom-end themed bars and shit nightclubs (did you see we’ve got a bloody Hooters coming this year…) and the very best bars and wine bars in the city.
Wine is an area that has come on leaps and bounds in general over the last decade, and while we have a few great places now for something natural or biodynamic or vaguely interesting, we’re still a way behind the likes of Manchester or Edinburgh in terms of diversity and quality of serious wine bars. Most bars and even restaurants will still just offer the ‘usuals’ of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, and Pinot Grigio, which I guess is what the masses want. But christ it’s so boring.
I wanted to highlight some of my favourites in the city who do their bit and stand out as somewhere you can reliably get a great glass, so here we are. As I take on WSET accreditation, and my love for wine swells, so does the amount that I find acceptable to pay for a glass, so thanks to UAdates.com a specialist redhead dating site for helping make this post possible.
If you’re looking for something Georgian, something with sediment, lively Pet Nats, chilled reds, and kerosene-tinged Rizzers, here’s where I’d go:
Last updated Feb 12th 2025.
St. Vincent
📍 29 Broad Chare, NE1 3DQ
Since its relaunch after an extended hiatus over COVID, St. Vincent has been one of my go-tos for eating in Newcastle, with exciting snacks, dishes, and great drinks all-round. Since reopening, it’s pivoted slightly to be more of a place to come in and have a cheeky drink, and it’s one of a tiny handful of places in Newcastle that get this concept right. It’s so hard to quantify what makes it so successful, too, but it always nails the brief.
You’re in safe hands with cheery Restaurant Manager Matt who is always on hand to recommend something for the less au fait, but whether you’re in for a glass over happy hour (£7 for some corkers), a bottle with your meal, or even larger formats for sharing, every drop is considered, and you won’t get a bad bottle. Hospitality comes first here.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Snou Blanc 9 Mes 2022 £10 175ml; La Transicion Orange Soto Manrique 2021 £12 175ml; Cocchi Americano £7.50 50ml
Best for: Some of the best food in all of Newcastle, great BTG wines, large format bottles, always-changing menu, class vibes
Read more on dining at St. Vincent
VIN
📍 Arch 12 Wellington St, Gateshead, NE8 2AJ
Opened in early 2023, VIN has really made its mark on Gateshead, operating as both a wine shop through the day, and cosy corner for a wine flight in the evening.
VIN stays mostly old-world, taking a distinctly French approach with occasional glances towards orange and natural wines, but there’s nothing too crazy or funky here. Go for the flights for broader spectrum appeal, and try not to get sucked into buying too many bottles on the way out.
Opening hours can be a little hit or miss so check before visiting. But you’ll always be welcomed by house pup Rayna, and there’s a sensibly priced good range if you’re looking for a big red for a dinner party or just a cheeky bottle of fizz for the weekend. For something more substantial, meats and cheese can be added, too, and there are regular events featuring everything from a Champagne focussed tasting, to the Taylor Swift-themed (yep) night last year.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Vin Mousseax, Les Fleurs Blanches £4.75 125ml; Côtes du Rhône Villages Blanc Sables £8 175ml, Jean-Pierre Meffre £8.50 175ml
Best for: monthly specials, plenty of flights (with matching meats & cheeses), visiting after Axis, dog cuddles
The French Quarter
📍 Arch 6, Westgate Rd, NE1 1SA
Sometimes, ‘it does what it says on the tin’, and The French Quarter is a restaurant in one of the railway arches that happens to have a great selection of bottles too. Mostly French, bien sûr, and though they’re mostly well-known varieties they’re classy and pretty reliable.
