Desert Views, Serious Bottles, Resort Prices
McDowell Mountains · Scottsdale · Southwestern-Influenced American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed March 16, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Cielo — Adero's rooftop restaurant — arrives with the confidence of a place that knows its clientele has expense accounts and a view to match. It's globally minded without being scattered, leaning hard into Napa and Italy with some respectable international detours. At 150+ labels, it's not trying to be a wine bar, but it's clearly not phoning it in either.
The backbone here is classic: Napa Cabernet, Super Tuscans, Rhône, and Barossa Shiraz make up most of the heavy lifting, and they do it well. You've got Sassicaia, Tignanello, and Torbreck Runrig sitting alongside Caymus and Silverado — it's a list that reads like a greatest-hits compilation for someone who knows what they like and wants reassurance. The Ao Yun from Yunnan, China is the one genuine curveball — a rare, high-altitude Chinese Cabernet that most people walk right past. Gaps exist in natural wine and domestic alternatives outside California, but for a resort audience, this list delivers.
Glass pours run $14.50–$17, which is on the higher end of reasonable for a resort setting in Scottsdale. With 8+ options available, there's enough variety to find something interesting without committing to a bottle. We'd love to see more rotation or a broader range of styles by the glass — right now it skews predictable.
Silverado Estate Napa Valley 2018 — $68
In a list where Napa bottles climb quickly into triple digits, Silverado's estate Cabernet at $68 is a legitimate deal. It's a benchmark producer with real Stags Leap District terroir behind it — you're not settling, you're just not overpaying.
Ao Yun Yunnan 2015
Most tables at Adero will scroll past this one without a second look. That's a mistake. Ao Yun is a LVMH-backed project farming Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon at 2,200 meters in the Himalayas — it's genuinely one of the most distinctive bottles being made anywhere in the world right now, and seeing the 2015 vintage on a resort list in Scottsdale is legitimately surprising.
Caymus Napa Valley 2017 (1L)
At $175 for a one-liter bottle, Caymus is pulling its usual trick — trading on name recognition while the list markup does the rest. It's a fine, crowd-pleasing wine, but you can drink significantly better on this list for the same money or less.
Torbreck Runrig Barossa Shiraz 2018 + Dry-Aged Steak
Runrig is a full-throttle Barossa Shiraz with the density and dark fruit to go toe-to-toe with a heavily marbled, dry-aged cut. It's got the structure to handle the char and the weight to match the beef — this is exactly the pairing the list was built for.
✔️ The Bottom Line
Adero's wine program is doing more than the average resort — a sommelier on staff, a few genuinely interesting bottles, and a list that rewards the curious diner willing to look past the Caymus. Just know going in that the markup reflects the altitude of that McDowell Mountain view.
Old Town Scottsdale · Scottsdale · American
Frasher's isn't reinventing the steakhouse wine list, but it's doing the job with a Wine Spectator credential and a Wednesday half-price night that makes the steep markups a lot easier to live with. Send a friend here if they want a reliable California Cab with their red meat — just tell them to go on Wednesday.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
DC Ranch · Scottsdale · American, Small Plates
The Living Room isn't trying to reinvent wine — it's trying to make California Cab and Chardonnay feel like an event, and it mostly succeeds. Send your friends here for a comfortable, well-staffed wine experience; just remind them to drink the Duckhorn.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Scottsdale · Scottsdale · French
The Mick Brasserie is a dependable, well-staffed wine destination dressed up as a casual neighborhood spot — a genuinely rare combo in Scottsdale. The markups keep it from being a great deal, but the sommelier team and the quality of the list make it worth showing up for.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Scottsdale · Scottsdale · American, Steakhouse
STK Scottsdale is a reliable California wine destination — not a discovery, but a dependable one. If you're here for Wagyu and a bottle of Stag's Leap, you will not leave disappointed; just don't expect the list to surprise you.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Scottsdale · Scottsdale · Italian
Marcellino is doing something genuinely uncommon in Scottsdale — a disciplined, Italy-first wine program with real producers and a sommelier who clearly cares. Markups tip steep on the prestige bottles, but the depth of the list earns it a spot on your list if Italian wine is your thing.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Scottsdale · Scottsdale · Brazilian Steakhouse
Fogo de Chão Scottsdale isn't trying to be a wine bar, and it doesn't need to be — the list is purpose-built for red meat and it delivers. Markups lean steep on the trophy bottles, but the Argentine and Chilean selections give you a real path to drinking well without getting gouged.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Proper
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