Secco Wine Bar

2933 W. Cary St.
353-0670
seccowinebar.com

Second Place: Lehja

Third Place: Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant

Owner Julia Battaligni hopes readers love her list because they find interesting, affordable and good value wines that aren’t on grocery-store shelves or other wine lists in town. “People are more curious and more savvy about wine with each passing year,” she says, “and my customers seem excited to try new things regularly.” Her list is exclusively Old World. “Specialization is not a dirty word!” she says. “And while there are some solid lists in this town, sadly there are still a lot of cop-outs or nothing but mass-produced wines you see at Food Lion.” She’s convinced that Richmond diners are smarter than that and want more. No surprise that Lehja’s well-chosen Old and New World wines seduce Indian-cuisine lovers and newbies alike, but some West End oenophiles have no qualms about popping into the mall to quaff a glass at Cooper’s Hawk.