One of America's largest Chateau Musar verticals, a wine director who rewrote the Persian-wine playbook, and a renovation promising even bigger things
Sandy Springs · Atlanta · Persian · Visit Website ↗
Updated September 2026
Reviewed February 22, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Rumi's Kitchen - Sandy Springs’s wine list and gave it The Rager — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Rumi's Kitchen Sandy Springs has been undergoing a major renovation, but what wine director Stephen Kaplan has built here is too significant to sit on until the painters finish. Kaplan — who also serves as the company's COO — has assembled one of the largest Chateau Musar vertical collections in the United States inside a Persian restaurant in Sandy Springs. Read that sentence again. He has taken the intersection of Middle Eastern cuisine and Old World wine and turned it into a genuine program with national ambition. The renovation will only expand what was already the most interesting wine program in the Persian restaurant category anywhere in the Southeast.
The list is built on a foundation of organic and biodynamic producers with a deliberate focus on wines from the Middle East and the Mediterranean basin. Chateau Musar from Lebanon anchors the entire program — the vertical collection spans multiple vintages and represents a serious collector's commitment to a single legendary producer. Beyond Musar, the list reaches into natural wine territory with producers who farm sustainably and ferment with intention. This is not a wine list that happens to exist at a Persian restaurant. This is a wine program designed specifically for Persian food, exploring the flavor bridges between kebab and grape in ways most American restaurants have never attempted.
The by-the-glass program reflects the same organic and biodynamic philosophy as the full list, with pours chosen to partner with Persian cuisine rather than default to crowd-pleasing varietals. Expect the glass program to expand when the renovation completes — Kaplan is building a wine program, not maintaining one, and the bigger space gives him room to pour more ambitiously.
Chateau Musar (younger vintage) — Varies by vintage
A younger-vintage Musar at restaurant pricing is a genuine experience. The blend of Cabernet, Cinsault, and Carignan aged in the Bekaa Valley delivers flavor complexity that punches well above its price point. At a Persian restaurant, the pairing context makes it transcendent.
The organic and biodynamic deep cuts
Kaplan curates producers who farm with conviction, and these bottles carry stories that conventional labels cannot tell. Ask about the natural wine options — the intersection of organic winemaking and Persian spice is a pairing frontier that Rumi's is actively pioneering.
Anything conventional and predictable
You walked into a Persian restaurant with one of America's most significant Chateau Musar collections. This is not the night for the familiar Cabernet from Napa. Push into the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern selections. The food demands it and the program was built to deliver.
Chateau Musar Red + Koobideh Kebab
The smoke and char of ground lamb kebab meeting the earthy, dried-fruit complexity of Lebanese Musar is one of those pairings that makes you wonder why every Persian restaurant in America does not think this way. This is the pairing that defines Rumi's wine identity.
The Bottom Line
Rumi's Kitchen Sandy Springs earns the Rager badge on the strength of Stephen Kaplan's vision and execution. The Chateau Musar vertical collection, the organic and biodynamic commitment, and the Persian-wine pairing philosophy represent something genuinely unique in Atlanta's restaurant landscape. Check the website for the latest on the renovation timeline — when those doors reopen with the expanded program, you want to be first in line.
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Tabla's wine list punches above its weight for an Asian restaurant in Atlanta. The white-heavy, aromatic-focused selection makes genuine sense with the food, pricing at the entry level is fair, and the BTG depth is real. We'd send a friend here for wine without hesitation — just order the Grüner first.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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MCK isn't trying to be a wine destination — it's a bar and restaurant with a list built for toasting and crowd comfort. The sparkling program punches above the list's weight, the by-the-glass selection is generous, and the markups on still wines are steep but not outrageous. Send a friend here if they want Champagne and something easy to sip; send them somewhere else if they're chasing a wine experience.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Blue Moon Brewery & Grill is a beer bar first, second, and third — the wine list exists so your friend who doesn't drink beer doesn't feel stranded. If that's the situation, the Cava at $9 or the Elouan Rosé at $10 are perfectly fine. But if wine is the reason you're going out, go somewhere else.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Pink Lotus has built a wine list that takes its cues from the food — acid-forward, bubbles-heavy, and genuinely curious — which is more than most Thai spots in town bother to do. Markups are fair, the by-the-glass selection is wide, and there are real finds here if you look past the Dom Pérignon showpiece bottles at the top. If you're eating Thai in Atlanta and you want something interesting in your glass, this list deserves your attention.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Main · Greenville · Persian
A wine list sorted by style, from light aromatic whites to a $260.00 Amarone, so you can stay modest or go big. Start with the Silver Palm Cabernet Sauvignon at $12.00 and $42.00 or the City Scape Pomegranate Pinot Noir at $12.00 and $46.00, and ask which price is the glass. This unrated guide covers the posted wine list, not service, storage or markups.
Belmont · Belmont · Persian
Shalizaar is doing something genuinely unusual — pairing a legitimate, award-winning wine program with one of the Bay Area's better Persian kitchens — and for that alone it earns your attention. The list won't challenge you, but if you know what you're ordering, there's a real meal to be had here.
Solid Range
Steep
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.
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