Great Tequila, Forgotten Wine List
Downtown · Anchorage · Modern Mexican / Latin Fusion · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 21, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The wine list here feels like an afterthought — and honestly, it probably is. Tequila 61° is built around its namesake spirit, and the wine program reads like someone grabbed a distributor's top-ten bestsellers list and called it a day. If you came for wine, you may want to recalibrate.
The list runs somewhere between 10 and 20 bottles, leaning almost entirely on California supermarket staples — Meiomi, Apothic, Prophecy — with a nod to Argentina and Spain that never quite materializes into anything interesting. There's no Malbec with any real story behind it, no Rioja worth getting excited about, and no sense that anyone sat down and thought about what wines might actually complement Mexican food. The producers here are fine for a grocery run but feel lazy on a restaurant list where the food deserves better. Gaps are everywhere: no sparkling, no rosé, nothing that would make you lean across the table and say 'you have to try this.'
By-the-glass options clock in somewhere between four and eight pours, and based on the bottle list, expect Meiomi Pinot Noir and Prophecy Pinot Grigio to anchor the program. Rotation appears nonexistent — this is a set-it-and-forget-it glass menu that hasn't changed with the seasons or the menu.
Prophecy Pinot Grigio — $12
If you're drinking wine here at all, a crisp glass of Pinot Grigio next to a ceviche or fish taco is your best play. It's a known quantity, it's light, and it won't fight the food.
Meiomi Pinot Noir
Meiomi gets a lot of grief for being a crowd-pleaser, but alongside smoky, spiced taco fillings it actually works better than you'd expect. Most people at this table will be drinking tequila — so the bottle might just be yours.
Apothic Red
A sweet, jammy California blend marked up well beyond what it costs at any grocery store. The residual sugar that makes it easy-drinking at home makes it cloying alongside Latin flavors. Pass and order a mezcal instead.
Prophecy Pinot Grigio + Street-Style Tacos
The brightness and acidity in the Pinot Grigio cut through the richness of taco fillings and keep things lively between bites. It's not a profound pairing, but it's the right call on this list.
❌ The Bottom Line
Tequila 61° is a genuinely fun downtown Anchorage spot — but the wine list is not the reason to come. Order the tequila, drink the margaritas, and if someone at the table insists on wine, steer them toward the Pinot Grigio and move on.
Downtown · Anchorage · New American
The Marx Brothers Café is the kind of place that makes you reconsider your assumptions about where serious wine lives. In a historic Anchorage bungalow, they've built a list that would hold its own in San Francisco — and that earns every bit of the Wild Card badge.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown / G Street corridor · Anchorage · Wine Bar / Bistro
Crush earns its Wild Card badge not by being perfect, but by being genuinely surprising — a 600-bottle cellar and 40+ glass pours in Anchorage is an achievement worth acknowledging out loud. If you're passing through or living here, this is where you go when you actually care what's in your glass.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
Girdwood · Anchorage · Winery Restaurant / Taproom
Bear Creek Winery Loft earns its Wild Card badge honestly — it's not trying to be a serious wine destination and doesn't need to be. If you're in Girdwood and you skip this in favor of a hotel bar pour, you've made a mistake you'll regret when you're back home explaining why you didn't try the rhubarb wine made in Alaska.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Midtown · Anchorage · Brazilian Steakhouse (Churrascaria)
Texas de Brazil Anchorage is a reliable enough wine stop if you calibrate expectations to match the format — this is a chain steakhouse, not a wine destination, and the list behaves accordingly. Grab the Catena, eat a lot of picanha, and don't overthink it.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Midtown / Spenard · Anchorage · Mexican / Pub / Pizza
Bear Tooth Grill is a legitimately great spot for beer, margaritas, pizza, and a movie — the wine list is just a formality. Order a craft beer, skip the wine entirely, and you'll have a fantastic time.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Turnagain / West Anchorage · Anchorage · American gastropub
Rustic Goat isn't your destination for a wine-forward dinner, but it's a genuinely fair list for a neighborhood spot doing wood-fired food in Anchorage. Send your friends here for dinner — just temper expectations on the wine and you'll leave happy.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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