Detroit's Most Serious Bottle List, Full Stop
Unknown · Detroit · Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Updated April 2026
Reviewed March 22, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Shanahan's hits like a cellar door swung open in the best possible way — Krug, Leflaive, Chave, and Sine Qua Non all on the same list before you've even ordered a cocktail. This isn't a steakhouse wine list built to impress corporate accounts; it's built by someone who actually cares. Detroit doesn't see lists like this every day.
More than 20 countries represented means this isn't a California-and-Bordeaux-only operation, which is genuinely rare for a steakhouse format. The cult California contingent is strong — Turley zins, Sine Qua Non for the splurge crowd — but the presence of Jean-Louis Chave and Leflaive tells you the Old World Rhône and Burgundy sections have real depth, not just token bottles. Tusk rounds out a list that clearly has someone behind it making deliberate choices. The one gap we'd flag: no mention of value-tier discovery picks, which suggests the list skews heavily toward the high end with less love for the budget-conscious diner.
Twenty-five by-the-glass options is a genuinely impressive pour program — most steakhouses coast on eight to ten and call it a day. We don't have the full breakdown of what's rotating through those pours, but with a sommelier on staff and producers of this caliber in the cellar, the glass program should be worth exploring before you commit to a bottle. Ask what's open; a house this serious likely has something interesting breathing.
Turley — $30
Entry-level bottles start at $30, and if Turley is accessible at that tier, you're getting cult-California credibility without the cult-California markup you'd normally absorb. At a place where the ceiling is Sine Qua Non, the floor matters — grab it.
Jean-Louis Chave
Rhône royalty that most steakhouse crowds walk right past in favor of the big California reds. Chave's wines — whether Hermitage or the Saint-Joseph — have the structure to stand up to prime beef and the complexity to hold the table's attention long after the steak is gone. Most people at a steakhouse aren't looking here. They should be.
Sine Qua Non
The wine itself is exceptional — no argument there. But Sine Qua Non commands serious secondary-market prices and steakhouses notoriously mark allocated cult bottles hard. Unless you're celebrating something that warrants a three-figure-plus cork pull, the same money likely buys you a better value elsewhere on a list this deep.
Leflaive + Seafood selection
With seafood on the menu and Domaine Leflaive's Burgundy whites in the cellar, you have one of the classic French pairings available at a Midwestern steakhouse — which is honestly remarkable. Premier or village-level Puligny from Leflaive brings enough richness and mineral tension to elevate whatever's coming out of the kitchen on the seafood side.
🔥 The Bottom Line
Shanahan's is playing a different game than most Detroit restaurants — the wine list is destination-worthy on its own merits, even if the markups reflect the ambition. If you're serious about wine with your steak, this is where you go.
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Highlands is a reliable special-occasion wine stop backed by a knowledgeable sommelier in Kevin Williams and a Wine Spectator Award it's held since 2022. The list won't surprise you, but at 71 floors up with a bone-in ribeye in front of you, you probably weren't asking it to.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Corktown · Detroit · Italian, Swiss
Alpino is doing something genuinely unusual for Detroit — an alpine-themed kitchen with a wine list that actually matches the room's ambition, not just its vibe. Send your friends here, tell them to order Austrian, and sit near the fireplace.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Southfield · Detroit · Northern Italian
Bacco is the kind of wine program that makes you feel like Detroit's been holding out on you — 11,000 bottles, a sommelier who actually knows the cellar, and a room serious enough to let a 2000 Gaja breathe properly. The prices will make your eyes water, but this is a destination list worth the trip.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Rochester Hills · Detroit · Italian
La Collina is a perfectly decent neighborhood Italian spot that treats its wine list like an afterthought — familiar names, steep markups, no real sense of curation or care. Drink the Brunello or order a Negroni and don't look back.
Crowd Pleasers
Gouge
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Detroit · Detroit · Contemporary American
The Apparatus Room is the wine list Detroit didn't know it needed — thoughtful, fairly priced, and backed by a sommelier who actually shows up. If you're eating downtown and you care about what's in your glass, this is your spot.
Solid Range
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Detroit · Detroit · Italian-American
Bona Sera is a reliable neighborhood wine program that won't embarrass you on a date night, but the markup math on some bottles is hard to ignore and the list plays it safe enough that adventurous drinkers will run out of road fast. Order the Ridge, skip the commodity pours, and you'll have a fine evening.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Cattleman's Exchange isn't a wine destination, but it's not a disaster either — it's a hotel steakhouse doing hotel steakhouse things. If you're in Abilene and need a Cab with your beef, you'll find something that works; just don't expect the list to surprise you.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Springfield · Steakhouse
LongHorn Springfield isn't a wine destination — but with markups this low and pours this affordable, it's one of the better casual chain options in Illinois for a simple red with a big steak. Send a friend here for dinner; just don't tell them to geek out over the list.
Crowd Pleasers
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
La Frontera · Round Rock · Steakhouse
Saltgrass Round Rock is exactly what it looks like: a chain steakhouse wine list on autopilot, built around brand names, sweet crowd-pleasers, and markups that assume you're not paying attention. Order a beer or a cocktail and save the wine for somewhere that actually cares.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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