D.H. Lescombes Winery & Bistro - Albuquerque
New Mexico's Best-Kept Wine Secret, Hiding in Plain Sight
Old Town · Albuquerque · Bistro · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 4, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
Walking into a winery-owned bistro in Old Town Albuquerque isn't what most people picture when they think 'wine list worth talking about' — and that's exactly the point. D.H. Lescombes is a family winery operation with roots deep in New Mexico viticulture, and the list here reads like a love letter to the state rather than a menu designed to impress tourists. It's proudly regional, unapologetically focused, and refreshingly honest about what it is.
Selection Deep Dive
The list is almost entirely D.H. Lescombes and St. Clair wines — both brands from the same Lescombes family — which means you're getting a curated house program rather than a broad survey of the wine world. What they lack in range they make up for in depth within their own catalog: there's a Private Family Cellar Collection tier that includes aged gems like the 2012 Chenin Blanc, alongside the approachable 631 Signature Series, and even a Limited Release Cabernet Franc from 2007 that signals real cellar ambition. New Mexico wine gets dismissed constantly, and that's a mistake — high-altitude desert viticulture produces surprisingly structured, food-friendly wines, and this list proves it. If you came expecting Napa or Burgundy, recalibrate — this is something rarer.
By the Glass
Glass pour details aren't fully published online, but given the winery-bistro format, expect a solid rotating selection of Lescombes wines available by the glass across white, red, and dessert styles. The St. Clair Port almost certainly pours by the glass, which is worth remembering when dessert rolls around. We'd love more transparency on the glass program — a winery with this much range in their catalog should be showcasing it pour by pour.
Heritage Cabernet Sauvignon — $45
Retails for around $38, so the restaurant markup is a slim 18% — practically a rounding error by industry standards. You're drinking a locally produced, winery-direct bottle at a price that makes most steakhouses look like highway robbery.
2007 D.H. Lescombes Limited Release Cabernet Franc
A seventeen-year-old New Mexico Cab Franc is not something you expect to find on any list, let alone one in a bistro tucked into an Old Town shopping complex. This is a genuine cellar hold from a family winery that clearly believed in the wine enough to wait — and that kind of patience deserves your attention.
2012 D.H. Lescombes Chenin Blanc (Private Family Cellar Collection)
Not because it's bad — it's probably fascinating — but because ordering an aged white wine without knowing exactly how it's been stored, or asking staff directly about its condition, is a gamble. If the staff can vouch for it confidently, upgrade this to your hidden gem. Without that confirmation, proceed cautiously.
631 Signature Series Chenin Blanc + Chimayo Red Chile Pork Chop
Chenin Blanc's natural acidity and slight stone-fruit weight cut through the fat in the pork and hold their own against the earthy, slow-burn heat of Chimayo chile. It's a New Mexico-on-New-Mexico pairing that no import wine could replicate.
🎲 The Bottom Line
If you're willing to leave your wine comfort zone at the door and spend an evening inside New Mexico's actual wine story, D.H. Lescombes earns your curiosity and your dinner reservation. Fair prices, real cellar history, and a sense of place that most restaurant wine lists would kill for.
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