Monopole by WineRx

This place is so cute! I hosted a meetup for the Toast and Jam event. The staff are friendly, and the space has cute alcoves to hang out. They should just point out which wines are on happy hour and which are not to be transparent. I really like it here and hope to see more fun things

Customer Service is stellar! I went in 30 minutes before closing time on the 4th of July. I was greeted by a person with a smile and ready to help me choose a wine. The worker asked me what kinds of wine I liked, where I was going to be drinking the wine (chilled or room temperature), full body vs light, etc. She then chose like 3 different high quality bottles. From there, we started narrowing down to single bottle. She told me price point, the differences between the bottles of wine, and so on. We decided on one and I didn’t leave feeling like I could’ve chose a different one. It tasted amazing. Also, I was going to a picnic but didn’t have a wine opener so she opened and corked it for me. She gave me a couple of cups as well. All in all, it was an amazing experience. I’m going to rate it a 12/10. It truly felt like a boutique experience.

Great shop and wine bar. Lucy provided amazing service and information. Excited to come back for some tastings

Nina was very unprofessional. She locked the door because she kicked a patron out due to personal reasons and when my wife and I tried to come in, we had to bang on the door several times to get the door opened for not only ourselves, but other guests trying to come during business hours. I will be reaching out to management with details about our experience.

I have been coming here for over a year now. Amazing place to learn about wine, and taste some delicious both new world and old world wines. They truly know their craft. Blind tasting Friday is my new favorite challenge. Highly recommend it for any occasion. You won’t’ regret it.

Cozy environment, Excellent staff & outstanding selection of wines which is changing every week! I just love it ❤️

rarely review, but gotta shoutout this awesome bar in pasadena . the owner and bartenders are so chilllll — also they’ve got Highland Park Beers and other good cervesas. fun events, good times!

My new favorite place. If you want to know about wine, taste good wine, then come here.

My family and I have been visiting Monopole for years. It is a boutique wine shop in the heart of Pasadena with a huge personality. The shop has a very nice selection of wines from all over the world, including an extensive list of wines from Mexico. They have a bar in the back of the shop where you can enjoy tasting flights that are updated every week. They also offer nice charcuterie boards to go with the delicious wine. Lucy, Patty and Nina are always welcoming, helpful and fun! We try to stop by everything we go to the Pasadena Playhouse since it is next door. Monopole also hosts many Meet the Winemaker events with Baja Wine Buzz, showcasing wines from Valle de Guadalupe in Baja California, Mexico. Whenever we are at Monopole we feel like we're family. You should visit as well and enjoy a nice glass of wine and friendly conversation in a cozy and relaxing environment.

I found this place after the fires. I really needed to be with my community and walked in to have a glass of wine. I made friends with the people at the bar. It was truly comforting to be around others going through the harsh realities. I have to say, the owners are like family. I've been coming here since and started a membership. Now I'm fully stocked and know 1000 more facts about international wines. I enjoy all the live music and artists that come by. It's always a pleasure to visit. Best part about being a member are the tasting parties. You get to hang out on the mezzanine.

It's been a while since my initial review, but we visit Monopole regularly and have always enjoyed our experiences here. It's a nice, little wine shop with a good selection of varietals, blends, and even a few craft beers. In the back, there's a quaint tasting bar which usually features a flight of reds and whites, along with several other selections, which are always changing. Lucy (owner), Pattie, Nina, and the rest of the staff are so friendly and accommodating. They really make you feel like family. Monopole is located a couple of store fronts north of The Pasadena Playhouse and is our go-to spot for a pre-show glass of wine and a charcuterie board. They also hold quite a few "special events" featuring wines/winemakers from various parts of the world, as well as a Friday night blind tasting experience. We just love Monopole and highly recommend you check them out when in the area.

It was such a great surprise to visit Monopole. It had only recently been in my bookmarks via yelp, but i'm happy I took a chance and had a great time for the bit of time I spent there. Arrived during the day at around 2pm on 4th of July and surprisingly they were open with limited hours so i took advantage of the holiday and headed in. I took a seat at the bar and hung out with the bartender and other patrons (who were already having a GREAT time). Everyone was super friendly and was even offered a glass of champagne by a couple who had bought a bottle. This place definitely has a Cheers -esque vibe. People mentioned that they come on a normal basis and I can totally understand why. Totally chill and comfortable vibe. I had a little orange wine (very different for me, as Im a red wine girl, but it was hot + I wanted to try something new) totally delicious and refreshing. Super cute little hour spent at Monopole! One of these days, I want to head in and experience the fun all over again.

