Brewery Food, Decent Wine, No Drama
· Las Cruces · New American Grill · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 31, 2026
RagingWine reviewed De La Vega's Pecan Grill & Brewery’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Take Vibe Match and we’ll tell you what to order here.
Wingman Metrics
Walk into a brewery and expect to drink beer — fair assumption. But De La Vega's actually put some thought into the wine side of things, with 36 labels and 15 by-the-glass options that go well beyond the usual two-white-two-red afterthought. It's not going to win any awards for adventure, but it's not embarrassing either.
The list is organized into house pours and bottle selections across whites and reds, with a nod to New Mexico wines that earns some local credibility. You're largely in California-brand territory here — Rombauer, Decoy, Folie a Deux, Simi, Charles Krug — which is exactly what most diners at a grill expect and will happily order. There's no real old-world representation to speak of, and nothing that's going to make a serious wine person do a double-take. What it does do is cover the bases cleanly: a Moscato for the sweet-tooth crowd, a solid Riesling option, rosé in two formats, and enough Cab to keep the steakhouse faithful happy.
Fifteen by-the-glass options is genuinely generous for a brewery-restaurant hybrid. At $8–$14 a glass, you're not getting gouged, and the range covers whites, reds, and rosé without making you feel like the wine program was bolted on at the last minute. We'd love to see more rotation or a chalkboard special, but for Las Cruces on a Tuesday, this gets the job done.
Josh Sauvignon Blanc — $29
Cheapest bottle on the list and one of the more food-friendly whites here. Clean, citrus-forward, and priced fairly for a restaurant setting — order this without overthinking it.
Folie a Deux Cabernet Sauvignon
Most people at a brewery are reaching for the house red or not thinking about wine at all, which means this Sonoma-sourced Cab often gets overlooked. It's a genuine step up in quality and at $53, it's not being gouged — worth the ask.
Rombauer Chardonnay
At $72, you're paying a serious restaurant premium on a wine that retails for around $30. Rombauer is a crowd-pleaser, sure, but this is the one spot on the list where the markup stings. Order the Charles Krug at $46 and put the difference toward dessert.
Chateau Souverain Cabernet Sauvignon + Pecan-smoked burger or grilled steak
The smokiness from the grill wants something with enough structure to stand up to it. Souverain's Cab has the fruit weight and tannic backbone to match charred beef without getting lost in the smoke — classic call at a grill like this.
The Bottom Line
De La Vega's isn't a wine destination, but it's a brewery that actually respects the wine drinker at the table, which is rarer than it should be. Send your beer-loving friends here and trust that the Cab won't let you down.
· Las Cruces · Winery Tasting Room
This is a Wild Card in the truest sense — a desert-state tasting room that's actually swinging for something more interesting than you'd expect, at prices that make the experiment low-stakes. If you're in Las Cruces and curious about what New Mexico wine can actually do, this is the right room to be in.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Las Cruces · Winery Bistro
This isn't a wine destination in the conventional sense — it's a winery that happens to have a bistro, and the list reflects that with zero apology. If you're curious about what New Mexico terroir actually tastes like, this is one of the better places in Las Cruces to find out.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
· Las Cruces · Italian
La Bella Vita's wine list won't make a wine geek's heart race, but it's fairly priced, almost entirely available by the glass, and leans into its Italian identity in the right places. Send a friend here if they want a solid glass of Chianti without a lesson.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Telshor / East Las Cruces · Las Cruces · Italian
Mi Piaci isn't a wine destination, but it's a reliable neighborhood Italian with a list that won't let you down if you know what to order. Grab the Chianti, seriously consider the Amarone, and save room for the tiramisu.
Plays It Safe
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Telshor / East Las Cruces · Las Cruces · Mexican and New Mexican
For a hotel cantina in Las Cruces, this list earns genuine respect by putting New Mexico producers front and center instead of hiding behind safe California imports. If you're anywhere near Hatch chile country and haven't tried Gruet with your enchiladas, Garduños is a reasonable place to fix that.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Telshor / East Las Cruces · Las Cruces · New Mexican / Southwestern
Ristra isn't going to blow any wine obsessives away, but for a hotel restaurant in Las Cruces it's doing something genuinely worthwhile — championing local producers on a list that could have easily gone full lazy-California. Come for the green chile, order the Gruet, and leave more impressed with New Mexico wine than you expected to be.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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