Better Wine List Than Your Brunch Spot Deserves
Ballston · Arlington · Modern American, All-Day Breakfast · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 27, 2026
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Ted's Ballston, you expect a Bloody Mary and maybe a forgettable house Cab — not a list that includes Bassermann-Jordan Riesling and a Melville Estate Pinot Noir. It's a pleasant gut-check. Someone here actually thought about this.
Fourteen labels isn't deep, but the curation punches above the diner-format weight class. You've got a Leth Grüner Veltliner from Austria sitting next to a Maison Noir O.P.P. Pinot Noir and a Tolaini Al Passo Super Tuscan — that's a more interesting cross-section than most casual American spots twice its size. The Champagne tier features both Laurent-Perrier La Cuvée and Veuve Clicquot, which feels a bit auto-pilot, but it's there if someone's celebrating eggs Benedict. The main gap is depth: one wine per style means you're taking what you get, no alternatives.
Everything on the list pours by the glass, which is the right call for a spot where half the table might be on orange juice. Happy hour drops all glass pours to $7 Monday through Friday from 3 to 6:30 PM — at that price, the Bassermann-Jordan Riesling is almost unfair value. No obvious rotation program, so don't expect surprises week to week.
Bassermann-Jordan Riesling — $7 (happy hour)
Bassermann-Jordan is a historic Pfalz estate making serious Riesling. Getting this at $7 a glass during happy hour is the kind of deal that makes you order two. Even at full price it's a steal in this context.
Leth Grüner Veltliner
Most people at Ted's are reaching for the Chardonnay or the Malbec. The Leth Grüner is the smarter move — crisp, peppery, and built for food, it cuts through eggs and anything with hollandaise better than anything else on the list.
Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut
Veuve is fine, but it's the Champagne equivalent of ordering a Budweiser at a craft bar — widely available, heavily marked up everywhere it appears, and outclassed on value by the Laurent-Perrier right next to it. Save the splurge for somewhere with a real Champagne program.
Maison Noir 'O.P.P.' Pinot Noir + Meatloaf
O.P.P. is a bright, low-tannin Oregon Pinot that won't bulldoze a plate of comfort food. Ted's meatloaf is rich and saucy — the wine's fruit and acidity keep things from getting heavy, and you end up finishing both.
Monday–Friday — Happy hour wines by the glass at $7, available Monday through Friday from 3:00 PM to 6:30 PM at all Ted's Bulletin locations.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Ted's Bulletin isn't a wine destination, but it's quietly doing more than it needs to in a category most brunch spots ignore entirely. Show up at happy hour, order the Riesling, and recalibrate your expectations for the better.
Shirlington · Arlington · American Brasserie
Carlyle won't change your relationship with wine, but it won't ruin it either — and on Tuesday, when everything on the bottle list is half off, it briefly becomes one of the better deals in Shirlington. Come for the prime rib, order the Jordan, and call it a good night.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Westover · Arlington · Turkish and Mediterranean
Maya Bistro isn't a wine destination, but Monday half-price bottles and legitimately interesting Turkish pours make it a Wild Card worth knowing about. Come for the pide, stay for the Angora — just don't touch the Oyster Bay.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Ballston · Arlington · New England–inspired seafood & raw bar
Salt Line Ballston isn't trying to be a wine destination, but the list is smarter and more purposeful than most seafood spots in this price range. Send a friend here for oysters and Muscadet and they'll thank you.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
National Landing / Pentagon City · Arlington · Southern & Korean-influenced American
Succotash Prime's wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a polished upscale Southern spot in a hotel-adjacent dining corridor — safe, recognizable, and priced for expense accounts. We'd send a friend here for a reliable night out, not a wine destination.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
National Landing / Crystal City · Arlington · Modern Italian
Corso is a dependable Italian wine list in a neighborhood that could easily get away with doing much less — it doesn't dazzle, but it doesn't disappoint either. If the Wednesday half-price bottle rumor holds up when you call ahead, it might just tip into genuinely great value territory.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Clarendon · Arlington · Retail Wine & Takeout
Liberty To-Go is a genuine wild card — a tavern wine shop hybrid with a fortified wine section that would embarrass most dedicated wine bars, all priced without the usual Arlington markup. Come for the Barolo, stay for the Sherry flight you didn't know you needed.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.