Division Wines — Restaurant in Portland

So, my review is based on two visits to Division Wine over a 10 day period.

I'd read some recent reviews of DW that were pretty positive and so decided to check it out. It's a bit of a ways from where I currently live, but thought it might potentially make for a fun dinner destination for my wife and I. The food menu at DW is limited (I assume they don't have a full kitchen), but the appetizers and snacks available looked interesting and substantial (based on prior reviews and pictures).

My initial visit was on a Tuesday afternoon when the place was fairly empty. I sat at the bar and chatted up the bartender a bit, who was friendly, helpful and pretty knowledgeable. As I was by myself I ordered a glass of wine, followed by the DW flight. The wine by the glass selection is quite good here. There's roughly 15 or 20 wines listed (reds, whites, Rose and sparkling), but then they also have big reds, Oregon reds and Oregon whites. You have to ask what these are, and they generally consist of 3 or 4 additional wines in each category available by the glass. If you want to try a taste of something before committing to a glass, they're cool with that. You can also order a 3 glass flight of anything that's open ($16 I think). Prices are moderate, ranging between $10 and $15 a glass for wines with a bottle cost of between $20 and $35. The selection is pretty well curated, largely consisting of well priced entry level wines from obscure wineries. There were also a few Oregon pinots and Washington reds.

DW also has a sizeable retail shop where you can either buy a bottle to go or enjoy in the store/cafe ($10 corkage for bottles under $50; no corkage for wines $50 and above). The selection is decent and pretty well priced I thought.

So I was looking forward to taking my wife here for a light dinner and a bottle of wine on a Friday evening. DW doesn't take reservations, which is something I knew in advance. Parking can also be challenging here, as DW has no lot and you have to park on SE Division or in the neighborhood. On a Friday that can be tough. I tried calling in advance to get an idea of the crowd size, but couldn't get through. Still, it was pretty early (a bit before 5 pm), so I (incorrectly) assumed it might not be too crowded or we'd have a short wait. In fact DW was quite crowded and it wasn't clear what our options were. There's no receptionist here and no wait list. We finally got the attention of a waiter who agreed they were fairly full. He told us to have a nice day when I expressed my thought that I guess we'd leave then.

So my impression is that this is very much a locals, neighborhood wine bar and not a dinner destination spot. If you live nearby this is likely a great place to stop by for a bite and a glass of wine. As we don't, I'm pretty sure this will be our last last visit to...

Love this wine bar! This is my favorite wine bar in Portland. The staff are so wonderful. Will, the manager, is great and the rest of the staff are very attentive and helpful as well. During my many visits here, multiple customers have walked in and asked the service staff about their opinions on food pairings in order to purchase the correct bottle. The staff really knows their selection and are willing to help with your personal dinner and wine pairing needs as well as your backyard barbecue pairing needs. It’s so fun and such a cool, judgement free environment! Whatever level of wine appreciation you are at, this is the place that will make you feel comfortable. I always love having a ‘Dealers Choice’ wine flight, where I can tell the staff my normal style of wine and they bring me some really great options and things I haven’t tried yet. I always end up purchasing a couple bottles afterwards, but the staff never expects a bottle purchase. Staff here are always genuine, and they really love serving people, getting them what they want & need as well as having real conversations with guests. This place really brings out the diversity of the wine industry and they are so welcoming to anyone and everyone. When walking into the wine bar, 1/2 the place is a wine bar and the other 1/2 is a bottle shop. So great. A cool place you can walk in to have a glass of wine, a wine flight and a cheese/meat plate as well as simply purchase a couple of really great bottles of wine priced decently. They also locally source cheese, bread, butter etc… I’ve been a customer here for a few years now and even when it’s been months since I have come in, Will and other staff always remember me and they’re always so attentive, sociable and accommodating. I love love this place and could not recommend it more! Don’t pass this...

I have been to Division Wines a handful of times now with friends and my partner and it is by far my favorite wine bar to go to. The price is right, the selection rotates and their flights are the perfect amount of wine for me and I get to try new wines everytime I go there.

Their food is also really great! This last time we got a dessert (Tiramisu), roasted beets with goat cheese, a veggie and lentil soup, some good ol bread and butter, and their salmon dip. All of it was so delicious! Nothing is ever just so-so. Always so delicious!

They have a wonderdul bottle shop too I like to peruse while waiting for a seat. I've never waited more than about 20 minutes when it's been a little busier. Everyone is so knowledgeable about the wines and help me find great ones every time I've been.

Would absolutely recommend to anyone interested. In the summertime I liked sitting outside and playing small board games. Great place to go and inside...