If you're looking for an unpretentious atmosphere to enjoy some good wine, Monopole is the perfect place to visit. Every staff member we have met has been kind and knowledgeable. Even when the place is super busy, they never make you feel rushed or like you're interrupting them by asking a question, asking for another pour, or submitting your answers for the blind tasting. We've been here twice on the Blind Tasting nights and we were very nervous the first time but they provide a good guide and let you discover the wine yourself with your group. In addition to fun events, they also have a wide variety of delicious and unique wine! I would highly recommend a visit to Monopole and expect it to be very casual, chill, and fun!

Really fun wine bar right next to the Pasadena Playhouse. They have a blind tasting every Friday where if you guess the four grape profiles of the four wines correctly you get the tastings for free and your name on their "hall of fame". All the wines I tried were fantastic and the owners are the nicest people. Service is fantastic and the place is impeccably clean. I would definitely recommend here for a date spot or to have a nice glass of wine to wind down.

This is a great place to have a few glasses of wine, or pick up some bottles (or do both). Patricia is amazing! She's super knowledgeable and has never steered us wrong with her wine recommendations. This is a gem in the neighborhood. Visit for good wine, good people, and some good laughs.

Wow, must be new owners? Very friendly and great wines, great AC made for a nice place to chill and have a chilled Rose or a Sauvignon Blanc!

The people here are nice and accommodating, including for those who aren't wine connoisseurs. Overall a fun and comfortable place to have some wine. I would come again.

Phenomenal place right next to the Pasadena Playhouse! The owner and employees are SO WELCOMING! If you want a low key place to grab a glass and try some wine, this is a great place to visit. The inside is so comfy and the wine selection is good! No name brand, holier-than-thou nonsense going on here with either the wine brands nor the people who work here. You can also rent this place out. Ask the owner how! It's reasonable and a fantastic value!

My old high school buddy and his jazz trio did a live performance here last week. Didn't realize what I have been missing by not frequenting wine bars. Staff is very helpful and friendly. Would definitely come back for wine tastings and purchases.

Came here on a Friday night after a few friends told us about the wine guessing game. Basically, you have a tasting of four mystery wines - if you can guess all four of the varietals correctly, then your tasting is free! It was fun, but harder than it looks. However, I was not impressed by the selection of glasses that you can get at the bar. In other words, probably not the destination if your goal is tasting. It is a great place to purchase wine if you know what you want though!

Good wines at a good price, great service, quiet, usually not crowded and you can tell owner really cares. 5/5 strongly recommend

Great place for a casual drink, great for groups and even for events! I hosted my friend's bachelorette party at Monopole and sisters Lucy and Patricia ensured that we had a successful event! Anytime I visit I receive great service and have a great time. They have very tasty drinks and you can bring in your own food, but they do also have snacks on their menu.

This place was fun! The bartenders were outgoing and so enthusiastic which made the wine tasting more fun! They don't have that many seating areas but if you get a chance to sit at the bar or the few tables they have, it'll be a cool experience. I left trying out some of the best wines and now I'm shopping for those!

I stopped by just to look around but I ended up staying to have an aperol spritz and a grilled cheese with prosciutto. YUMMERS!! Sally was super welcoming and very knowledgeable on the different types of wine. She answered any and all questions I had and gave great recommendations. I love how it's not JUST a wine shop. There's a bar and food too. And I love how the menu is constantly changing.

We went Friday night to have a glass of wine, was a great atmosphere. If it looks empty, it's because the bar is all the way in the back, so get back there. I tried the Italian flight (was the current premium flight) and they were all AMAZING, an orange wine and two red wines. One was from Sardinia and was a kind of grape I had never heard of, so they explained it was very close to a grenach, which I have at least heard of :p ... Felt like a great place to go as an intermediate wine-o to learn some more. Very accessible prices for how esoteric and delicious the wines are! Apparently for a $5 corkage fee you can buy a bottle and drink it there, which is an amazing deal given their selection and already solid prices. And the abundance of wine enthusiasm and info from the staff. Hoping to make this a regular spot to bring friends.

Great atmosphere, we went there after dinner on Thursday for a glass of wine. They have a private room that can be rented for parties. I also got a bottle of champagne for a really good price.

A lovely little wine bar located in Pasadena near lots of restaurants and bars. The owner was wonderful and helpful in our selections. We ended up doing the flights which were explained in detail before we chose. It's a quaint little place that is lovely to stop in before or after dinner or a show. This was my first time in Pasadena and I really enjoyed our visit to Monopole! We even saw Ron Pearlman on our way out!

