Annapolis's Smartest Wine Stop, Bottle by Bottle
Annapolis · American, French · Visit Website ↗
Updated June 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 15, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Grapes Wine Bar’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The name tells you exactly what you're getting, and Grapes delivers without apology — a focused, Franco-Californian list in a room that feels like someone actually thought about the wine before printing the menu. It's intimate, a little dressed up, and the kind of place where the list doesn't try to be everything to everyone. That restraint is a feature, not a bug.
The list runs 150-250 bottles and leans hard into California and France, which happens to be exactly where Wine Spectator has recognized them since 2015. On the California side you've got Stag's Leap and Jordan anchoring the Napa Cab section — reliable heavy hitters — while Rombauer and Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve cover Sonoma Chardonnay in crowd-pleasing fashion. France shows up through Louis Jadot and Joseph Drouhin in Burgundy, plus Rhône Valley selections and Bordeaux-style blends that give the list a bit more texture. The gaps are real — no serious Italian program, Spain is mostly absent — but within its lane the list is well-curated and doesn't embarrass itself.
Twenty to thirty-five by-the-glass options is genuinely generous for a room this size, and the $10-$18 price band keeps things accessible without feeling like a dive bar compromise. There's no indication the glass menu rotates aggressively, which is fine — consistency matters — but a more adventurous rotating pour or two would push this into more interesting territory.
Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley — $40-$120 bottle range
Jordan consistently punches above its price point — structured, approachable, and polished without the Napa sticker shock. At a fair markup in a restaurant setting, it's the bottle to order when you want to drink well without doing math all night.
Joseph Drouhin Burgundy
Most tables at a place like this reach for the California Cabs by default. That's a mistake when Drouhin is on the list. Their Burgundy bottlings offer genuine Old World restraint and complexity — the kind of wine that changes the pace of a dinner in the best way.
Kendall-Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay
KJ Grand Reserve is fine, but at restaurant markup it's hard to justify when Rombauer is right there on the same list. You're paying for a name that got big on grocery store shelves, not a bottle that earns its price in the glass.
Joseph Drouhin Burgundy (Pinot Noir) + Braised Rabbit Pappardelle
Braised rabbit is earthy, rich, and just delicate enough that a big Cab would flatten it. Drouhin's Pinot has the structure to stand up to the braise and the finesse to let the rabbit actually taste like rabbit. Classic bistro logic.
The Bottom Line
Grapes is exactly what Annapolis needed — a wine bar that takes California and France seriously without taking itself too seriously. No fireworks, no surprises, but a reliably good bottle and a room worth lingering in.
· Annapolis · Italian / Wine Bar
Tuscan Kitchen & Wine Bar is doing more with a wine list than most Italian spots in Annapolis, and the 44-glass program alone makes it worth visiting when you want options without committing to a bottle. It's not a destination for wine nerds, but it's a genuinely solid neighborhood pick that won't let you down.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Eastport · Annapolis · American pub fare
Davis' Pub is a great place to drink — just not wine. The list is inoffensive and priced fairly, but it exists as an afterthought in a place where the real action is cold drafts and steamed crabs. Order the Brancott if you must, then pivot to beer.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Spa Creek · Annapolis · Seafood / Steak
Chart House Annapolis is a reliable wine list in a genuinely great setting — you'll drink well enough, but you're paying for the view as much as the pour. Go in with eyes open on the markup and lean on the California stalwarts that earned their spots here.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Towne Centre Area · Annapolis · Wine Bar / Mediterranean
Smashing Grapes is quietly one of the better wine programs in the mid-Atlantic, operating in a market that doesn't always demand it — which makes it even more impressive. Send a friend here, absolutely, and tell them to skip the safe picks.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
Upper Main Street · Annapolis · Wine Bar / Bistro
Red Red Wine Bar is a genuinely fun, accessible spot if you go in knowing what it is: a bubbly-forward wine bar built for socializing and sharing flights, not deep-dive cellar exploration. Send your friend here for a casual night out — just don't send them expecting a sprawling wine list.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Church Circle · Annapolis · Tavern / Afternoon Tea
Reynolds Tavern is the kind of Wild Card that earns its badge by being completely sincere — a 275-year-old tavern that stocks Vieux Télégraphe and Maryland Albariño without making a big deal about it. If you're in Annapolis and skipping wine here in favor of a generic hotel bar down the street, that's on you.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Midtown East · New York · American, French
A Park Avenue restaurant whose posted wine list is a 21-wine glass list. Start with the $18 Leitz Riesling or the $19 Ogier Saint-Joseph. No bottle list is posted online, so ask the restaurant what is available by the bottle. This unrated guide covers the posted glass list, not service, storage or markups.
College Hill · Providence · American, French
A Cabernet-heavy list from autumn 2025, with glass pours from 10 and bottles up to a 450 Opus One. Start with the 10 Château du Petit Thouars Cabernet Franc, or the 16 Fontanafredda Nebbiolo if you want something from Piedmont, and check that the list is still current since it is marked September 2025. This unrated guide covers the posted wine list, not service, storage or markups.
Dupont Circle · Washington · American, French
Start with the Minuty Prestige rosé at 20 or the Château de Saint-Cosme Syrah at 22 by the glass, and save the Dagueneau for the table that wants a bottle. The glass page is the cheaper way in, with thirteen wines between 20 and 34. The file is linked as 9-26, so confirm today's pours and prices. This unrated guide covers the posted wine list, not service, storage or retail markups.
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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