Sonoma's Backyard in a Glass
Plaza / Downtown · Healdsburg · Cocktail Bar with Small Plates · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed July 26, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Duke's Spirited Cocktails’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Duke's, you expect the cocktail menu to be the whole show — and it mostly is. But the wine list is a quiet, nine-bottle snapshot of Sonoma County that holds its own without trying too hard. Prices stay between $13 and $18 a glass, which, for Healdsburg on a Friday night, borders on generous.
Nine labels, all Sonoma, all by the glass — Duke's isn't pretending to be a wine bar, and that honesty is actually refreshing. You get the full sweep: bubbles from Domaine Chandon, a Chalk Hill Chard, Matanzas Creek Sauv Blanc, a Dry Creek Zin, a Dry Creek Cab, and the Elevated Surface Pinot as the lone wildcard in the bunch. It's lean, but every pour has a reason to exist. The gap here is anything from small producers — no natural wine, no skin-contact, nothing that would surprise a Healdsburg local — but that's probably not the point.
Every bottle on the list is available by the glass, so what you see is what you get — no hidden bottle-only stash. At nine options spanning white, rosé, red, and bubbly, there's enough variety that no one at the table goes home without something drinkable. Rotation appears minimal; this feels like a set list rather than a living program.
Matanzas Creek Sauvignon Blanc — $13
Matanzas Creek is a well-regarded Sonoma producer and $13 is the floor of this list — crisp, easy-drinking Sauv Blanc from a name that earns its reputation. Cheapest pour, not the cheapest wine.
Elevated Surface Laurent Pinot Noir
Most people ordering Pinot in a cocktail bar default to whatever sounds familiar. Elevated Surface isn't a household name, which means it gets skipped — but at $18 it's the most interesting red on the list and the only bottle here that rewards a little curiosity.
Domaine Chandon Brut
Chandon is fine, but it's also the most widely distributed sparkling wine in California wine country — you've had it, you'll have it again, and at $16 a glass you can do better for bubbles elsewhere in Healdsburg.
Dry Creek Zinfandel + Seasonal farm-to-glass small plates
Dry Creek Valley Zin has that ripe, bold fruit and pepper kick that stands up to anything savory coming off the kitchen's seasonal snack rotation. It's a Sonoma classic meeting Sonoma ingredients — hard to argue with that logic.
The Bottom Line
Duke's is a cocktail bar first, wine list second — and there's nothing wrong with that. If you're sitting on the plaza and want a solid local pour at a fair price before your actual dinner, this delivers exactly what it promises.
· Healdsburg · California Seafood
Handline earns its Wild Card badge not because the wine list is extraordinary on paper, but because the combination — California seafood, counter service, string lights, Sonoma-focused wine — shouldn't work this well and somehow does. If you're road-tripping through wine country and want a low-pressure lunch with local pours and grilled oysters, this is exactly the kind of detour worth making. Just go in knowing the wine list is supporting cast, not the headline act.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · Steakhouse
Stark's is the rare steakhouse that treats wine as something other than an afterthought or a cash grab. The list is compact but genuinely considered, markups are fair across the board, and the full bottle-to-glass availability is a policy every restaurant should copy. If you're eating in Healdsburg and want to drink well without overpaying, this is a legitimate stop.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · Italian
Ciao Bruto is running one of the smallest and most coherent wine lists in wine country, which is either audacious or brilliant — probably both. If you want a 200-label deep-dive, go somewhere else. If you want eight smart picks at prices that won't make you wince, this is the move in Healdsburg.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · Wine Bar
Maison is what happens when someone builds a wine bar list with genuine curiosity instead of a regional checklist — you're in the heart of Sonoma Wine Country and the list keeps pointing you toward Mosel Riesling, Douro whites, and 1934 Madeira. The by-the-glass program alone justifies a visit, and the pricing is fair enough that you can explore without flinching. If you're in Healdsburg and you actually care about wine, this is the stop.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · New American
The Spinster Sisters are doing something genuinely unusual in Healdsburg: running an adventurous, globally-minded wine list at prices that don't make you do math before ordering a second glass. If you care even a little about wine, this list is worth your time — and if you're a local Sonoma drinker who wants to try something that isn't another Valley Chardonnay, this is exactly the detour you've been looking for.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · Seafood
The Marshall Store earns its reputation as a low-key, scenic spot for fresh West Coast oysters and smoked salmon — and if that's your mission, it delivers. But the wine program is effectively an afterthought: undocumented, uncurated, and not a reason to visit. Bring a bottle from one of the Healdsburg producers down the road, check the corkage policy at the door, and spend your energy on the food.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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