Columbia Gorge's Best Kept Wine Secret
Downtown Hood River · Hood River · New American, seasonal farm-to-table · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed July 27, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Celilo Restaurant & Bar’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
You're in Hood River to windsurf or eat fruit off the roadside, and then you sit down at Celilo and the wine list makes you do a double-take. There's a Jura Ploussard, a Pet Nat from the Columbia Gorge, and a Xarel-lo from Catalonia — all in the same document. This is not the list of a restaurant that phoned it in.
Celilo leans hard into the Columbia Gorge's identity as a legitimate wine region, with producers like Analemma, Savage Grace, and Sineann anchoring the local side of things. But the list doesn't stop at the state line — Morgon Gamay from Vignobles Bulliat, a Mosel Riesling from Ludas, and a Greco di Tufo from Bambinuto give it genuine range and personality. The Jura representation alone (a Dugois Ploussard from Arbois) signals that whoever built this list is paying attention to things most Oregon restaurants are still ignoring. The one odd duck is the Rombauer Chardonnay at $70 — it sticks out like a tourist at a natural wine bar, probably there to keep the Napa crowd happy.
Thirteen options by the glass is a strong number, and the range is legitimately impressive — from a Pet Nat of Pinot Noir to a Barbera from Columbia Valley to Cava for bubbles lovers on a budget. Glass prices run $9–$17, which is honest for a restaurant at this level in a tourist-adjacent town. We'd love to see more rotation and some half-glass options, but what's here beats the vast majority of Oregon wine lists we've encountered.
2023 Vignobles Bulliat 'Nature' Gamay Noir, Morgon — $14/glass (est.)
A Beaujolais Cru Gamay from a solid Morgon producer by the glass at a seasonal spot in Hood River? That's punching well above its weight class. Juicy, low-intervention, and exactly what you want with a plate of house-made pasta.
2020 Domaine Dugois 'La Sombarde' Ploussard, Arbois Rouge, Jura
Most tables at Celilo are going to walk right past this and order another Pinot Noir. Don't. Ploussard is one of the Jura's most food-flexible grapes — light, earthy, and slightly wild — and Dugois makes a textbook version. It's the kind of wine you'd order at a dedicated natural wine bar, not a farm-to-table spot in the Gorge.
Rombauer Chardonnay, Napa Valley
At $70 a bottle, you're paying a premium for a wine that's widely available at retail and stylistically out of place on an otherwise thoughtful list. If you want a white, the Bambinuto Greco di Tufo or the Ludas Riesling will give you more interest for less money.
2022 Ludas Riesling, Mosel, Germany + Fresh seafood special featuring regional fish
Mosel Riesling and Pacific Northwest fish is one of those combinations that just works — the high acidity and mineral lift cut through any richness in the preparation while leaving the delicate fish flavor intact. At Celilo's price point, this is the kind of pairing you'd pay twice as much for at a dedicated wine restaurant.
The Bottom Line
Celilo is quietly running one of the most interesting wine programs in the Columbia Gorge, and most people driving through Hood River have no idea. If you care about wine, this is absolutely worth a seat — just skip the Rombauer.
· Hood River · Winery and Farm Cafe
The Gorge White House isn't trying to compete with a big city wine bar — it's a farm property pouring its own wines at prices that feel almost apologetically fair. If you're driving through Hood River and want a cold glass of something local without being gouged, this is an easy yes. Just don't arrive expecting deep-cellar surprises.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Hood River · Hotel restaurant
Hood River Inn's wine list is a catering checklist dressed up as a restaurant program. With no producers named, no bottles available, and a selection that ignores the incredible wine region right outside the door, there's no reason to drink wine here specifically. If you're staying at the hotel and need something with dinner, the $11 pours are fair enough — but if wine matters to you at all, Hood River has actual wine bars and tasting rooms worth your time and money.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Hood River · Cafe
KickStand punches above its weight class for a cafe wine program — six bottles, almost all of them local, with real producers worth knowing. We can't speak to pricing or service confidence without more data, but if you're already in Hood River and want a glass of something made within shouting distance of where you're sitting, this list is doing the right thing in a small package.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Hood River · Winery tasting room
Wy'East Vineyards is a short list with a long point of view — estate wines from varieties that have no business growing in Oregon, priced like the winery actually wants you to buy them. If you're anywhere near Hood River and you care even a little about what's possible outside the Pinot Noir monoculture, this stop is worth your afternoon.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Hood River · Winery and Tasting Room
Stave & Stone earns its Wild Card badge not through volume or imported names, but through genuine varietal curiosity — a Gorge winery willing to make Gruner Veltliner and Petit Verdot and price the whole card fairly. If you're passing through Hood River and want to drink local without drinking predictable, this list is worth your time.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Hood River · Winery tasting room
Analemma earns its Wild Card badge by doing something most Oregon producers won't: planting Mencía and Grenache in the Gorge and committing to it fully. The list is short, but every bottle has a reason to exist. If you're driving through Hood River and want to taste something that doesn't feel like every other Pacific Northwest tasting room, this is your stop.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
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