Manhattan's Best Wine Bars are in Brooklyn

There's quite a buzz being generated in Brooklyn as new wine bars open their doors and offer artists and young professionals an alternative to watery beer and overpriced cocktails.

Just Across the RiverHop on the L train from Manhattan and in just 5 minutes you are in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, home to many of New York's fledgling writers, musicians and artists. The hispters in this community can't swing sky-high Manhattan rents, but what they lack in cash they make up in style. Krista Madsen sits on a bar stool and blends into the ultra-cool surroundings of Stain Wine Bar. Today she sports purple horn rimmed glasses a vintage t-shirt and Chuck Taylor All-Star sneakers. Stain was once home to a discount retail shop. Madsen negotiated a cheap rent and renovated the bombed out space in three months.

When Madsen's not writing (her second novel is coming out this July), she's hunting down new wines or booking local talent to perform at Stain. Madsen continuously searches for unusual additions to her line up of New York's finest wines. Her current favorite is the Treleaven Riesling ($7 by the glass/$22 for the bottle) from Cayuga Lake, New York. She raves about its delicate floral character. As for reds, Madsen favors the Gristina cabernet franc from Long Island, New York ($10 a glass $30 a bottle). She describes this wine as vibrant and bold with hints of black pepper.

Stain serves as a quirky conglomeration of Madsen's passions. It is part exhibition space part artists den and part wine bar. Patrons drink from simple tumblers. As they enjoy their wine, the can write a few lines in communal journals or head to the back garden to work on the 12-foot long mural. Madsen hopes to be a magnet for free spirits and to become a community resource for artists.

For an evening rife with romantic possibility, a better bet is Williamsburg's DOC Wine Bar. Just two blocks from the East River, DOC has six wooden bistro tables set on the sidewalk, a perfect spot for scoping out the scene or testing out a date from match.com.