18 Wine Spectator Years and an Open Question
Mount Pleasant · Charleston · Lowcountry Fine Dining · Visit Website ↗
Updated June 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · February 21, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Langdon's Restaurant & Wine Bar’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The list arrives with weight behind it. Not the 200-selection behemoth it reportedly was during the 18-year Wine Spectator Award run, but substantial enough to signal that someone here still takes wine seriously. Organized cleanly with both 5-ounce and 8-ounce glass pours, which is a format that tells you the program was designed by someone who actually drinks wine at dinner, not someone who copies a distributor sheet.
The bones of a great wine program are still here. French presence is solid, with Burgundy and Rhône doing the heavy lifting alongside a predictable but competent Napa Cabernet section that the steak program demands. Italian representation is better than most Charleston-area steakhouses, which tracks given Chef Owens' stated love for Italian food. The gap is in the adventurous middle: you won't find the funky Georgian amber wine or the obscure Jura Savagnin that a current Wine Spectator winner might stock. This is a list that plays the classics well and leaves the experimentation to someone else. The 18-year Award of Excellence streak ended in 2020, and the list hasn't quite climbed back to that standard, but it's headed in the right direction.
Around two dozen pours offered in both 5-ounce and 8-ounce formats, which is genuinely useful if you want to taste across courses without committing to bottles. The 8-ounce pour is the sweet spot. Quality varies from safe crowd-pleasers to a few genuine finds that rotate seasonally. The wine bar near the entrance is where the glass program shines brightest.
Clos du Bois Sonoma Reserve Chardonnay — $14/glass
In a restaurant where entrées push $60+, a $14 glass of competent Sonoma Chardonnay that actually pairs with the seafood starters is a small mercy. The 8-ounce pour makes it even more reasonable per sip.
Crozes-Hermitage (Rhône Syrah)
The Colorado Lamb entrée comes with a Syrah reduction, and there's a Northern Rhône Syrah on the list that mirrors the sauce grape-for-grape. Most people will order the Cabernet with their steak and miss this. Don't be most people.
Entry-level Napa Cabernet by the glass
At Langdon's markup, you're paying $18-22 for a glass of wine you can buy at Total Wine for $12 a bottle. If you're going red by the glass, look at the Rhône or Italian options where the markup math is less insulting.
Champagne or Crémant by the glass + Seared Foie Gras with Orange-Habanero Marmalade
The foie gras is $28 as an add-on and it needs bubbles. The acidity cuts through the richness while the orange-habanero plays against the toast notes. This is the kind of pairing that makes you forget you're in a shopping center. Insider tip: sit at the wine bar and tell them Captain Bob sent you.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Langdon's is a 22-year-old fine dining institution with the kitchen chops of a restaurant twice its hype and a wine program rebuilding from an 18-year Wine Spectator streak that stalled during COVID. The food deserves the wine program this restaurant used to have, and it's getting closer. Come for the 45-day dry-aged ribeye, stay for the wine bar, and bring a bottle of your own at $25 corkage if the list doesn't thrill you.
· Charleston · Restaurant
Costa is doing something genuinely unusual — a dessert-only wine program with real depth and no obvious throwaways. We'd send a friend here for an after-dinner glass, especially if they've never been talked into a Brachetto or a Barolo Chinato before.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Cannon Green · Charleston · American
Wild Common is a reliable, well-run wine program in a stunning Charleston setting — sommelier Joey Pearcy keeps things grounded and the pours are proper. If you're looking for discovery, you may want to hunt elsewhere; if you want a confident, classic bottle with a serious dinner, you're in good hands.
Solid Range
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Charleston · Charleston · Seafood, Steakhouse
Marbled & Fin is doing the work — a real sommelier, a focused list, and bottles you actually want to drink with serious food. The markups are steep enough to sting, but if you know where to look (start with Argentina), you'll drink well on East Bay Street.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Charleston · Charleston · Southern American
Magnolias is a reliable night out if you love California wine and classic Southern cooking — the list is well-maintained, the producers are legit, and the setting earns its reputation. Just don't come here expecting adventure; this list is more comfort food than discovery.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
Charleston · Charleston · Italian
Legami is doing the right things with wine on King Street — a serious Italian-led list, a knowledgeable sommelier in Hutch Lee, and enough depth to reward the curious. The markups keep it from being a steal, but if you're here for the Brunello and the house-made pasta, you're exactly where you should be.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Charleston · Charleston · American
Zero Restaurant + Bar holds a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence for good reason — this is one of the most serious wine programs in South Carolina, full stop. Yes, the big bottles are expensive, but there's real depth here beyond the trophy names, and with three sommeliers on the floor, you're in good hands.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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