From Provence to the Plate: South of France Wines

South of France Wines & Vancouver's Largest Wines-by-the-Glass List at Provence Marinaside

Provence Marinaside  |  Yaletown Waterfront, Vancouver  |  French Wine & Seafood

A Taste of Southern France on Vancouver's Yaletown Waterfront

At Provence Marinaside, the name says it all. Tucked along the Yaletown waterfront in Vancouver, our French restaurant has always looked to the sun-drenched landscapes of southern France for inspiration — not just in the seafood and Provençal cuisine we serve, but in every glass we pour.

Wine is not an afterthought here. It is part of the story. With over 100 wines available by the glass — one of the largest by-the-glass wine selections in Vancouver — we make it easy for every guest to taste their way through Provence, Bandol, the Rhône, and beyond, without committing to a full bottle.

And nobody understands that story better than Matisse, a familiar front-of-house face, passionate wine advocate, and son of executive chef and owner Jean Francis. Over the past few months, Matisse has been travelling through Europe with his family, visiting the vineyards that have long been part of the Provence Marinaside family. It has been a journey back to the source — to the rolling hillsides, sun-baked soils, and passionate winemakers who craft the bottles you'll find on our Yaletown wine list. Here, he shares a little of what he discovered.

Domaine Ott* — Where Provençal Rosé Finds Its Purest Expression

Few names carry as much weight in the world of Provençal wine as Domaine Ott*. Founded in 1896, this storied estate has spent more than a century defining what wine from the South of France can be — elegant, expressive, and unmistakably of its place.

Matisse's visit to Domaine Ott* left a lasting impression, and it's easy to understand why. The estate's commitment to terroir is evident in every bottle, and two wines in particular stood out as ones every guest at Provence Marinaside should try — both available by the glass on our Yaletown wine list.

Étoile by Domaine Ott* — The Icon of Provençal Rosé

Étoile is perhaps the most iconic expression of Domaine Ott* — a rosé of remarkable depth and complexity. Named for the star-shaped fossils found in the estate's soils, it is the kind of wine that rewards slow sipping. Pale, poised, and endlessly elegant, it is everything a great Provençal rosé should be — and a perfect introduction for anyone exploring rosé in Vancouver.

Clos Mireille — A White Wine Built for Seafood

Clos Mireille is the estate's only white wine, and what a white it is. Produced from a coastal vineyard kissed by the Mediterranean breeze, it is bright and mineral with a richness that makes it a natural partner for fresh seafood in Vancouver — which, as you might expect, makes it a perfect fit for our kitchen.

Matisse has called Clos Mireille his wine of the summer, and we couldn't agree more. We'll be pouring it all season long on our Yaletown waterfront patio — by the glass, of course.

Domaines Bunan — A 25-Year Bandol Partnership

The Bandol appellation sits just along the coast from Provence and produces some of the most distinctive and age-worthy wines in all of France. At the heart of Bandol is the Mourvèdre grape — a bold, structured variety that thrives in the region's rocky, sun-soaked terrain — and nobody works with it quite like Domaines Bunan.

During his travels, Matisse had the pleasure of sitting down with Laurent Bunan, whose family has been farming these vineyards for generations. The conversation, filmed at the entrance to their cave, was a reminder of just how personal and deeply rooted this partnership is.

"We are in the earth of this appellation, in a little village near Bandol, two miles from the sea. We have beautiful vineyards and a very special grape — Mourvèdre — which is typical of Bandol wines."
— Laurent Bunan

What makes the Bunan relationship so meaningful is its longevity. Domaines Bunan wines have been on our list for 25 years — a partnership that has quietly become one of the cornerstones of what Provence Marinaside is. As Matisse reflected during their conversation:

"We've been carrying this wine for so long, and it's really a perfect pairing with the food we try to present to our guests — a taste of the south of France, right here in Vancouver."
— Matisse

Laurent was equally warm about the connection:

"We are so happy that our wine is in Vancouver, in your restaurant. It is a dream partnership."
— Laurent Bunan

Try the Moulin des Costes — Available by the Glass

The wine we'd particularly encourage you to try is the Moulin des Costes from Domaines Bunan — available in both red and white, and yes, by the glass. The red, made predominantly from Mourvèdre, is rich and complex with dark fruit and earthy depth. It is a wine built for the table, and it travels beautifully — as Bandol reds are famous for doing.

Maison Saint Aix — Rosé Reimagined at Altitude

If Provence is the spiritual home of rosé, then Maison Saint Aix is one of its most exciting new chapters. Nestled at higher elevation in the heart of the appellation, the estate benefits from strong winds and cooler temperatures — conditions that produce wines of remarkable freshness and precision.

