Vegas-scale wine ambition in Southwest Washington
Greater Clark County / Ilani Casino · Vancouver · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · June 29, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Ilani – Michael Jordan's Steak House’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Six thousand labels at a casino steakhouse in Vancouver, Washington — that sentence takes a second to land. The list reads like someone handed a serious buyer an unlimited budget and told them to go nuts, and honestly, that's not far from what happened. You're not expecting Harlan Estate and Sine Qua Non when you pull off I-5 into a casino parking lot, but here we are.
The backbone is exactly what you'd expect from a high-end steakhouse — Napa Cab country, with Caymus Special Selection, Opus One, Silver Oak, and Duckhorn all checked in — but the list doesn't stop there. There's genuine regional pride in the PNW representation: Domaine Serene from Willamette Valley, Leonetti Cellar from Walla Walla, and a Hartford Court Chardonnay from Russian River Valley. France shows up seriously too, with Burgundy (Denis Mortet), Champagne (Piper-Heidsieck), and a F.X. Pichler Grüner Veltliner from Wachau that would look at home on a Vienna wine bar list. The cellar depth is real — a 1997 Dalla Valle Maya and 2010 Bond St. Eden are not bottles you stumble across at most restaurants, period.
Twenty pours by the glass ranging from $17 to $33, plus a separate Exclusive Pours program that runs up to $125 a glass — which is either exciting or alarming depending on how your evening is going. The everyday BTG list covers the hits: Cakebread Chardonnay, Merry Edwards Sauv Blanc, Austin Hope Cab, and a Joseph Drouhin Chablis for the white Burgundy crowd. Rotation isn't documented, which suggests it's more static than dynamic.
2023 Joseph Drouhin Chablis — $17
Drouhin Chablis by the glass at the low end of the BTG range is a genuine win — clean, mineral-driven, and a sharp contrast to the butter-bomb Chardonnays that dominate casino wine lists. It's the quiet overachiever on this menu.
F.X. Pichler 'Urgestein Terrassen' Smaragd 2009 Wachau Grüner Veltliner
At $123, a 15-year-old Smaragd from one of Austria's greatest producers is the kind of bottle that gets completely ignored in a room full of people ordering Caymus. Pichler at this level is world-class, and 2009 Wachau is a stellar vintage — this is the sleeper pick on the entire list.
Loosen Bros. Dr. L Riesling 2022
Dr. L is a perfectly fine $12-15 retail bottle. At $70 on this list, you're paying a 4-5x markup on a grocery store staple. The same money goes much further elsewhere on this list.
2019 Domaine Serene 'Barrel 23' Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley + Prime Bone-In Ribeye
Domaine Serene's Barrel 23 is a richer, more structured Willamette Pinot that can actually stand up to a well-marbled ribeye — it's the move for guests who want something more interesting than another Napa Cab but still want a wine that earns its place next to red meat.
The Bottom Line
This is a legitimately serious wine program wearing a casino steakhouse costume — the depth and cellar quality are real, but the markups reflect the captive audience. Come with a specific bottle in mind, avoid the obvious traps, and you can drink very well here.
· Vancouver · Italian / Wine Shop
La Bottega is a Wild Card in the best sense: a café-deli-wine-shop in a city not known for serious wine, pouring Arnot-Roberts and Dönnhoff by the glass at fair prices. If you're in Vancouver, WA and want a genuinely good pour with your lunch, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vancouver · Seafood / Steak
Line & Lure clears the casino restaurant bar by a comfortable margin — fair prices, a thoughtful white wine program, and a Royal Tokaji that earns genuine respect. We'd send a friend here for a pre-dinner glass without hesitation, as long as they stick to the whites.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vancouver · Latin / Contemporary
DOSALAS is a tequila bar with a wine list that's doing the minimum — decent regional picks, steep markups, and no real surprises. Drink the Albarino or the Tempranillo and save your wine ambitions for a dedicated wine spot.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vancouver · New American
The Hammond isn't a destination wine list, but it punches above its weight for a craft bar — especially if you love Pacific Northwest reds. Send a friend here, point them toward the Oregon section, and tell them to skip the cocktails.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vancouver · American / Wine Bar
Uptown Barrel Room isn't trying to be a destination wine list, and it doesn't need to be — it's a solid neighborhood wine bar with fair prices, good enough options, and the rare commitment to making everything available by the glass. Send a friend here for a casual weeknight pour without hesitation.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vancouver · Pacific Rim / Hawaiian
Tommy O's wine list isn't going to make you cancel your dinner reservation somewhere else, but it's an honest, no-nonsense selection that covers the basics at what appears to be reasonable prices. Send your friends here for the food and a decent pour — just don't expect to geek out over the list.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Beverly Hills · Los Angeles · Steakhouse
What we can document at Mastro's Beverly Hills is a narrow, Napa-centric selection that plays zero risk and offers zero surprise — which is a defensible choice for a power-steakhouse crowd, but not one we can enthusiastically endorse to wine lovers. The seven wines on record are all from a single event page, so the full list is almost certainly broader; but until we have more to work with, our honest advice is to know what you want before you sit down, because the list isn't going to inspire you.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
· Yountville · Steakhouse
Press is a special-occasion restaurant with a wine program built to match — deep Napa regional focus, a sommelier on staff, and pairing options that range from serious to stratospheric. The pricing is steep by design, and you should go in knowing the wine spend can easily outpace the food bill. If you're willing to lean into it, this is exactly the kind of Napa experience the valley was built around.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Vail · Steakhouse
Russell's isn't trying to be a wine destination and doesn't need to be — but the list is better than the room probably demands. Fair pricing, a genuine global reach, and twenty pours by the glass make this a steakhouse wine program worth engaging with. Order the Fincas de Ganuza, skip the Laurent Perrier, and leave the mountain resort markup where it belongs: on the cocktail list.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
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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