It seems that everybody and their brother is opening a wine bar these days. Recent additions to the New York landscape include Bar Boulud from Daniel Boulud and Adour from Alain Ducasse. Then, there are the smaller establishments from lesser known restauranteurs. Regardless of the proprietor, I would argue that "wine bar" is a misnomer for all but a few of these places.

When I think "wine bar," glasses (not bottles) of wine immediately come to mind. Accordingly, I visit a so-called wine bar expecting to find numerous wines available by the stem. However, this does not seem to be universal. Many of the new wine bars have extensive wine lists, but offer only a handful of them by the glass.

So, aside from marketing purposes, does wine bar really have a use as a term? Are people really going to these places and ordering wine by the bottle and if so, doesn’t that defeat the purpose somewhat? I would concede that it might make sense for a group of people to order a bottle of wine, providing them each with the opportunity to taste said wine. Yet, it means that everyone is tasting the same wine and for me at least, part of the fun of going to a wine bar is tasting a wide variety of wines, both the one in my glass and the one in my companion’s glass.

I do applaud the practice of offering wines by the glass in two sizes — generally the equivalent of half a glass or a full glass, giving one the chance to taste more wines without overdoing it (these are alcoholic beverages, afterall). Yet, I am still somewhat dismayed when the selection of wines by the glass is limited to perhaps 10 white and 10 red wines, especially when the wines on offer aren’t particularly interesting. It’s not that much fun to taste the same California Chardonnay. Rather, I prefer to use these as learning experiences, tasting unfamilar wines I might not otherwise order in a larger format.

I recently dined at Artisanal restaurant, a restaurant which has built a reputation on its extensive offering of cheeses. Actually, the name is Artisanal Fromagerie & Bistro, with "Wine Bar" also included in the restaurant’s logo and, not surprisingly, the cheese list is vast with 250 selections. But, while this restaurant opened long before the Wine Bar craze, it has always had an extensive wine list, as well. Its general wine menu lists approximately 100 wines, all of which are available by the bottle, glass or taste. Now, that’s a wine bar!