Matisse visited recently, and the setting left an impression. When the current owners acquired the property, it was completely abandoned. What they've built in its place — both the winery and the wines — is something worth paying attention to. As Matisse put it:

"Something I love here is the juxtaposition between the old and the new. You have these cement barrels for the wine and then all the stainless steel — and it just shows that a little bit of old and a little bit of new can still bring the same charm, but with that modern touch to it."
— Matisse

AIX Rosé — The Wine Everyone Will Be Talking About This Summer

The flagship is the AIX Rosé — pale, fruit-forward, and built for the kind of long summer evenings we're all hoping for. Light and fresh on its own, it pairs beautifully with food, making it as at home at the table as it is on the patio. As Matisse put it simply: "This one is what everyone's going to be talking about this summer."

A wine that travels beautifully from vine to table — and we think it goes just as well from table to Yaletown waterfront patio. Available by the glass, of course.

Clos Cibonne — The Cult Rosé Built on an Ancient Grape

Some wineries make wines that taste like everywhere. Clos Cibonne makes wines that could only come from one place on earth. Tucked into the hills of Côtes de Provence, just 800 metres from the coast, this historic estate is one of the great cult properties of southern France — and the reason comes down to a single grape you've almost certainly never heard of.

Its name is tibouren. An ancient variety believed to trace its roots all the way back to Roman times, tibouren was quietly disappearing from Provence when André Roux — a visionary winemaker who understood what he had — made it his mission in the 1930s to bring it back. He replanted the estate exclusively to tibouren, earning Clos Cibonne special permission from the AOC to list the grape on its label, and eventually helping secure its place in the region's official list of accepted varieties. As Matisse explained after visiting the estate:

"This grape you've never heard of — it's called tibouren. It's an ancient grape that goes all the way back to Roman times. And this winery saved it back in the 1930s by planting it all over here."
— Matisse

Tibouren is not an easy grape to grow. Its skin is notably thin, making it sensitive to rot and demanding careful management — which is part of why it never spread beyond this small corner of Provence. But in the right hands, on the right terroir, that delicacy translates into something extraordinary: a wine of genuine freshness, structure, and character that simply cannot be replicated anywhere else. The estate's coastal position, washed by constant sea breezes and sheltered by the hills behind, is exactly what tibouren needs to thrive.

Aged Under Fleurette — A Rosé Unlike Any Other

What makes Clos Cibonne even more remarkable is what happens after harvest. Rather than the stainless steel tanks typical of most Provençal rosé, Clos Cibonne ages its wines for a full year in century-old 5,000-litre foudres, under a thin veil of yeast known as fleurette — a process more commonly associated with Sherry or the wines of the Jura. The result is a rosé with unusual depth, texture, and the ability to age gracefully for years.

Now certified organic since the 2019 vintage, the estate remains a family operation — fifth-generation winemaker Olivier Deforges tends both vineyard and cellar, with only one other employee outside the family. The demand for these wines far outpaces production, making every bottle genuinely rare.

Cuvée Spéciale des Vignettes — Old Vines, Extraordinary Complexity

The wine Matisse was most excited to bring to Vancouver this summer is the Cuvée Spéciale des Vignettes — sourced exclusively from the estate's oldest vines, planted in 1960. Over six decades in the ground, those roots have reached deep into Provence's rocky soils, producing fruit of concentrated intensity and layered complexity. As Matisse put it:

"These are old vines from 1960 — 65, 66 years old. It just brings this beautiful complexity to the wine. It's quite classy. This place is really a step above, and this wine is really meant for pairing with food."
— Matisse

For a restaurant that lives and breathes the connection between food and wine, a rosé built for the table is exactly what we want on our list. Think grilled fish, bouillabaisse, the kind of dishes that feel at home on a waterfront patio in the South of France — or, for that matter, in Yaletown.

This is a wine lover's wine — one that challenges everything you thought you knew about Provençal rosé, and rewards the curiosity.

Clos Sainte-Magdeleine — The White Wine That Sets Cassis Apart

Just 30 minutes east of Marseilles, the small fishing village of Cassis sits at the foot of the Cap Canaille — the highest sea cliff in France — looking out over a sea so blue it hardly seems real. It is one of the most beautiful settings in all of Provence, and it is home to one of the most distinctive wines on our list.

Clos Sainte-Magdeleine is a family domaine that has been perched above the Mediterranean for over a century — a certified organic estate whose vineyards sit like a lookout post facing the sea, the vines receiving daily salt air from the water below. That proximity to the ocean is not incidental. It is everything. The soils here — ancient sandstones and calcareous clays formed over millions of years — are ideally suited to producing wines of remarkable minerality and saline freshness, wines that carry the character of the coast in every sip.

