Solid pours, no fuss, eat your fish
Midtown · Kingston · Japanese / Sushi · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 24, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Sushi Makio’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Take Vibe Match and we’ll tell you what to order here.
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Sushi Makio is short, unpretentious, and exactly what you'd expect from a neighborhood sushi spot that knows its lane. There's no natural wine rabbit hole here, no obsessive Burgundy curation — just a practical list that gets out of the way and lets the fish do the talking. That's not an insult; it's just the reality.
The list leans heavily on California and Italian crowd-pleasers — Franciscan Cab, Cline Zinfandel, Caposaldo Pinot Grigio — the kind of bottles you've seen a hundred times but won't argue with. New Zealand gets a nod via Kono Sauvignon Blanc, which is actually a decent match for raw fish. The most interesting corner of the list is the Japanese wine section: Hakutsuru Plum Slim Wine, Choya Umeshu, and Choya Yuzu Wine are genuinely fun options that most sushi spots ignore entirely. Don't sleep on those.
Eight to twelve options by the glass in the $9–$14 range is a reasonable spread for a restaurant this size. The pricing is honest — you're not being gouged for a midweek tuna roll dinner. Rotation appears static, so don't expect anything new on your third visit.
Kono Sauvignon Blanc — $9–$14 by the glass
Crisp, grassy New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is one of the most food-friendly pours you can order with sushi. At this price point, it's a no-brainer — cuts through the richness of salmon and complements lighter rolls without competing with the fish.
Choya Yuzu Wine
Most people breeze past the Japanese wines and go straight for the Pinot Grigio. Don't. Choya's Yuzu Wine is tart, citrusy, and genuinely fun — it tastes like it was made to sit next to a plate of nigiri. Order it, be different, enjoy yourself.
Franciscan Cabernet Sauvignon
A big California Cab is just the wrong call at a sushi restaurant. Heavy oak and tannin fighting with delicate raw fish is nobody's good time. The wine isn't bad on its own terms, but ordering it here is like bringing a snowblower to the beach.
Natura Unoaked Chardonnay + Sashimi
Unoaked Chardonnay is one of the cleaner, brighter white wine styles you can order — no butter, no vanilla, just fresh fruit and acidity. That lightness lets clean sashimi flavors come through without the wine steamrolling everything on the plate.
✔️ The Bottom Line
Sushi Makio's wine list is modest but functional, with honest pricing and a smart nod to Japanese wine options that most spots never bother with. We'd happily send a friend here for a low-key sushi night — just order the Yuzu Wine and leave the Cab alone.
Route 28/Thruway Corridor · Kingston · Steakhouse
This is a chain wine list doing exactly what chain wine lists do: minimum effort, maximum familiarity, corporate pricing. Order the steak, grab a beer, or spring for the Chateau Ste. Michelle if you need something in a glass.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Route 28/Thruway Corridor · Kingston · Chain American Grill
You're not coming to Ruby Tuesday Kingston for the wine, and the list knows it. But if you show up on a Wednesday and grab a half-price bottle with dinner, it's hard to complain too loudly.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Route 28 Corridor · Kingston · Italian
La Florentina isn't a wine destination — it's a neighborhood Italian with a wine list that knows its lane and stays in it. Come for the pizza, order the Chianti carafe, and don't overthink it.
Plays It Safe
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Lake Katrine/Kingston Periphery · Kingston · Italian
Reginato's food reputation is real and the kitchen clearly cares — the wine list does not return the favor. Order the pasta, drink the Chianti, and keep your expectations firmly earthbound.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Rondout Waterfront · Kingston · Italian
Savona's is a reliable neighborhood Italian with a wine list that mostly stays in its lane — nothing offensive, nothing thrilling, and markups that sting a little on the familiar names. Come on a Wednesday when the bottles are half price, order the Millbrook Tocai Friulano, and you'll have a genuinely good night on the Rondout waterfront.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Rondout Waterfront · Kingston · New American / Steak & Seafood
Ship to Shore is a reliable wine stop for a waterfront dinner — the list does the job, a few genuine gems are hiding in there, and the by-the-glass selection is more than adequate. Just watch the markup on the marquee bottles and order smart.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
North Melbourne · Melbourne · Japanese / Sushi
Makoto isn't trying to be a wine bar and it knows it — the list is short, the labels are familiar, and the prices are genuinely kind. Send your friends here for sushi and tell them to order the Malbec by the bottle; they'll be fine.
Crowd Pleasers
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · New Haven · Japanese / Sushi
Kamakura Sushi is a solid neighborhood sushi spot and you should absolutely go — just order sake, beer, or a soft drink and leave the wine list alone. The wine program exists in name only, and no amount of goodwill toward the kitchen changes that.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Denton · Denton · Japanese / Sushi
J Sushi is a perfectly fine neighborhood sushi spot, but the wine list is an afterthought — steep markups on mass-market brands with no rotation and no apparent care. Stick to sake or a Japanese beer and save the wine drinking for somewhere that's actually trying.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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