The Whiskey's Great. The Wine? An Afterthought.
Downtown · Springfield · American Bar and Grill · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · September 27, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Big Whiskey's American Restaurant & Bar – Downtown Springfield’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The name says it all — this place is built around whiskey, and the wine list exists mostly as a formality for anyone at the table who refuses to do shots. It's a lively, TV-everywhere sports bar with a crowd that's here for the game and the wings, not the Burgundy. If you came for wine, you may have taken a wrong turn.
We don't have a full wine list in front of us, but the regional focus tells the story: this is a house-wine operation. Expect a short roster of crowd-pleasing varietal wines — your Cabernets, Chardonnays, and maybe a Pinot Grigio — sourced from the reliable middle shelf of national distributors. There's no evidence of any effort to build a list with depth, regional diversity, or interesting producers. The whiskey program almost certainly gets 90% of the attention and budget that could otherwise go toward wine.
Happy hour (3–6 PM weekdays, with some listings pointing to a 4–6 PM window) does include discounted house wines, which is the best — and possibly only — compelling reason to order wine here. Without a documented list, we can't tell you what's actually in the glass, but 'house wine' at a bar like this typically means a reliable pour at a reasonable happy hour price. Outside of that window, we'd lean toward a cocktail.
Monday–Friday — Happy hour runs Monday–Friday, with a discounted house wine window. Some listings indicate 4–6 PM; the restaurant's own site references 3–6 PM. Verify with the location directly before you go.
The Bottom Line
Big Whiskey's is a genuinely fun spot for a beer, a whiskey flight, or a bucket of wings with a crowd. But the wine program doesn't appear to be a program at all — it's a placeholder. If someone at your table insists on wine, catch happy hour and keep expectations low. Otherwise, lean into what this place actually does well.
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The Rail Pizza Company isn't here to impress you with wine — it's here to sell you pizza and pour you something cold while you eat it. If your expectations are calibrated accordingly, Bota Box gets the job done; just don't come expecting anything beyond that.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Glenstone · Springfield · American Grill
This is a hotel-adjacent chain bar doing the bare minimum on wine, and it shows. If you're staying at the DoubleTree and don't want to drive anywhere, grab the J Lohr Cab and call it a night — but don't come here for the list.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Springfield · Italian / New American
Piccolo punches above its weight for a Springfield Italian spot — the Brunello by the glass alone earns it a second look. It's not destination wine dining, but it's a genuinely solid list that won't embarrass you on a date night.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Springfield · Sports Bar & Grill
The Dugout is a perfectly fine sports bar where wings get eaten, games get watched, and wine gets ignored — and that's the right call. Come for the BBQ Bacon Burger, leave the wine glass at home.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Springfield · Springfield · Farm-to-table gastropub
Farmers Gastropub is a reliable neighborhood stop where the food gets more attention than the wine list — and that's okay. Order the Tempranillo, enjoy the locally sourced kitchen, and don't come here expecting to geek out on wine.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Springfield · Springfield · American Grill
FD's Grillhouse isn't trying to be a wine destination, and it knows it — the list is safe, the markups lean steep, and the by-the-glass selection does most of the heavy lifting. If you're here for burgers and a decent pour, you'll leave fine; just skip The Prisoner and let Catena or Chapoutier do the work.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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