This visit was particularly personal for Matisse. Cassis sits just 20 minutes from Aubagne, the town where his father — executive chef and owner Jean Francis — was born and raised. Chef Jean Francis even worked along this same stretch of coastline early in his career. As Matisse put it:

"It has a lot of history here — with our family, and the influences that we bring to Provence Marinaside in Vancouver."
— Matisse

The White Wine of Cassis — A Recent Discovery Worth Seeking Out

Cassis is best known for its rosé, but the wine that genuinely sets this appellation apart — and the one Matisse came home most excited about — is the white. The Clos Sainte-Magdeleine white is, as he described it, a recent discovery for the Provence Marinaside family. And it was an immediate standout.

"The south of France is usually known for rosé, but here the white wine is what really sets Cassis apart. This will go so well with some oysters on the patio — don't forget to try this this summer."
— Matisse

He's right on both counts. The wine is vinified with long, traditional elevage in a mix of stainless steel, concrete eggs, and sandstone jars — a cellar approach that prioritises texture and depth without sacrificing the estate's defining freshness. The result is a white of genuine complexity: mineral, lightly saline, with the kind of sea-spray quality that only comes from vines grown this close to the water.

For a restaurant built around fresh seafood on the Yaletown waterfront, a wine like this practically writes its own pairing notes. Oysters, crudo, our bouillabaisse — or simply a glass on the patio on a warm Vancouver evening, watching the boats go by. The South of France, right here in Yaletown.

100+ Wines by the Glass — One of Vancouver's Largest Selections

Most restaurants offer a handful of wines by the glass. We pour more than 100.

That means whether you're stopping in for a single glass of crisp Provençal rosé after work, building a multi-course pairing with our seafood tasting menu, or sampling your way through Bandol, the Rhône and Languedoc on a Friday night, you'll find a glass to match the moment. It is, quite simply, one of the best wine experiences in Yaletown — and one of the most extensive by-the-glass programs in Vancouver.

If you've been searching for the best French wine bar in Vancouver, the best wine list in Yaletown, or simply a thoughtful place to drink rosé on a waterfront patio, this is it.

A Taste of the South of France, Right Here on the Vancouver Waterfront

What Matisse's travels have reaffirmed is something we have always believed: that the wines of southern France and the food of Provence Marinaside are made for one another. The same sea air, the same herbs, the same philosophy of letting exceptional ingredients speak for themselves.

Whether you're settling in for a long lunch, joining us for happy hour on the patio, or making a night of it over dinner, we invite you to explore our wine list and let us take you — if only for an evening — somewhere a little closer to the South of France.

Come in. Pull up a chair. Let us pour you something special.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many wines by the glass does Provence Marinaside offer?

Provence Marinaside offers more than 100 wines by the glass, making it one of the largest by-the-glass wine selections in Vancouver. The list focuses on the wines of the South of France, including Provence, Bandol, the Rhône, and Languedoc.

Where is Provence Marinaside located?

Provence Marinaside is located on the Yaletown waterfront in Vancouver, British Columbia, offering patio and waterfront dining year-round.

What kind of wine list does Provence Marinaside have?

Provence Marinaside offers a thoughtfully curated wine list featuring selections from around the world, with a particular focus on the Mediterranean regions of Southern France and Italy. Guests can enjoy everything from Provençal rosés and Bandol reds made from Mourvèdre to crisp coastal whites, alongside an excellent selection of local Canadian wines — especially standout bottles from British Columbia wineries.

What is the best Provençal rosé in Vancouver?

Domaine Ott* Étoile is widely considered one of the most iconic Provençal rosés in the world, and you can enjoy it by the glass at Provence Marinaside in Yaletown — alongside dozens of other rosés from the South of France, including the uniquely structured Clos Cibonne Cuvée Spéciale des Vignettes, made from the rare tibouren grape.

Is Provence Marinaside good for seafood?

Yes — Provence Marinaside is a seafood restaurant in Yaletown, Vancouver, pairing fresh West Coast seafood with the wines and cuisine of the South of France. We recommend pairing your meal with Clos Mireille from Domaine Ott*, or the coastal white from Clos Sainte-Magdeleine in Cassis — both exceptional matches for our kitchen.

Do you take reservations?

Yes — reservations are recommended, especially for waterfront patio seating in summer and weekend brunch. You can book a table here.

What are Provence Marinaside's hours?

Brunch: Saturday & Sunday, 9:00 am – 2:45 pm
Lunch: Monday to Friday, 11:30 am – 2:45 pm
Dinner & wine service: Nightly