Sixteen Pours, Zero Boring Bottles
· San Francisco · Wine bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · August 21, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Frenchie’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Sixteen wines, all by the glass, $15 to $25 — Frenchie doesn't mess around with bottles-only gatekeeping. The list reads like someone with strong opinions and a well-worn passport wrote it, and we mean that as a compliment.
This is not a list built for mass appeal. You've got Királyudvar Furmint from Hungary, Nestarec Bêl from Moravia, a 1985 Moulin Touchais Coteaux du Layon on pour — by the glass — and Barbeito Madeira Verdelho rounding things out. The French throughline is there (Sancerre, Chablis, Champagne, Saint-Émilion, Burgundy), but the curator clearly wasn't satisfied stopping there. Italy shows up with Cirelli Trebbiano and Rizzi Dolcetto, Spain gets a Monte Pio Albariño, and Argentina's El Enemigo Malbec earns its spot by being actually interesting rather than generic. For sixteen labels, the geographic and stylistic spread is genuinely impressive.
The entire list is by the glass, which makes this place a dream for people who want to explore without committing to a bottle. Sixteen options spanning sparkling, white, red, dessert, and fortified means you can run a legitimate tasting progression over the course of a meal. Prices stay remarkably honest for San Francisco, with most pours landing between $15 and $20.
Cirelli Trebbiano d'Abruzzo 2024 — $15/glass
Cirelli is one of the most respected natural producers in Abruzzo, and $15 for their Trebbiano in San Francisco is genuinely under market. You'd pay more at a grocery store wine bar and get half the pedigree.
Moulin Touchais Coteaux du Layon Chenin Blanc 1985
A 40-year-old Loire dessert wine available by the glass at $20 is the kind of thing you'd walk past without a second look — and deeply regret. Moulin Touchais ages like almost nothing else in the wine world. Order it.
Drappier Carte d'Or
At $25 a glass, the Drappier is the priciest pour on the list, and while it's a solid, reliable Champagne, it's also the most conventional thing here. In a room full of Furmint and Madeira, spending your first pour on a safe Champagne feels like ordering a Caesar salad at a taco shop.
Barbeito Madeira Verdelho + Charcuterie or cured meats
Madeira's natural acidity and oxidative character cut right through fatty, salty cured meats — the combination makes both taste sharper and more alive. At a French-leaning wine bar, this is the move most people at the next table aren't making.
The Bottom Line
Frenchie is a small list doing an outsized job — curated with genuine curiosity, priced without greed, and diverse enough to reward anyone willing to order past the familiar. If you're in San Francisco and you want a glass of something you'd never find at a chain wine bar, this is your spot.
Mission Bay · San Francisco · Seafood and Steak
Miller & Lux is a dependable, well-run wine program for a high-end steakhouse — backed by knowledgeable staff, proper storage, and a focus on the regions that make sense with the food. The markup is steep and the list plays it safe, so this isn't where you go to discover something new. If you're celebrating and want a bottle that feels appropriate to the moment and the room, you'll land on something good — just go in knowing you're paying a premium for the setting as much as the wine.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Union Square · San Francisco · Hotel New American
MKT is a hotel restaurant that treats its wine list like a liability to be managed rather than an asset to be celebrated. Nineteen bottles, steep hotel pricing, and no evidence of a thoughtful by-the-glass program add up to a list you tolerate rather than enjoy. If you're at the Four Seasons for a special occasion, you'll find something drinkable — but don't come here because of the wine.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Proper
· San Francisco · Thai
Nari is doing something genuinely strange and genuinely impressive — building a grower champagne program inside a Thai restaurant that would hold up against dedicated wine bars across the city. The markup is real and the list skews expensive, but if you care about this category of wine, there is no other Thai restaurant in San Francisco where you're having this conversation. Go in knowing what you want and what you're willing to spend.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Francisco · Winery Tasting Room
If you're driving through Sonoma and want to understand why Chardonnay still matters in California, Kistler's tasting room makes a strong case — but you need an appointment and you need to want exactly what they're pouring. The cheese, dips, and crackers are incidental; the wines are the entire point. Book ahead, show up curious, and let the vineyard-specific lineup do the work.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· San Francisco · French
Absinthe pulls off something harder than it looks: a tight, all-by-the-glass list that still has genuine depth and fair pricing across almost every tier. The Chevillon and Carillon alone signal that someone here takes wine seriously, and the entry-level pours — Carignan, Riesling, Grenache Rosé, all at $15/glass — mean you don't have to spend big to drink well. If you're near Hayes Valley and want a real glass of Burgundy or an obscure Loire red without a lecture, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Francisco · Japanese izakaya
Rintaro's wine list is a four-bottle edit that respects your intelligence and suits the food. Pricing is fair, the selections are deliberate, and nothing feels like it wandered in from a default distributor catalog. If you're comfortable with a short list and trust that someone thought about it, this is a good place to drink wine with dinner.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Sandy Springs · Atlanta · Wine bar
Under Pressure is the kind of wine bar Atlanta's northern neighborhoods have genuinely needed — a spot with a real point of view, someone knowledgeable behind the program, and a concept built around guided discovery rather than generic pours. If you're anywhere near Sandy Springs and care about drinking something interesting, this is worth the trip. We'll revisit once the full list is in hand for the deep cuts.
Surprising Depth
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Duval Street · Key West · Wine bar
For Key West, a wine bar with a genuine Champagne focus and a mid-week deal is a minor miracle. We'd send a friend here for a pre-dinner glass on a Wednesday without hesitation — just know that we're working from strong vibes and limited menu data, so go in curious rather than with a specific bottle in mind. When we get the full list, this one could move up the rankings fast.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
· Monterey · Wine bar
If you're rolling through Monterey and want something more interactive than staring at a laminated wine list, The Wine Experience is a legitimate detour — especially for anyone curious about what the Santa Lucia Highlands and San Benito County are actually producing right now. We'd send a curious friend here without hesitation; we'd just tell them to skip any expectations of a formal dinner and lean into the tasting-room energy instead.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Occasional
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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