Love this place and the staff. Very fun and great at advising on even the most discerning palette. We scored on amazing Argentinian and French varietals here, at prices that actually surprised us. Here we are spending $100 on certain bottles that lack some of the flavor we so crave. Come to Find out this little joint in Pasadena has better shit.

Had such a good time here with friends (and several bottles) that I left my purse at closing! Thankfully, the nice folks here helped me to find it. Nice selections of wine!!

Amazing finds of varieties from all over the world! Latina owned and operated; strictly high class with a little bit of sass! Great place for fun and a little bit of education about many varieties from all over the world!

Patricia is amazing! Pay her more! She is the best! We loved having her around! She has amazing style!

I had a group of 17 people there for a custom wine tasting. Wendy took on an incredible 5-wine journey of Italian wines. They had a lovely charcuterie set up for us, as well. On top of that, they were able to do separate checks for everyone, which was in my opinion going above and beyond! Sally was amazing to work with getting the event set up and Wendy is an encyclopedia of wine knowledge. The wine shop has selections from all over the world for any budget and any wine style you are looking for. I can't wait to go back there again!

Free glass of wine (if you check in on Yelp app) to entice me to stop by was definitely a plus. While enjoying my Pinot Noir from Chile, I browse the store and bought a beautiful bottle of cab. The price of wine here is not unreasonable. Both the store and the wine bar at the end of the room are so quaint. It feels so European. There are little nooks with people gathering and sitting around socializing over a glass of wine. Love! Love! Love!!! I think the owner and spouse are French. Live music too!! Yay!!! You should visit this place when you are in the area. Stop by before or after if you are here for a play at the playhouse.

Fun little spot in Pasadena. We did the blind tasting and it was a fun game that they do on fridays! Go check out their wine

Found this hidden gem in Pasadena today and had a great time. Tried wines from Italy, France and Mexico. Listened to great music while eating chartreuse, truffle popcorn etc. Their wines are a must try if you are in the area and really good prices on wine. Ended up taking 2 bottles home. Can't wait to go back!!!

A cute wine bar in the back, also selling bottles. It's such a charming mom and pops in the playhouse district. Have a glass of wine before heading over to the playhouse next door or Laemmle 7 for indie movies or regency academy a few blocks away. There are small bites such as grilled cheese sandwich (and I wasn't hungry so I didn't pay attention). The place is small so not good for big groups. It's really for the wine enthusiast. I had a white flight of French wines plus a red. I loved them all. That's rare to have 4 out of 4 be good. Sally is very knowledgeable about wines. The stock includes cote du Rhône reds. I will definitely be back. Plenty of street parking on green or south of green. Many paid lots $3-5.

Awesome place! I'm biased because they carry a wine I love but difficult to find. They have a nice boutique, have wine tastings, and again they carry my wine. Well not anymore, because I bought the last three bottles they had left of it. Also, the lady that checked me out was super sweet and laid back.

One of the best family owned and operated wine shops in Pasadena. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable and will answer all of your questions when it comes to your go to daily or pairings with a delicious meal. They offer a large variety of reds, whites , and mixed. Enjoy a glass in the shop with its cozy feel at home environment and take a bottle to go.

Thoroughly enjoyed stumbling upon Monopole Wine after leaving the Playhouse next door. The staff is warm and welcoming and ready to help you choose from their wide selection of wines. Food wise, get the grilled cheese. Just do it. We ordered ours without the prosciutto (but that's an option). It was perfect. We ordered the flight and then needed up buying a bottle to share. Such a great experience! Definitely recommend.

I've only been there twice, once for a tasting with Wendy and once to select wines for a private Spanish wine tasting event I was hosting. Both experiences were great. Wendy did an ideal customized tasting for a friend and me. She asked us what we liked and picked two bottles to open. After trying both she talked about them with us at length as well as some others she had and opened a third bottle for us. We paid by the glass for some really nice French wines. Their selection may not be the largest but what they carry are excellent. Most recent visit at the tail end of this pandemic as things are beginning to reopen was just to pick up a few bottles of Spanish wines to round out my private hosted tasting. Again, I found the selections to be on target. A Verdejo from Rueda, young tempranillo from Ribera, and a Reserva from Rioja. I was pouring for a sommelier that had initially trained me and he was also very impressed with the selections. I would highly recommend Monopole for a glass alone, with friends, or to host a wine event. The venue is very nice and the wines are fantastic!

