Review: Vino Vino wine bar in Austin, TX

4119 Guadalupe St.
(512) 465-9282
Website: Vino Vino
Hours: Monday thru Saturday, 6pm-12am; Sundays, 3pm-10pm (kitchen 6pm, paella 7pm)
No Happy Hour

Our rating:

As a wine drinker, I love the name of this very hip wine bar on Guadalupe. Located near Hyde Park Gym under a warm neon sign, Vino Vino starts pouring wine at 6pm every night. We stopped by on a Thursday, and the place was really hopping. There were several large parties and lots of folks stopping by for a glass of wine. The “wines by the glass” menu changes from time to time — currently the menu features 19 wines, all Italian.

The wines we ordered arrived in attractive functional stemware. The pour for each glass was good, but not generous. Our group of three tried six total of the featured wines, three each of white and red. The best wines (also the most expensive) were a Pinot Grigio and a red blend called “Blau Blau” wine, named for the two grapes used to make it. The Pinot Grigio was a plush wine with lots of flavors, and it rated 3-stars on our wine rating system. “Blau Blau” was a smooth wine with lots of chewy fruit and silky tannins, and it earned a 4-stars rating. We would have liked to taste more of the wines offered at Vino Vino — unfortunately they do not sell flights.

Vino Vino is a nice place that sells good wine by the glass, and it is not as conducive to “tasting wine” as it is to drinking wine and having a good time. Its location on the way out of the downtown/UT area makes Vino Vino a good after work watering hole, even if it can be mildly difficult to find a place to park. But once you are inside and have a glass of wine, you may find yourself wondering why you don’t do this more often.