With fall just around the corner, it’s a great time to check out wine bars on Oregon’s North Coast — the weather cools down, the crowds start to disappear, and what’s a better way to enjoy autumn color than with a glass of wine in hand.

Three popular local wine bars are good bets: WineKraft in Astoria, Vino Manzanita in Manzanita and the wine bar at Sweet Basil’s Café. Northwest wines dominate their respective wine lists. Featured are varieties of Oregon and Washington wines (and some California wines, depending on the venue) that are generally regarded as the best in the world. People come from far and wide to experience them.

WineKraft enjoys a great location — on the Astoria waterfront at the west end of Pier 11, just off the Astoria Riverwalk; the view is impressive. While there, visitors can taste up to 34 different wines — whites, reds, rosés, bubbles and dessert wine. Five different kinds of beer are available as well as tasty wine cocktails and, of course, some non-alcoholic beverages. Cheese and charcuterie plates may be purchased along with another half dozen scrumptious delicacies to enhance your experience.

Opening its doors in June 2015, WineKraft was a dream come true for owner Rebecca Kraft. “I was a hair dresser for many years and … ready for a change,” she says. “I’ve been planning this for a long time — a place where people could come and drink good wine, relax and enjoy events — a real people-gathering spot.”

April Thorgramson, Kraft’s daughter, also works at WineKraft, helping make her mother’s cherished vision a reality. They finish each other’s sentences.

Every Friday and Saturday night, they have music starting at 6:30 p.m., featuring performers like Red Beans and Rice and Howly Slim to name two. Other events run the gamut from wine tastings and wine 101 classes taught by sommeliers to more whimsical offerings. The latter include providing coloring books for adults. Then, there’s Tipsy Painting, alternately taught by local artists Jo Pomeroy-Crockett and Ronni Harris, where participants enjoy wine and come away with a finished painting. The Astoria Pub Knitters gather monthly at the wine bar regularly too.

WineKraft was a venue for the FisherPoets Gathering in February and holds a monthly first Tuesday poetry open mic night. The wine bar will also be a presence at the Pacific Northwest Brew Cup later in September. Visit http://winekraftnw.com for details on everything that’s happening.

Current owner Dixie Lee, a diminutive brunette, bought Vino Manzanita, located at the corner of Fourth Street and Laneda Avenue in downtown Manzanita, about 10 years ago. “It’d been open for a couple of years with a very limited wine selection and perhaps a couple of small plates on offer,” she remembers. Today, Vino has remained small but viable, serving up to 25 customers inside with additional seating on a back patio and a few tables out front for use when the weather permits.

Visitors can sample five different reds and three whites by the glass (well, two whites and a sake selection), as well as two sparkling wines: prosecco and a sparkling rosé. There’s also a small assortment of beers. The list of wines by the bottle is robust and includes reds, whites, champagne, sparkling wine, dessert wine and port.

As many as a dozen small plates are on offer with such delicacies as smoked salmon, pate, spanakopita, several different cheese plates and lots more. Two dinner entrées are available every night, prepared off the premises.

Lee makes a point of sharing some of the more popular Oregon wines with customers. “Most people are adventurous that way. Often from out of state, they’re always eager to try Oregon wine,” she says.

“I never had any formal training beyond just tasting a lot (and) traveling to different countries to sample wine,” confides Lee. “I go to California about once a year, even though we specialize in Oregon pinot noir. I like to carry things you can’t get in local stores and feature wines from all over. Being such a small operation, anything I offer by the glass I love customers to taste. Wine is beautiful because it’s natural and a great world to be in.”

September and October are good months; the wine bar gets a lot of retired people coming in once kids are back in school.

“Since this is a beach town you get an influx of tourists in the summer and early fall,” Lee explains. “Permanent residents support me too, though. We serve all age groups, from 21 to 90.” She takes pride in what she calls, “my quaint little wine bar” and rightfully so. It’s a delight. Vino Manzanita is open from 5 to 10 p.m. six nights a week and closed Sunday. After Labor Day, it’ll be closed Sunday and Monday. For more information, visit Vino’s Facebook page.

Marcie Russo has been with Sweet Basil’s Café and its wine bar for the last two years, bringing with her a strong background in wine. “When I popped in here looking for work, John (Sowa) saw my resume and exclaimed ‘Oh, this is a good fit for here!’” The restaurant’s previous wine buyer left just a couple of weeks after Russo arrived, and the job was hers.

Her love of wine is positively infectious. “The thing people don’t know about wine bars is that when you come in for a bottle, you get a wine bar price,” Russo explains. “People often don’t know that and they should. It’s usually about three times the glass price instead of four times — there’s a bit of a discount. It’s not a wine shop price; it’s not a restaurant price; it’s somewhere in between.”

Owner John Sowa had the wine bar built in 2009. There, patrons can purchase wine flights to compare and contrast Northwest wines with other varietals from around the world. For $12 they get five 2-ounce pours; for $15 they get eight 2-ounce pours. Flights are on offer from 4 to 6 p.m. and as time permits throughout the day.

Small plates, including tapas, provide the perfect accompaniment. But if they don’t fill the bill, items on the full restaurant menu may be ordered as well. There’s also live music five nights a week — Wednesday through Sunday. Explains Sowa, “I came from New Orleans where music and food were always a combination.”

Despite all the activity — the restaurant, the wine bar and live music — 10 p.m. is closing time, even on the weekends. “The crowd here is older, between 45 and 75,” Sowa says by way of explanation. “It’s not a late night place. To a degree this changes in the off season. Locals will come in for the music and a glass of wine. They don’t come downtown during the summer.”

As you’d expect, a lot of thought goes into the wines served — many of them Northwest wines — with what’s left comprising only about 10 percent of the entire stock. There’s also as many reds as whites.

Instead of doing pairings, staff offer suggestions. “Paired wine takes away from the variety, which I don’t like,” says Sowa. “I’d rather see an on-the-spot suggestion.” This method works rather well given that “What wine do you think we should drink with this?” is a frequently asked question. So, while spicy foods like jambalaya may go best with a sweeter wine — like a sweet riesling — a server here wouldn’t suggest such a pairing outright. He or she would ask diners what they liked and then try and find something in between.

Obviously, there’s a lot to know about wine, but think of the fun you’ll have along the way! Says Russo, “On the West Coast, we’re just more casual about wine. The scene here isn’t like New York’s and they, in turn, are looking to Paris. Still, the fact remains that Oregon, Washington and California are on the cutting edge in the wine world. We shouldn’t take it for granted that we are in the most superior triangle for certain kinds of wine: Oregon pinot noirs, best in the world; Washington syrahs, best in the world; California cabernets and chardonnays, best in the world.”