My friend and I stumbled upon this gem since we arrived early to the Pasadena Play House. We meant to walk around in Old Town Pasadena, but we were immediately distracted when we saw the "wine tasting" sign in the front. We were immediately greeted by Hiro and he asked us if he could help us with anything. At this time we told him that we were interested in wine tasting. The had 3 options: night flight (3 for $10), blind flight, and themed flight (changes theme from time to time). We got the night flight. which includes 3 oz of the: - 2009 Richter Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling, Germany - 2008 Omaka Springs Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand - 2007 Kaiken Cabernet Sauvignon, Argentina The first one is a white wine, and also the one that I enjoyed the most. I did not like the second two, due to my dislike of red wines. But the third was definitely better than the second. Hiro was very nice. My friend, who is not a wine fanatic, was not accustomed to wine did not like the 2nd or the 3rd, so Hiro gave him more of the 1st one. However, I didn't like the idea of going from a red back to a white. Overall I would definitely come back and tell my friends about this place. I heard that they have food trucks here on thursdays :) food truck + wine = love

The nice thing about Yelp is that it truly does give a good indication of an establishment (in most cases). However, if a business gets ahead of it and aims to inflate their Yelp reviews, it can lead others to a disappointing experience. Monopole clearly did this when they first opened by encouraging Yelp check ins and reviews (through offering check in deals such as a free glass of wine). However, upon my recent visit, I did not notice anything spectacular that other (older) reviews discuss. As such, this might be the most truthful and current review of Monopole Wine on Yelp. I just don't understand the other raving reviews here. We came on a Saturday night and the crowd was average/light. We sat at the bar and it was a man and woman working, but clearly paying more attention to the frequent customers. The options were not what I expected, so I ordered a glass of red wine (without being offered to taste it at a wine bar), while my wife had the flight. As my wife went through the flight, no descriptions were given and it was a "here you go" with each pour. Pours were small and I noticed that clearly if you know the owners you get preferable treatment. For example, the people next to us were offered tastes of each wine before they picked what they were gong to have a glass of. I have been wine tasting quite a bit over the past 15 years, and this was pretty much on the low end of the wine tasting experience. In wine tasting, it is the service and the wine together that make the experience great. Monopole did not really offer either. I was hoping to drink something and buy a bottle after reading all the Yelp reviews, but unfortunately I left disappointed. The last item to note is that we were overcharged by $15. Luckily I was conscious enough to say something for them to correct it. Yes, this may have been an honest mistake, but if they had been paying more attention to us it clearly would not have been made. I don't think I'll be back. Too bad.

Nice wine shop in Pasadena! Came here for both sake and wine tasting and ended up being my favorite place to go for wine! Our very first visit was welcomed by the two owners Hiro and Peter. The minute we stepped foot into this wine shop, Hiro personally guided us to the back of the shop where we were presented with wine tasting options. They have tastings from 5-10pm and a special blind tasting every Fridays where if you guess the type of grape for each wine, your tasting is free. They recommend this really good bottle of Reisling which became my favorite. Too bad it cost almost $80 and isn't something I can buy a case every month. You'll find very good quality wines here from all different regions of the world. The owners are very helpful and will select wines that will best suit your taste and budget!

I have very mixed feelings about this place. Me and my boyfriend went there couple of days ago when we were in Pasadena. My boyfriend told me a lot of nice and interesting things that he has heard about this place and because I am really into wine I got excited. We walked in at around 5pm. There was one table sitting at the front of the store lost in the glow of their laptops. The atmosphere was so quiet, like a library with faint classical music playing. We started to browse the store. I think the selection was good but the prices were ridiculous! I say that because we shop for wine very often at wine bars and wine stores, we know we can get those bottles for much cheaper elsewhere. We continued walking towards the back. The lady working there was very nice. Explained to us their flight options. We ordered the white flight. It was good. Can't say anything wrong about it. Another cool thing is, that they have blind tasting challenges on Friday and if you get all wines correct you get your name on the mirrored wall. I think its cool because you can really see the attempts of others to attract wine lovers and enthusiasts. Usually when we go to wine bars, we make friends and have a good time if the wine is on point. Here it was so different. The wine flight was good but I just didn't feel comfortable. Maybe we just came at the wrong time. But still... the pricing... We might return back and give it a second chance but for now not impressed.

This place has been on our bucket list for a while and we finally made it there and we'll be going back. They have such a good selection of wines and the wine we had was really good. We even had some mulled wine which was also very good especially with the chilly and rainy weather. It's always the little things that make the biggest impression and Patricia and I think her name is Ray (sp?) we're great. We really enjoyed talking with them and they made us feel so at home. This will be one of our new spots when we're in Pasadena.