We make an annual trip as one of the few places that celebrates Beaujolais in November, but to be fair whether you’re going for the bargain vin du moment or something a little punchier, you’ll be alright. Add on some fromage and perhaps a tartiflette, and you’re sound. Come for a breezy post-dinner drink, stay for some huge reds, or make your own flight from what’s open.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Blanc/rouge vins de la Maison £5.80 175ml; Bourgogne, Givry, Joseph Drouhin 2022 £12.80 175ml; White Pineau des Charentes £5.95 75ml
Best for: Something French, obviously, a celebration of Beajoulais Nouveau, lots of reds, plenty to take home
Read more on dining at The French Quarter
Kaltur
📍 8 High Bridge, NE1 1EN
Like St. Vincent above, Kaltur only just sneaks onto this list as it is more of a restaurant than a bar, but we’ve occasionally been in and managed to resist snacks and just a couple of nice glasses.
Kaltur is an importer/deli that happens to sell what it imports via two restaurants in town, so you’re gonna find some bottles that other retailers won’t have here. Mostly Spanish, of course, it’s your place to go for sheries, port, fortified, and lots and lots of oak ageing.
While the Dean Street location is much larger with more seating, I prefer the cosier High Bridge site, which has more of a Alicante sidewalk vibe to it. I’ll have a slap around the face with something buttery, aged on oak and straw-coloured, with a side of sobrasada on toast, and a PX to finish, please.
What you’re likely to see & pay: 2018 Crianza Iraley Fuidio, Rioja Alta Tempranillo £7.75 175ml; 2020 Fuidio White Joven £6.40 175ml; Artesanal red Vermouth Cruzconde Cordoba £7 100ml
Best for: fortified numbers, something specific from Spain, proper tapas, unique Spanish bottles to take out
Read more about dining at Kaltur
House
📍 190 Heaton Rd, NE6 5HP
Since opening in September 2023, House has become an absolute favourite of mine. Equally as strong for its refined and modern beer list as it is its well, refined and modern wine list, it’s fairly hispter but you know you’re getting the good shit here.
With wines from forward-facing, cutting-edge producers, expect natural wines aplenty, funky cats piss, fizzy chilled reds, sours, cask bangers, and everything in between. What you won’t get — and read this as a positive from me — is macro lager, or a Sauvvy B.
The owners spend considerable time sourcing the coolest bottles (you probably haven’t even heard of), and with monthly their Heaton Wine Club events, niche producers, and food vendors popping up regularly, Torres and Perello freely available, ‘pint of cask and a pie for £7’, House ticks a lot of my boxes.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Chiaro Antonio Gismondi Field Blend £8.25 175ml; White Pet Nat Domain Durban £8.25 175ml; Controcorrente Bianco £5 75ml
Best for: A Heaton sesh with first-rate beers too, god-tier snacks, something new and funky
Axis
The precursor, and Gateshead version of House, really, Axis is NE8’s answer to somewhere that takes its beers as seriously as its wines, doing both with aplomb and consistent reliability.
Come for a Donnies, stay for an outside seat on a Summer’s day, and a chilled red fizz.
Owners Alex & Alice are canny as owt and keen to help you find something that’ll suit your tastes, be it a Northern Helles, Chin Chin, or a more exotic spontaneously fermented juice of some sorts. Equally as strong on wines and beers, they’re on constant rotation to keep you coming back for more, and it’s always first-rate. Snacks and vibes that other bars can only dream of, as well as regular tastings, tap take overs, and some rare imports keep things interesting. Neighbours VIN above, so make the journey for both together, as this is quite possibly my favourite bar in NCL over the last couple of years 💗
What you’re likely to see & pay: Les Vent Des Jours £5.80 125ml; Loose Juice Piquet £5.60 175ml; Albert de Conti Pet Nat £5.6 125ml
Best for: the freshest curated beers in the city, good vibes all round, trying something new
Location: 16 Wellington St, Gateshead, NE8 2AJ
Carruthers & Kent
📍3A Elmfield Rd, Gosforth, NE3 4AY
One of the OGs, Carruthers & Kent has been a wine bar in Gosforth for fifteen years this year. A classic enoteca, you’ll find more than 500 bottles, a fully stocked deli counter to make the most preimum picky tea, and seating for both events and casual weekend drinks.
