Nine-Ten

Tucked inside the Grande Colonial Hotel on Prospect Street, Nine-Ten hands you a wine list that feels like it means business — 300-plus selections organized around California, France, and Italy, with enough serious names to know this wasn't assembled by someone clicking a distributor catalog. The coastal setting earns its price tag, and so does the list, mostly.

California is the star and the program leans into it hard: Kistler Vineyards Chardonnay, Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon, Ridge Monte Bello, Dominus Estate, and Caymus Special Selection give you a legitimate cross-section of Napa and beyond. France shows up credibly with Louis Jadot Burgundy holding down the old-world anchor, and Italy gets a proper nod via Marchesi Antinori's Tignanello — one of the more satisfying Super Tuscans you'll find on a coastal California list. The range skews toward crowd-favorite producers, which means depth junkies hunting grower Champagne or obscure Rhône bottlings will come up short, but for what it is — a hotel restaurant wine list in La Jolla — this one genuinely overdelivers.

Twenty to thirty by-the-glass options is a serious commitment, and Nine-Ten earns points just for keeping that count. The selection tracks the bottle list's California-forward identity, so expect Chardonnay and Cabernet-adjacent pours to dominate. There's no evidence of aggressive rotation or a tasting-flight program, but the sheer volume of options means most tables will find something worth ordering.