Napa's Downtown Wine Anchor Earns Its Stripes
Downtown Napa · Napa · Californian, Farm to Table · Visit Website ↗
Updated August 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 7, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Compline Restaurant’s wine list and gave it The Rager — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Compline in the heart of Downtown Napa, the wine list lands with authority — this isn't a restaurant that slapped together a Cab-heavy afterthought. With 250 to 400 selections anchored by serious California and Burgundy depth, it signals immediately that someone here actually gives a damn. The Best of Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator (held since 2019) isn't decorating the wall for nothing.
The list is a love letter to California and France, with Italy showing up as a credible third act rather than a token gesture. You'll find Kistler and Kongsgaard for Chardonnay lovers who want to stay local, Ridge Monte Bello for the Cab crowd that still has a soul, and Staglin Family Vineyard sitting alongside the obligatory trophy bottles like Harlan Estate, Screaming Eagle, and Opus One. The Burgundy section punches hardest — Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti are here for those ready to spend, while the Italian corner earns its keep with Giacomo Conterno Barolo. The list skews collector-heavy at the top, but there's enough mid-range range to keep a curious drinker busy without selling a kidney.
Twenty to thirty-five by-the-glass options is genuinely impressive for a restaurant of this size — most places with a cellar this serious use the glass program as a loss leader. Prices run $15 to $25, which is fair for Napa proper where a glass of anything decent elsewhere can run you the same or more for half the quality. The rotation feels intentional rather than just clearing aging inventory.
Ridge Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon — $60–$500+ range
Ridge Monte Bello is one of California's most storied Cabs and still drinks with more intellectual honesty than most of the Napa cult bottles surrounding it on this list. If you can find it at the lower end of the bottle range, it's the move — history, terroir, and actual aging potential in a single pour.
Giacomo Conterno Barolo
Most tables at a Napa restaurant are there for California Cab, which means the Conterno Barolo sits quietly while everyone else fights over the usual suspects. Conterno is one of the canonical names in Barolo — traditional, structured, built to age — and it's an entirely different conversation from everything else on this list. Worth seeking out.
Screaming Eagle
Look, Screaming Eagle is a real wine. It's also a status symbol so deeply priced into its own mythology that drinking it at a restaurant in Napa — where restaurant markups on allocated cult bottles get aggressive — means you're mostly paying for the label. The juice doesn't justify the restaurant premium when Ridge Monte Bello and Staglin are sitting right there.
Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet + Duck Fat Fries
This is an absurd pairing on paper and exactly correct in practice. The richness and salinity of duck fat fries against one of Burgundy's great white wines — mineral, precise, with that Leflaive texture — creates the kind of contrast that makes you stop mid-bite. Also, spending serious money on a $10 plate of fries is very Napa, and we respect the chaos.
The Bottom Line
Compline is doing the real work in Downtown Napa — a deep, credible list with a sommelier who can actually guide you through it, even if the top-shelf pricing reflects the zip code. If you're serious about wine and eating in Napa proper, this is where you go.
St. Helena · Napa · Wine Bar
Elsewhere is doing something genuinely useful in St. Helena — keeping the lights on after dinner and keeping the list interesting enough to justify the detour. We need more time with the actual list before we'd call it a must, but the bones are right.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Napa Valley · Napa · Hotel Restaurant / New American
The Elene is doing something genuinely uncommon for a Napa hotel restaurant: it's built a wine list with a real perspective. Pricing is fair, the whites and sparkling section is worth the visit on its own, and if you're tired of being handed the same Napa Cab lineup every time you sit down, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
Napa Valley · Napa · Hotel Bar / Lounge
In the heart of Napa Valley, this hotel lounge has assembled a seven-bottle list with zero local wines and markups that would make a Vegas pool bar blush — order a cocktail and wait until dinner. There are better places to drink wine within walking distance of almost anywhere in this region.
Plays It Safe
Gouge
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
St. Helena · Napa · Resort Restaurant / Contemporary American
Meadowood's wine program is doing exactly what it should at this price point — a focused, deeply intelligent list with real range and the staff to back it up. The markups are steep because the room is expensive, but if you're already here, drink well and don't second-guess it.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Napa · Wine Bar / Contemporary American
Napa Kitchen & Wine earns its place as a solid, unfussy option for anyone who wants a wide glass selection and fair pricing without committing to a bottle — just don't come here expecting to discover anything. It's a reliable pour, not a destination.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Napa · Napa · California / Hotel Restaurant
BANK is a reliable spot to drink well enough in a comfortable setting — the sommelier presence and Napa-forward list keep it from being a lazy hotel afterthought. Just don't expect to be surprised, and don't be shocked when the markup reminds you this is a Westin.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Sea Ranch · Sea Ranch · Californian, Farm to Table
The Sea Ranch Lodge earns its Wine Spectator nod by keeping things smart and local rather than trying to impress with volume. If you're making the drive up the coast, this wine list is a legitimate reason to stay for dinner.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Palm Springs · Palm Springs · Californian, Farm to Table
SO·PA earns its Wine Spectator nod by treating California wine as a genuine focus rather than an afterthought, and the alfresco setting makes it one of the more memorable places to drink a bottle of Ridge on the West Coast. If you're in Palm Springs and want wine that matches the quality of the food, this is where you go.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Los Olivos · Los Olivos · Californian, Farm to Table
This is what a wine country café should be: a serious, local-first list with real producers, fair prices, and staff that actually knows what's in the glass. If you're driving through Los Olivos and you don't stop here, you've made a mistake.
Surprising Depth
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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