Mountain altitude, serious wine attitude
Beaver Creek · Vail · Upscale American / Contemporary Fine Dining · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 29, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Splendido at the Chateau’s wine list and gave it The Rager — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Splendido lands with the same weight as the room itself — live piano, stone fireplace, and a 400-plus label book that means business. This isn't a ski resort wine list padded with Meiomi and Santa Margherita; someone with actual taste built this. The moment you sit down, you know the wine program is taken seriously here.
Napa and Burgundy are the twin anchors, with Bordeaux and Tuscany providing serious depth on the back pages. The California side reads like a greatest hits of the Napa establishment — Opus One, Stag's Leap Cask 23, Caymus Special Selection, Far Niente, Jordan, Silver Oak, Chateau Montelena — all present and accounted for. The Rhône and Domaine Drouhin Oregon selections suggest whoever curates this list isn't just coast-hugging, though adventurous drinkers wanting natural wine or left-field producers will find slim pickings. At 400–600 labels, the depth is real, but the vision skews classic and collector-friendly rather than exploratory.
Fifteen to twenty-five pours by the glass is a generous program for a mountain resort, and at $18–$45 a pour, the ceiling is high but so is the quality floor. Expect the glass list to mirror the bottle list's classics-forward ethos — this is not the place to find a skin-contact Slovenian orange wine by the glass, and that's fine. Rotation appears limited, but what's there is well-chosen and properly served.
Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon — $60
Jordan sits at the approachable end of the bottle list and consistently punches above its price point — structured, polished Sonoma Cab that doesn't make you feel like you're settling just because you're not dropping $200.
Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir
In a room full of Napa Cab hunters and Burgundy trophy seekers, Drouhin Oregon gets overlooked. It shouldn't — it's one of the most serious Pinot Noir producers in the Pacific Northwest, with genuine Burgundian DNA, and it won't vaporize your wallet the way the French originals will.
Caymus Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus Special Selection is a perfectly fine wine, but at a resort with 4x markup potential it becomes an expensive comfort blanket. It's the wine people order when they recognize the name, not because it's the best value in the room — and at this address, you can do better for the money.
Chateau Montelena Chardonnay + Pan-seared scallops
Montelena's Chardonnay is restrained and mineral where other California whites go buttery and broad — that tension cuts right through the sweetness of seared scallops without steamrolling the dish. It's the kind of pairing the sommelier here will probably suggest anyway, and they'll be right.
🔥 The Bottom Line
Splendido is the rare mountain resort where the wine list actually justifies the altitude premium — deep, classically curated, and properly staffed. The markups are steep (this is Beaver Creek, not Boulder), but if you're already spending $50 on an entrée next to a fireplace with a piano player, you're not here for deals — and this list will absolutely deliver.
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Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Vail Village · Vail · Cocktail Lounge with Upscale Bar Bites
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Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Lodge at Vail / Vail Village · Vail · Upscale Steakhouse & Classic American
Elway's Vail is a reliable steakhouse wine list doing exactly what it was designed to do: keep resort guests happy with names they recognize at prices that sting but don't shock. If you're after exploration, skip it — but if you want a solid California Cab with your prime ribeye after a day on the mountain, it gets the job done.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
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Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Vail Village · Vail · Seafood and Steak
Montauk is a reliable stop for wine in Vail Village — it won't blow your mind or your budget in a good way, but it won't embarrass you either. Send a friend here knowing they'll drink fine; just don't expect them to come back with a story about the wine.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Beaver Creek Plaza · Vail · Contemporary American
Golden Eagle Inn is the kind of reliable mountain wine list that won't embarrass you on a date or a client dinner, but it'll charge you for the altitude at every turn. The Brunello and the Bouchard Beaune are genuine bright spots — find those, skip the Veuve, and you'll have a good night.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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