Vail's Mountain Steakhouse Plays It Surprisingly Smart
· Vail · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · September 27, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Russell's Steakhouse’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
For a mountain steakhouse in a ski town where you half-expect a list of Kendall-Jackson and nothing else, Russell's opens with something more interesting. Twenty by-the-glass options and a 68-label bottle list signal that someone here actually thought about this. The price floor of $14/glass is reasonable for Vail, where everything costs twice what it should.
The list leans predictably California-heavy on the red side — Clos du Val Cab, Pride Mountain Merlot, Grgich Hills — but earns points for mixing in genuinely interesting picks. Fincas de Ganuza Rioja Reserva 2018 and La Spinetta Barbera d'Asti show real Old World intention, and Ca'Marcanda 'Promis' is a Bolgheri blend that most steakhouses wouldn't touch. The white selection runs from Terre Del Fohn Pinot Grigio through a Bernard Defaix Chablis and a Michel Vattan Sancerre — enough range to make non-red drinkers feel welcome. Gaps exist: no Burgundy pinot to speak of, and the sparkling section maxes out at Laurent Perrier with no vintage Champagne options on the bottle list visible in this data.
Twenty options by the glass is a strong showing, covering sparkling, white, rosé, and red without feeling padded. The range runs from Bisol Prosecco at $14 up to Clos du Val Cab at $25/glass, with Ken Wright Cellars Pinot Noir and Reeve Wines 'Septime' Pinot Noir both landing at $18–19 — solid mid-tier picks that aren't just filler. Rotation is unclear from the available data, so don't assume these are all seasonal.
The Bottom Line
Russell's isn't trying to be a wine destination and doesn't need to be — but the list is better than the room probably demands. Fair pricing, a genuine global reach, and twenty pours by the glass make this a steakhouse wine program worth engaging with. Order the Fincas de Ganuza, skip the Laurent Perrier, and leave the mountain resort markup where it belongs: on the cocktail list.
· Vail · Hotel Bar & New American
The Lobby Bar is fine — and in Vail, fine is doing a lot of heavy lifting. The list is short, static, and priced for people who just got off the mountain and aren't reading the bill too closely. If you're here, order the Grochau Pinot and call it a night; don't come looking for discovery.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · Italian
La Nonna is an Italian restaurant in a ski resort town that somehow assembled one of the more thoughtful grower Champagne lists in Colorado — and that's genuinely worth acknowledging. Markups run steep across the board, which is par for the Vail course, but if you order smart (Mignon, Larmandier-Bernier, the Correggia sparkler), you'll drink better than almost anywhere on the mountain. Come for the pasta, stay for the bubbles.
Surprising Depth
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · New American
Larkspur has the bones of a Reliable — a thoughtful regional spread, a polished dining room, and a kitchen putting out serious plates like the Creekstone Farms strip loin and Ahi tuna crudo that deserve equally serious wine. We just don't have enough list detail to hand you a confident pick or warn you off a specific bottle. If you're heading here, ask the server what's drinking well right now and set a firm price ceiling before you open the book — Vail markups are real and they are not shy.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · French
La Tour is not trying to be everything to everyone — it's a French restaurant in Vail that has quietly built one of the more credible white Burgundy lists in Colorado. The pricing is fair by resort standards, the selection has genuine depth from Chablis through Meursault, and there are a few bottles here that would turn heads in a serious wine city. If Chardonnay is your thing, this list is worth your time. If it's not, order the cocktails.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · French
The Left Bank is a legitimately compelling wine destination for anyone who loves Champagne and grower producers — finding Bérêche & Fils 'Le Cran' or Larmandier-Bernier 'Longitude' on a list in Vail is not nothing. Markups are real and the lack of confirmed BTG options means you're probably committing to a bottle, but if that bottle is the Drappier or the Bourdy Crémant, you'll leave happy.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Vail · New American
Harvest clears the bar that most ski town wine lists don't even bother approaching — there are real producers, genuine regional diversity, and a by-the-glass program with actual depth. Markups skew steep, as expected in Vail, but the J.L. Chave and the Madeira show that someone on staff is paying attention. If you're eating here, don't default to whatever's loudest on the list — dig into the by-the-glass section and you'll be rewarded.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Beverly Hills · Los Angeles · Steakhouse
What we can document at Mastro's Beverly Hills is a narrow, Napa-centric selection that plays zero risk and offers zero surprise — which is a defensible choice for a power-steakhouse crowd, but not one we can enthusiastically endorse to wine lovers. The seven wines on record are all from a single event page, so the full list is almost certainly broader; but until we have more to work with, our honest advice is to know what you want before you sit down, because the list isn't going to inspire you.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
· Yountville · Steakhouse
Press is a special-occasion restaurant with a wine program built to match — deep Napa regional focus, a sommelier on staff, and pairing options that range from serious to stratospheric. The pricing is steep by design, and you should go in knowing the wine spend can easily outpace the food bill. If you're willing to lean into it, this is exactly the kind of Napa experience the valley was built around.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Laredo · Steakhouse
El Asador is clearly a destination for the food — the wood-fired steaks, the Tuétano al Piquín, the oysters — and the margaritas are probably doing heavy lifting at the bar. But the wine list is a placeholder, not a program. Five unlabeled, undated-for-rotation bottles at a polished steakhouse in 2024 is a miss. Come for the beef, order a cocktail, and hope someone eventually hands this list to someone who cares.
Grocery Store
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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