Tiny French Spot, Surprisingly Adventurous Glass Pours
· St. Paul · French · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · October 5, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Restaurant Aubergine’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Eleven bottles total — that's it. But before you write it off, take a closer look at what those eleven bottles actually are: Franciacorta, skin-contact Riesling, Muscadet from the Loire, and a Grenache Gris from Languedoc. This is not a lazy list; it's a curated one, and someone clearly had opinions when they put it together.
The list leans heavily European, with a bias toward lesser-known varieties and regions that most French restaurants in the Midwest wouldn't touch. The Abbazia di Novacella Sylvaner from Alto Adige and the Jérémie Huchet Muscadet from the Loire sit alongside a Union Sacre skin-contact Riesling — a Colorado producer making genuinely interesting stuff. The red side is thinner, offering a Grenache blend from Domaine de l'Ecu, a Melville Syrah out of Santa Barbara, and an Italian Cab-Merlot blend from Ottella that rounds things out for the crowd. There are real gaps — no Burgundy, no Rhône, no Bordeaux — but given the size of the list, the picks they did make are more interesting than 90% of what you'll find at similar restaurants.
All eleven wines are available by the glass, which is the whole program — there's no bottle-only tier to speak of. Prices run $15 to $30, with the Maurice Delot Prestige Champagne topping out the range and the Muscadet and the Ottella anchoring the value end. The rotating rosé selection adds a small element of surprise if you're a repeat visitor.
The Bottom Line
Restaurant Aubergine is running an eleven-bottle wine program that punches well above its weight class — the selections are specific, considered, and genuinely adventurous for a French spot in the Twin Cities. If you want a deep cellar and a leather-bound wine bible, look elsewhere; if you want someone's honest, well-edited point of view in a glass, this earns your attention.
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Golden Thyme deserves every bit of its community love, and the kitchen is cooking at a level the wine list hasn't caught up to yet. Come for the jambalaya linguine and the catfish po'boy — just don't plan your evening around what's in the glass.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Boca Chica is almost certainly a great neighborhood spot for Mexican food, but the wine program is an afterthought. Eight unlabeled house varietals and a White Zinfandel on the menu is all the signal you need — order the sangria, order a margarita, and save the wine night for somewhere else.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Roseville · St. Paul · Italian / Steakhouse Hybrid
Chianti Grill is not here to challenge you — it's here to give you a familiar Italian-American night out with wine that won't embarrass anyone. Watch the markups on the California pours, lean into the Italian section, and order the Chianti flight at least once.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· St. Paul · New American
Cafe Lurcat is a reliable anchor for a Minneapolis date night, and the wine list won't embarrass you — but at these prices, you'd want it to thrill you a little more than it does. Go for the atmosphere and the food; treat the wine list as a solid supporting cast, not the headline act.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Sunfish Cellars is punching several weight classes above its size — a 19-bottle list with three Sadie Family wines and an Elvio Cogno Nascetta at $15 is not something you stumble across. If you care about wine and you're in St. Paul, you need to know this place exists.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Randolph · St. Paul · Italian
Luci Ancora isn't here to dazzle wine geeks, but it earns its keep as a thoughtful neighborhood Italian with a list that respects the kitchen. If you're after a quiet dinner and a well-chosen Italian bottle, you're in the right place.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Buckhead · Sandy Springs · French
Le Bilboquet is a reliable French restaurant wine experience in a city that doesn't overflow with them — a focused, old-world-leaning list backed by actual staff knowledge. Pricing skews steep for the Buckhead zip code, so lean on the sommelier to find where the value hides. We'd send a friend here for a fun night, not a deep dive.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Atlanta · French
St. John's is running a lean, all-by-the-glass program that's more considered than it looks at first glance — a Vouvray, a Barolo, and an aged Languedoc Syrah on a 14-bottle list isn't an accident. The lack of bottle service is a real limitation for a French dinner, but if you're grazing through courses and glasses, the pricing stays honest. Worth a visit if you want something beyond the usual steakhouse pour.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· San Francisco · French
Absinthe pulls off something harder than it looks: a tight, all-by-the-glass list that still has genuine depth and fair pricing across almost every tier. The Chevillon and Carillon alone signal that someone here takes wine seriously, and the entry-level pours — Carignan, Riesling, Grenache Rosé, all at $15/glass — mean you don't have to spend big to drink well. If you're near Hayes Valley and want a real glass of Burgundy or an obscure Loire red without a lecture, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
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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