Great Beer Town, Wrong Place for Wine
Downtown Frederick · Frederick · American gastropub
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 13, 2026
RagingWine reviewed JoJo's Restaurant & Tap House’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at JoJo's feels like an afterthought stapled to the back of a beer menu that actually deserves your attention. You get the sense that the kitchen and the tap handles are the real stars here, and wine is just there to check a box for the table that doesn't drink craft beer. That's fine — until you see the prices.
Fifteen to twenty-five wines, almost entirely California and Pacific Northwest, and not the interesting parts of either. Think Apothic, Josh Cellars, Cupcake, Kendall-Jackson — the grocery store aisle brought indoors and marked up aggressively. There's no regional exploration, no small producers, no nods to anything that would suggest someone here actually cares about wine. The list reads like it was built for familiarity and ease of ordering, not for drinking well.
Six to ten options by the glass, which sounds reasonable until you realize most of them are the same recognizable labels you've seen at every chain restaurant from here to Orlando. Rotation appears nonexistent — this is a set-and-forget program. If you're committed to a glass, the Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling is probably your most interesting move.
Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling — $28
Still marked up steep relative to its ~$11 retail, but it's the one wine on this list that has actual character — a little fruit, a little acidity, something going on. By JoJo's standards, that makes it the pick.
Kendall-Jackson Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay
Not a hidden gem in any exciting sense, but among this crowd it punches above its list companions. It's a known quantity that at least delivers consistency — and in a lineup this flat, consistency counts for something.
Cupcake Vineyards Moscato
At $26 for a bottle that retails for $10, you're paying 160% over retail for a sweet, low-effort wine that was never meant to be taken seriously. Hard pass.
Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling + Crab Cakes
Off-dry Riesling and crab are a classic match — the wine's brightness and restrained sweetness work with the sweetness of the crab without bulldozing it. It's the one combination on this menu where the wine list actually helps rather than hurts.
❌ The Bottom Line
JoJo's is a genuinely fun gastropub — order a craft beer, order the crab cakes, have a great time. But if wine is your thing, this list will cost you too much for too little. Come for the taps, not the bottles.
Route 85 corridor · Frederick · Japanese
Miyako's wine list exists to check a box, and it does that — nothing more. Order the sake, order a cocktail, or make peace with a Canyon Road pour and focus on the hibachi show.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Frederick · Frederick · Mediterranean / Meze
Ayse is the kind of place that surprises you — a Frederick meze lounge with a genuinely considered Italian-leaning wine list that punches above its weight class, even if markups and a static program hold it back from true greatness. Send a friend here, but tell them to skip the Amarone and ask for the Moschofilero.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Route 85 retail corridor · Frederick · Seafood / Grill
Bonefish Grill Frederick is a fine place to eat seafood, but the wine list is pure chain-restaurant autopilot — low risk, low reward, and no one in the kitchen or behind the bar is losing sleep over it. Order the Riesling at Social Hour, enjoy your salmon, and save the wine exploration for somewhere that's actually trying.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
Westview · Frederick · Italian
Carrabba's Frederick isn't a wine destination, but it's a chain that actually tried — Italian-leaning list, credible producers, food-friendly pours. Send your friend here if they want a decent Chianti with their pasta and don't want to think too hard about it.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Westview / Buckeystown Pike · Frederick · Steakhouse
Outback Frederick's wine list is a corporate checkbox, not a wine program — safe brands, steep pours, zero personality. Order the Malbec with your steak, or honestly, just get a beer.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Route 85 / 355 corridor · Frederick · Steakhouse
LongHorn is here to sell you a steak, and it does that job well enough — but the wine list is an afterthought at best. Order the beef, skip the wine, and save the bottle for somewhere that actually cares.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Old Town Carmel · Carmel · American gastropub
Grindstone is a solid neighborhood spot for a burger and a beer, and the wine list doesn't pretend to be anything it isn't — but it also doesn't try. If wine is important to you tonight, order a cocktail instead.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Chandler Fashion Center area · Chandler · American gastropub
Hop Social Tavern is not a wine destination — it's a beer bar that keeps a reasonable wine list for the people at the table who don't want beer. For that job, it does fine: fair prices, known producers, cold enough storage, and no obvious disasters. Order the Riesling or the Tempranillo, enjoy your burger, and let your friends argue about which IPA to order.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Turnagain / West Anchorage · Anchorage · American gastropub
Rustic Goat isn't your destination for a wine-forward dinner, but it's a genuinely fair list for a neighborhood spot doing wood-fired food in Anchorage. Send your friends here for dinner — just temper expectations on the wine and you'll leave happy.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.