Nightlife Glam Meets Crowd-Pleasing Pours
New York · Japanese, Thai
Updated June 2026
Reviewed April 24, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Tao’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walk into Tao and the wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a room this loud and this lit — heavy hitters designed for tables dropping $500 on bottle service, not for the person quietly trying to find something interesting. It's celebratory, it's safe, and it leans hard into names everyone already knows. There's nothing wrong with it, but there's nothing that surprises you either.
The list clocks in somewhere between 150 and 250 bottles, with California and France doing most of the heavy lifting — which tracks with the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence they picked up in 2024. You'll find the usual suspects: Caymus and Jordan for the Cab crowd, Stag's Leap for the person who wants to sound knowledgeable at the table, and Opus One for whoever's celebrating something expensive. Louis Jadot covers the Burgundy base without going anywhere particularly deep, and Champagne is well-represented with Veuve Clicquot and Moët anchoring the bubbly section. What's missing is any real adventurousness — no interesting Rhône producers, no Italian depth, no natural wine detour. This is a list built for recognition, not discovery.
The by-the-glass program runs 12 to 20 options in the $14–$22 range, which is reasonable for New York but doesn't give you much to get excited about. Expect the same recognizable-name philosophy that drives the bottle list — reliable, crowd-tested, rotated rarely. If you're in a group where half the table wants wine and half wants cocktails, this gets the job done.
Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon — $XX (bottle)
Jordan consistently punches above its price in restaurant settings — it's polished, accessible, and holds its own next to the Peking Duck without requiring you to drop Opus One money. In a room where bottles escalate fast, this is the smart order.
Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc
It gets overlooked at a place like this because everyone's eyeing the big reds, but Cloudy Bay's brightness and herbal cut is genuinely great against the Crispy Rice with Spicy Tuna. Most people at Tao aren't ordering it — they should be.
Opus One
Opus One is a great wine, but at a high-energy nightclub-adjacent restaurant, you're paying a significant premium for the label flex, not the experience. The food here isn't built for a bottle at this price point, and the environment doesn't do it justice.
Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc + Tao Seabass
The seabass is rich and delicate at the same time — Cloudy Bay's citrus-driven acidity cuts right through it without overwhelming the fish. It's the kind of pairing that works so cleanly it almost feels unfair.
The Bottom Line
Tao is not a wine destination, but it's not trying to be — it's a scene, and the list services that scene competently. If someone else is picking the restaurant, you can drink well here; just order smart and don't let the bottle service energy talk you into Opus One with your satay skewers.
SoHo · New York · Italian
A long bottle list with Italian, Burgundy and Champagne sections, fronted by a 22-wine glass page. For a glass, try the Skerk Orange Wine from Friuli at 25/95, and for a bottle on a lighter budget, the Volpaia Vermentino at 60; upstairs in the café, the labeled list pours Palistorti di Valgiano's orange Tuscan blend at Glass $22. Confirm prices before you order, because the site's Upstairs Café dinner menu and the beverage PDF do not match. This unrated guide covers the posted wine lists, not service, storage or markups.
Midtown East · New York · American, French
A Park Avenue restaurant whose posted wine list is a 21-wine glass list. Start with the $18 Leitz Riesling or the $19 Ogier Saint-Joseph. No bottle list is posted online, so ask the restaurant what is available by the bottle. This unrated guide covers the posted glass list, not service, storage or markups.
Hudson Yards · New York · American, Seasonal
A hotel restaurant whose list opens with a 13-pour glass page and then moves through Champagne, Burgundy, Austria and other regions. Start with the $29 Prager Grüner Veltliner or the $24 Do Ferreiro Albariño by the glass alongside the chilled oysters, and confirm current pricing since the list is dated 09.30.26. This unrated guide covers the posted wine list, not service, storage or markups.
East Village · New York · Southern French, Wine Bar
A glass-only list of 15 Central and Eastern European pours from $18 to $26, with an orange wine section of five. Start with the Gal Tibor Egri Bikavér Superior at $18 or the Kapistoni Tavkveri at $23, and confirm prices because the list is undated. This unrated guide covers the posted by-the-glass list, not service, storage or markups.
Financial District · New York · American
A short posted wine selection, with the full list available by email. Start with the $17 Crafted Cava or the $18 Côte de Brouilly by the glass, and email ahead if you want the full list. This unrated guide covers only the nine posted wines, not service, storage or markups.
East Village · New York · American Steakhouse
A compact glass list at a beef-focused restaurant: 11 pours from $19 to $39 across France, Italy, Germany and California. Start with the $24 Domaine Perraud Chardonnay, or the $30 Signorello 'Edge' Cabernet if you're ordering steak, and confirm current pours because the page isn't dated. This unrated guide covers the posted glass list, not service, storage or markups.
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
List Variety
Markup
Glassware
Staff
Specials & Deals
Storage & Temp