Que Syrah Fine Wines

Love this place! This place is awesome if you are shopping for a gift for someone who loves wine or other types of alcohol as well.
I’ve been there several times and given them the general info of what each person I’m buying for likes and the price point. They hit it out of the park every time and VERY knowledgable about all the selections and alternatives.
I would highly recommend this place for wine, I’ve even purchased unique vodka and scotch here as well as gifts … many compliments on the selection and service.
Both people (didn’t get his and her name) went above and beyond with customer service!

I’m a huge fan of wine and cute wine shops. I try to find a new shop often. I had the pleasure of winning a gift certificate to Que Syrah earlier this year (June to be exact) in a silent auction. I have tried like crazy to contact the owners so that I can use the certificate. Even though, the money went to a worthy cause, it wasn’t cheap. First I couldn’t get in contact with them via email. Then I called. The owner sounded less than enthused. A few weeks later, I emailed again. No response. I figured I’d check the tasting updates. None to check. I email again. Nada. Finally I decide to email the organizer of the silent auction to see if they could help. Finally got a response, though it wasn’t very helpful. It is now almost the middle of December, and I have this $ 80 piece of paper. Was going to follow up to see if they had any holiday tastings. No website. Ah well.

Fabulous wine shop! All you have to do is walk in the door! They will help you pick the perfect wine for your occasion and price point. One of my good friends lives right around the corner from here. I cant believe we don’t shop here. From now on we will be though.

Poor service. Owner seemed indifferent to our tastes in wine. There were a few comments made that were inappropriate and I was embarassed to have my in laws with me. Was sold a crap $ 18 bottle of wine which I could have bought at the Jewel next door for $ 6. Won’t be going back. Too bad because you pay for the service at small shops like these and we did not receive it. Shame on you Que Syrah!

You know that Seinfeld episode where Elaine is a fan of every video pick by Vincent, the video store employee? This is how I feel about the woman who works at (owns?) Que Syrah. I will go out of my way to come here for wine because I look forward to her recommendation.
I come here frequently and have always had the best experiences with service and wine recommendations. I’ve also been to a few of their pairing events (wine and BBQ!!), and would definitely recommend them for a casual evening that’s different than the normal dinner out.

Years ago, this was our wine shop. Circumstances kept us from visiting their new space, and Saturday we were looking forward to reestablishing a relationship. Sadly, we won’t ever return. We were headed towards a BYOB restaurant nearby, and needed a nice bottle of white. I’d received an email a few days prior from them regarding a tasting. As a rule, we always buy from a tasting, so this was a perfect match. Unfortunately, it wasn’t.
Upon arrival, both the male and female associates (I believe the owners, based on past experiences) were either indifferent or bothered by our presence. We were anxious to purchase a bottle for our BYOB nearby and excitedly said, «We’re here for the tasting!» Their response was grumbles and whispers under their breathe.
When they begrudgingly began the «tasting,» with a Vinho Verde (a fun varietal we enjoy), the man stated «I don’t know why I picked this. It tastes like I licked a battery.» Keep in mind, this is a varietal we enjoy, and was a decent representation. I don’t know why he disparaged a bottle he chose, and we enjoyed.
Moving to the next «tasting,» he poured us a Chardonnay from the Tuscan region. Typically, these are aged in oak (I’M NOT TRYING TO SOUND LIKE A WINE SNOB. WINE IS FUN!). Before he poured, I asked «This is probably aged in oak, right?» He immediately replied, «No.» After we tried it, it was obvious it was oaky. After the associate tried it, he look surprised and said, «I think it is oak aged.» I’M NOT TRYING TO SOUND LIKE A WINE SNOB. WINE IS FUN! However, I didn’t appreciate the negative attitude. If he was going to guess (as it’s clear he wasn’t familiar with the specs of what he was pouring) I don’t understand why he would be blindly contrarian.
After the two «tastings,» the man then proceeded to turn his back and play with his cell phone. Very unprofessional and unbelievable. We excused ourselves and left, never to return.

Enjoyable experience PLUS excellent chilled wine very reasonably priced. Owner super helpful. Enjoyed wines so much rather buy here than bring from home. The BYOB is a plus, there is a GREAT pasta place across the street, Pasta Al Gusto.