Pasadena has many hidden gems and Monopole Wine is one of them. Weather you want to grab a bottle (or 5) Togo or if you would like to stay and enjoy a glass this is the place. Wendy was wonderful with her suggestions and so friendly with her stories. I can't wait to go back and try their weekly wine selections.

A nice place to do some tasting in the Playhouse district. I tried the night flight last night with 3 whites and they were all delicious. Hubby did the blind flight, didn't guess right but it was still fun. Ended up picking up the German Riesling from my night flight home. Can't wait to open it!

I've had the great pleasure to have the wine tastings a few times located in the back at the bar area. I've also had the pleasure to meet both owners. They might look very unfriendly, (kidding!) but they're very friendly and super knowledgable about their products! Drinking at the bar felt so comfortable. I felt I could ask anything about wine, and with pleasure they'd be able to give me an answer. I'd highly consider going to the Friday flight night, where it's a blind tasting. All the patrons definitely interact with one another and turns in a hoot!

Extraordinary wine at very accessible prices. We came for one of Wendy's luxury cheese nights (usually one Tuesday per month) which offers a sampler of luxury cheese (and in googling them they appear to be legitimately luxury - from Holland, Poitou-Charentes France and Bourgogne) and wines. Yum! Highly recommended. We came for the cheese and returned for Wendy's amazing wine recommendations and the nicely priced pours.

Amazing wine bar with a fantastic selection with knowledgeable and helpful service will definitely be back when in town.

Great wine, great space, great employees . If you are in the area peep your head in grab a glass at happy hour !!

Wendy was amazing ! Thank you for a fun night and the great explanation of wines loved my French Pinot Noir!!thank you!!!see you next week!cheers

Good selection. Knowledgeable staff. Interesting wines. Wine tastings! I'll be back :-)

It was my 3rd wine bar of the night so I have to give this place a whopping 5 stars. As written in the scriptures, when the wine ran dry at a wedding, Jesus performed a miracle and made water into wine. Then the guests asked why the good wine was served after. Similarly, actually -no- not similar at all, but I had a great time at Monopole! My friend and I were probably 5 glasses in by the time we got here and we selected to do the blind tasting. The joy of the blind tasting is to try and guess if the wine is old world or new world; the varietal; and which country the wine is from. It is 3 glasses of minimal pour for $15. We got a 4th bonus pour from the awesome owner, who I assume is named Hiro. He was so jovial with the pours and informative about the wine. He definitely made wine tasting fun. Though I was a bit bummed that we got a wine from Lodi. The blind tasting selection is not for ones that do not like control. It seemed like everyone else at the bar was having a good time. It looked as though there was an upstairs also, but I didn't get too adventurous and wander around. I'll definitely be back to check out this place and scope out the entire selection.

Finally!!! A great little wine shop and bar has opened in the Playhouse District. I am such a fan of this place. It has been open about six months at this point, and they are already doing great business. They have an excellent (superbly organized) selection of wines that appeals to my type A personality...I like to find what I'm looking for without a ton of effort. They also have a couple of nice wine flights available. I've been to a couple of their events already and have been impressed. They also offer an room upstairs for private events. One of the owners, Hiro, has been really helpful and friendly every time we've been in. I'm reserving the fifth star until they add a wider selection of food choices at the bar, which I'm sure they'll expand into sometime soon. Stay tuned! You should stop in next time you're in the Playhouse District; you won't be sorry!

I had my 29th birthday party here and it was absolutely amazing. I loved worked with Hiro and Peter to have a blind wine, cheese and chocolate tasting. They have a lovely loft area where I fit about 25 people. Peter was our sommelier and taught my guests and I how to identify wine. We had two whites and two reds. They also provided a lovely cheese and charcuterie plate and had decorated the space nicely. I was able to bring in chocolates from Mignon and cupcakes from polkatots. Next time you want to have a fun, intimate gathering, pick Monopole.

A true lil' gem in Pasadena! Many moons ago, on a warm summer Thursday evening, a friend and I were walking along El Molino checking out all the food trucks that were parked along the street. I peered into Monopole and saw that there were people drinking wine from real wine glasses and eating food truck food from styrofoam boxes. I knew there and there, that this would be one of my favorite spots to hit up for a casual evening when all you want is a good glass of wine along with your roach coach food. Monopole is very unpretentious local wine shop that offers an excellent selection of wines that you don't usually find in your larger beverage stores. The shopkeepers are friendly, very knowledgeble, and more importantly, NOT SNOBBY! They offer different themed wine classes every month (a great date activity, but classes do fill up quite fast!) and they have a fantastic wine bar that always has a theme and fun blind tastings (also a great date thing-to-do).