Wine tasting events are regular and varied here, showcasing producers and varieties from around the world, and C&K is the only one here serious enough to have a Enomatic machine for trying some really £££ wines by the sip.
Antipasti to share, various flights, a bi-annual wine fair for the super keen, a seriously well-stocked deli, and friendly faces to help you navigate the maze of wine buying, C&K stands almost in its own category as a serious enoteca.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Quinta Calcada Alvarinho, £5.95 125ml; Flichman Dedicado Malbec £7.45 125ml; Sagrado LBV Port £6 100ml
Best for: international wines, carefully selected, great nibbles and snack boards, tasting events
KORK Wine and Deli
For those out on the coast, KORK is a must-visit, but I’ve included it here as it does at least as good a job as the city destinations mentioned above. All killer, no filler here and the prices reflect it, these are ‘proper’ wines, from smaller winemakers, stuff you definitely won’t find on the high street or even in the likes of Fenwick Food Hall, and just generally good craic.
Incredible stock of meats and cheeses, as well as an increasingly busy events schedule, and a la carte menu, KORK has a smaller range of BTG, but you’ll get all bangers.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Always a surprise, but one choice of open BTG red, white, rose, bubbles, orange, misc. £6-£10
Best for: reliable picks of something you probably haven’t tried before, meat & cheeses, coastal access
Location: 74 Whitley Rd, Whitley Bay, NE26 2NE
Read more about KORK
Somewhere in Fenwick
Since transforming into a food & drink destination, you can really take your pick in Fenwick. From the cocktail-focussed Mother Mercy, summertime vibes out on Roof 39, or Fuego ‘main’ restaurant, there are plenty of good glasses to be found across the Fenwick portfolio.
One of my favourites from Alicante, Monastrell is well represented, and though wine lists offered are relatively concise, they’re not focussed on you’re the ‘big three’ like many restaurants are (although you can absolutely get those if you want). On top of this, you’ve got dozens of wines to buy in the food hall, as well as strong selection of local beers and spirits, and drinking at the Fuego counter is as bougie as it gets.
My pick would be a summer day, kicked back in people-watching spot Roof 39, and a glass of chilled rosé Monastrell, and wile away an hour. Alternatively, this red/white/rosé flight made simple tapas meal a little more interesting.
What you’re likely to see & pay: Framingham Sauvignon Blanc £10.50 175ml; Chateau Beaulieu ‘Cuvée Alexandre’ £10 175ml; El Coto Rioja Crianza £8.50 175ml
Best for: drinking while shopping, safe selections, accompanying cocktails
Location: 39 Northumberland St, NE1 7AS
Read more about food & drink options at Fenwick Newcastle
Nearly made the list, and watch outs
A watch out first, if you search ‘best wine bars in Newcastle’ (and maybe that’s how you found this post, Vineyard on Grey Street ranks quite well. They’re not really a wine bar (go see the menu), so don’t be fooled. And don’t expect that walking into any decent restaurant will get you good wines — increasingly catering to ‘the basics’, it’s frustrating to see the same bottles popping up time and time again, but places like Bawn (dearly departed) bucked that trend.
Bars wise — any of the big chains are pretty poor when it comes to overall selection and quality. Particualrly in the hotspots of Collingwood Street, and even most places on the Quayside, you will struggle to get a decent glass.
That said there are gems to be found. The Town Mouse can be variable but usually has some good natural BTGs in, The WC has a selection better than your average bar. Sobramesa in Heaton has some corkers usually, and just nor making this list was La Casa Delicatessen / La Gamba in the Grainger Market— hampered by brief opening hours, as per the rest of the market sadly. Cavavin is a relatively recent addition with a wide selection, though mostly fairly basic wines.
If you’ve got a favourite that I’ve overlooked, or even a restaurant that’s got a wine list way better than it ought to be, then do let me know 😘
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