OpenTable recently released a Top 50 Wine List of restaurants in the United States. The list, which was compiled from feedback from over 10 million OpenTable users between October 2010 and September 2011, had California on top earning 11 spots on the list, followed by establishments in New York, Maryland and Virginia, each of which earned 4 spots. In all, 21 states were represented with restaurants earning an award.

The restaurants named were (in alphabetical order):

20 Brix – Milford, Ohio

The 3rd Corner Wine Shop & Bistro – Palm Desert, California

4 Olives Restaurant – Manhattan, Kansas

Accademia Di Vino – New York, New York

Addison at The Grand Del Mar – San Diego, California

Artisanal Restaurant – Banner Elk, North Carolina

Aureole – Las Vegas, Nevada

bacaro – Champaign, Illinois

Bin 36 – Chicago, Illinois

BIN 38 – San Francisco, California

Bistro Blanc – Glenelg, Maryland

Bonterra – Charlotte, North Carolina

Carpe Vino – Auburn, California

Cinghiale-Enoteca (Wine Bar) – Baltimore, Maryland

Domaine Hudson wine bar & eatery – Wilmington, Delaware

Eno Vino Wine Bar and Bistro – Madison, Wisconsin

Enotria – Sacramento, California

Evo Bistro – McLean, Virginia

Frasca Food and Wine – Boulder, Colorado

Grand Cru Wine Bar & Bistro – Arlington, Virginia

The Hobbit – Orange, California

Iron Bridge Wine Company – Columbia, Maryland

Iron Bridge Wine Company – Warrenton, Virginia

Left Bank at Stonehedge Inn and Spa – Tyngsboro, Massachusetts

Los Olivos Wine Merchant and Wine Cafe – Los Olivos, California
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If you read Issue 3 of Mutineer Magazine, then you know the deal with BottleRock in Culver City, CA. This place is the real deal, with one of the best bottle for bottle beverage programs you’ll ever see. Helmed by the incredible palate of Sommelier George Skorka, I can’t say enough about this killer establishment. Continue Reading »

I’ve finally had a chance to sift through the rubble of our recent West Coast tour, and am pumped to write about my experience at Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen in the Sonoma County hamlet of Healdsburg. We were meeting The HoseMaster of Wine for a fireside chat about wine, the roaring 90’s, and where he gets all the nudie pictures for his blog.

There was a lot to like at Dry Creek Kitchen, but the wine list is what really blew me away. For starters, it had an identity in that is nearly all Sonoma based. (I say nearly all because I recall a Port on the list). Palmer is an outspoken advocate of using local products in his cooking, so the old saying of “If it grows together, it goes together” applies when it comes to pairing. Continue Reading »

What do you think about restaurants having a section of their wine list specifically for “cult wines”? I know of a restaurant doing this and I personally didn’t really like the idea. To me, cult wine means: overpriced wine that enjoys a higher demand than supply. Continue Reading »