Iron Gate in Washington DC is the Dupont Circle Greek-Mediterranean dining room and wine bar on N Street, a former carriage-house with a Mediterranean wine focus and a wood-fire mezze kitchen.
Food program: Wood-fire mezze and small plates
Tip: The covered garden patio is the city's prettiest spring-and-summer wine bar seat; book the late slot for the lower light.
Address: 1734 N St NW, Washington, DC 20036, Washington DC
barmini by Jose Andres in Washington DC is the cocktail laboratory next to Minibar on E Street, a 100-cocktail menu with a deep sherry and Spanish wine program from the same kitchen.
Signature pour: Manzanilla sherry flight
Wine focus: Cocktail laboratory with sherry and wine focus
Food: Pintxos and tapas
Tip: Bartender's choice is the play; describe a flavour and let the staff build. Reservations are required.
Sospeso in Washington DC is the Dupont Circle 17th Street Italian wine and cicchetti bar from Brent Kroll of Maxwell Park, with a small Italian-only natural list and cured-meat plates.
Signature pour: Lambrusco by the glass
Wine focus: Italian natural wines
Food: Cicchetti and small Italian plates
Tip: The wine flight is themed weekly; ask the bar what tonight's set is. Walk-ins fill the bar by 19:30.
Cork Wine Bar and Market in Washington DC is Diane Gross's 14th Street Logan Circle wine bar and bottle shop since 2008, the city's anchor natural wine room with 50 bottles by the glass.
Signature pour: Grower Champagne flight
Wine focus: Old World by the glass, deep grower Champagne
Food: Cheese and charcuterie, small plates
Tip: The retail shop next door sells the bottles you drink in the bar at retail price plus a $15 corkage; the best value list in DC.
Maxwell Park in Washington DC is Brent Kroll's Shaw 9th Street wine bar with a monthly-themed list that resets every month, 50 by the glass and an under-the-radar deep retail shop.
Signature pour: Whatever the month's theme calls for
Wine focus: Themed monthly list across all regions
Food: Snacks and charcuterie
Tip: Themed nights run on the first Tuesday of each month with a sommelier walk-through; arrive at 18:00 for a seat.
Lupo Verde in Washington DC is the U Street Italian dining room and wine bar from Pasta Cucina, a deep Italian-only list with 30 bottles by the glass and a separate enoteca cellar room downstairs.
Signature pour: Etna Rosso by the glass
Wine focus: Italian regional wines
Food: Italian small plates and pastas
Tip: The downstairs enoteca takes walk-ins for wine flights only; the upstairs room is the proper-meal seat.
Dio Wine Bar in Washington DC is the H Street NE natural-wine room from Stacy Kelsey, the city's most explicitly natural-wine bar, with rotating glasses from low-intervention producers worldwide.
Signature pour: Whatever bottle the staff has open
Wine focus: Natural and low-intervention wines
Food: Cheese and charcuterie boards
Tip: The wine bar runs an open-bottle policy; ask what is already pulled and pay by the glass for the value.