I attended a tasting event here a couple of weeks ago, with all proceeds going to benefit the Chicago Public Library. I had not been to this boutique wine spot and in fact almost passed it by, as it is located along the Southport corridor, up a short flight of steps, and sandwiched between a couple of other businesses. For this event, Que Syrah had partnered with Rachel Yeomans, the host of Lit with a Twist. The evening featured a wine tasting and book pairing — six Italian wines with six books by Italian authors. Being the bibliophile that I am, I took it upon myself to look up all of the titles on Wikipedia so that I would at least have a glancing familiarity with the works. It turned out that this was not necessary, as the discussion was relaxed and lively, not to mention that the wine was flowing freely, emboldening me to speak up about books and other matters. In addition to the wines, there was also cheese, fruit, and charcuterie set up to savor with the delicious literature and libation combinations.

Que Syrah is obviously not the biggest wine shop in town and thus does not have the «big box quantity» to choose from but they always have the best options at a variety of pricing options. I prefer going to a boutique wine shop versus a liquor superstore and QS is the best place I have found in Chicago. The customer service is great and their wine club is top shelf. I go with the higher end option to ensure I get two reds every month and have not been disappointed with a single bottle. As I mentioned earlier, they have a bottle of wine for any budget and many excellent options under $ 25. I just got a 2011 Rosso di Montalcino for 24.99 and it was very solid.
If you are new to wine, I would suggest making a stop in and signing up for the $ 35 a month club. It is affordable and you get solid wine.

I have lived in the area for over 3 years now and have always wanted to stop in. I enjoy supporting the local businesses in my neighborhood. This is the one place I’ve just never stopped into until today. My boyfriend and I saw a sign for free tasting from 3pm-​7pm and we knew we had an upcoming event to go to that we needed to bring wine to. We went in with every intention to buy two or three bottles. When we walked in the door we saw a woman and a man behind the bar and I smiled at the woman and just got a glare back and was never greeted. My boyfriend and I walked around looking at the bottles of wine and never once did either of the employees stop and ask us what we were looking for. There was one other customer in the store that the man was helping while also drinking wine himself and the woman just stood behind the bar doing nothing. We really wanted to try a few bottles and hopefully purchase but we whispered to each other that we felt un welcomed and uncomfortable being there. So we left and went to the wine store next to the southport brown line stop to make our purchases. It’s very disappointing that the quaint little wine store in my neighborhood turned out to be a judgmental place of business.

Nice selection and very friendly, knowledgable staff.
Here’s an example: We recently purchased a bottle at their recommendation. When we opened it the next day, it smelled like an old bookstore, and tasted awful. I brought it back, with a stopper. (My husband didn’t think I should; I said, of course we should!) She did a pour, took a whiff and immediately agreed the bottle was «corked». She shared some knowledge about how bottles can go bad, gave me a replacement of the same for free and a discount on a bottle of another wine I picked up while there.
She was really appreciative of the fact that I returned the bad bottle, as they can return to their supplier for a replacement. More people should do this with bad bottles. A great learning opportunity!

Since they have moved locations and added a tasting bar this has become my new place to taste before I buy. The owners are very friendly and always offer a wide variety of tastings, both in house, and by winemakers.
Prices are very comparable to other locations with the added advantage of knowing what a wine tastes like before you buy it.
They also offer a wine club for further discounts.

This place is a must-​go if you want to ever drink wine or buy wine for someone else. And there isn’t just wine! There are spirits and all sorts of accessories for the wine and spirit lovers, as well as some beer options.
Both of the owners have made amazing wine recommendations to me on separate occasions and have not ever steered me wrong. I often walk in with a vague description of what I want and a price range such as «dry, light red for sharing (we don’t know what we will eat with it yet) and less than $ 15». Out comes at least one recommendation. If there is more than one bottle being purchased, I’ll even be given an order in which to drink them. Amazing service!
The pricing is competitive and even better than most if you are a part of the wine club.
Love it here!

New location just down the street from the old, but still a great selection of wine at reasonable prices. Proprietors Don and Angie are extremely knowledgable and helpful. Don has personally selected and tasted every wine in the shop. Give him a style of wine and price range and he will not steer you wrong.
This is my favorite wine shop in Chicago.