What Is Coravin, and Why Is It on Our Wine List?

October 6, 2026

Five wines on our list have the same word tucked into their description: Coravin. It reads like a producer's name. It's actually a tool, and it's why a $175 Napa Cabernet has a $50 six-ounce glass printed right on our list.

Coravin pours wine through the cork without pulling it. A thin needle passes through the cork, argon gas goes in as the wine comes out, and when the needle is withdrawn the cork closes back up behind it. The rest of the bottle stays sealed, and the space where the wine used to be fills with an inert gas instead of air.

Why does air matter so much?

Because once a cork comes out, oxygen goes to work on the wine. For the first hour that can be a gift; plenty of reds loosen up and get more interesting. After a day or two it's a different story. The fruit fades, the wine goes flat, and it keeps sliding from there.

That clock is the whole problem with pouring good wine by the glass. Open a bottle for one glass, and the rest has a day or two to find a home.

What does Coravin change for you?

It lets us pour a bottle one glass at a time for weeks without the wine fading. You can have three ounces of the Pomerol tonight, the next guest can have three ounces from the same bottle a few weeks from now, and the second glass should taste as fresh as the first.

These are the wines marked Coravin on our list right now:

• Joseph Drouhin Bourgogne 2023, Pinot Noir from Burgundy: $18 for three ounces, $25 for six
• Contino Reserva, Tempranillo-based Rioja: $26 / $36
• Vieux Maillet Pomerol, Merlot-based, from Bordeaux's Right Bank: $26 / $36
• Miner Family "Emily's" 2021, Napa Valley Cabernet: $50 for six ounces
• Fort Ross Late Harvest Chardonnay 2023, a dessert wine: $29 for three ounces

The Special Vertical flight ($60) is four two-ounce pours of premium reds, all of them poured by Coravin. It's the easy way to taste four of the bigger reds on the list without committing to a bottle of any of them.

Does it change how the wine tastes?

It shouldn't, and that's the point of the design. The wine in your glass has had far less contact with air than a glass poured from a bottle that's been open since yesterday.

What you will notice is the pour itself. It's slower and quieter than opening a bottle, and there's no pop. I'll admit I miss the sound. The tradeoff is worth it, because the alternative for a $120 bottle is opening it for one glass and hoping the rest finds a table before it fades.

What if the wine you want isn't marked Coravin?

Ask for a glass anyway. Any bottle on our list can be poured as a single glass at half the bottle price; I explained how that works alongside our pour sizes and flights in how to read our wine list. The current wine list shows everything that's pouring.

How should you order a Coravin pour?

Order two of them side by side, or save one for dessert.

For the side-by-side, get three ounces of the Drouhin and three of the Vieux Maillet together. The Pinot is lighter and leans on its acidity. The Pomerol is rounder and darker. Six ounces total, and you'll know which side of that line you like.

For dessert, try three ounces of the Fort Ross late harvest Chardonnay. It comes in a 375ml bottle that most people would never open on a weeknight, which is exactly why it's nice to have by the pour.

Book a table, order the Drouhin and the Vieux Maillet next to each other, and see which glass you finish first.

What does Coravin mean on a wine list?

It means the wine is poured with a Coravin device. A thin needle passes through the cork, argon gas fills the space left by the wine that's poured, and the cork closes back up when the needle comes out. Because the bottle is never uncorked, the remaining wine stays largely protected from oxygen, so a bottle can be poured one glass at a time over weeks instead of a day or two.

Which wines does Solera pour by Coravin?

The wines marked Coravin on the current list are the Joseph Drouhin Bourgogne, the Contino Reserva, the Vieux Maillet Pomerol, the Miner Family Emily's Cabernet, and the Fort Ross Late Harvest Chardonnay. The Special Vertical flight of four premium reds is also poured by Coravin. Check the menu for what's pouring now.