Casino steakhouse that actually takes wine seriously
Glendale · American, Steakhouse
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 10, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Nineteen 86 Steakhouse’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Tucked inside Desert Diamond Casino, Nineteen 86 earns its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence by doing the basics right in a setting where most restaurants don't bother. The marble-and-wood room signals that someone here is taking this seriously — at least more seriously than the slot machines outside. The list skews hard California, which makes sense given the steakhouse context, but don't expect any surprises.
The 80-to-120-bottle list reads like a greatest hits of California Cabernet — Caymus, Silver Oak Alexander Valley, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, Jordan, and Beringer Private Reserve are all present and accounted for. It's a crowd-pleasing lineup that will make exactly zero wine geeks excited, but it will make the guy ordering a ribeye very happy. Duckhorn Merlot and Rombauer and Cakebread Chardonnays cover the white and non-Cab bases adequately. The gap here is anything outside California — there's no Burgundy anchor, no Rhône, no Italian to speak of, and that limits what this list can really be.
Ten to sixteen by-the-glass options at $10–$18 is a reasonable spread for a steakhouse at this price point. We'd expect the pours to track closely with the bottle list — meaning you're mostly navigating Cabs and Chardonnays. The selection gets the job done for a pre-dinner glass while you settle into one of those oversized booths.
Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon — $35 glass / bottle pricing TBD
Jordan is consistently one of California's most food-friendly Cabs — structured enough for red meat but not a fruit bomb. In a list where markup runs steep, Jordan tends to offer more drinking pleasure per dollar than the more famous names on the list.
Duckhorn Merlot
Everyone at the table is ordering Cabernet, and that's fine — but the Duckhorn Merlot is genuinely excellent and almost always more approachable with the rich cuts on this menu. It's the sleeper pick most people breeze past on the way to Silver Oak.
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus is everywhere, and steakhouses in particular love to mark it up knowing the name will sell itself. You're paying a premium for a label, not a wine that outperforms its neighbors on this list. The juice is fine, but the value isn't there.
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon + Prime Rib
Stag's Leap has a more elegant, structured profile than most California Cabs — less jam, more precision — which means it cuts through the richness of prime rib without overwhelming it. Classic steakhouse pairing done right.
The Bottom Line
Nineteen 86 is a legitimate wine program for a casino steakhouse — the Wine Spectator nod is earned, even if the list plays it very safe. Come for the Prime Rib, order the Jordan, and manage your expectations about discovering anything you haven't seen before.
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Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
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Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
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Acceptable
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Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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