The Alden

The Alden is a Michelin Guide Recommended restaurant in Chamblee run by chef Jared Alden Hucks, who trained at Noma in Copenhagen and cooked across Spain, Thailand, and Australia before coming home to build one of metro Atlanta's most thoughtful dining experiences. The wine program centers on a $95 pairing that accompanies the $175 seven-course tasting menu. Current pairings: Quincy Domaine de Trotereau Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire with red wine poached pear, Villa Creek Farmhouse Red from Paso Robles with pork belly, Filipa Pato DNMC Dinamica Branco from Bairrada Portugal with winter orecchiette, Krasno Maceration from Brda Slovenia with Balinese red snapper, Chateau Tour de Gilet Bordeaux Superieur with Mishima Reserve wagyu, Viette Moscato d'Asti with Thai green tea custard, and Kopke 20-Year Tawny Port with mint chocolate cake.

The a la carte wine list spans Old and New World vineyards with a focus on regions most diners have never heard of. Portuguese whites. Slovenian orange wines. Loire Valley gems alongside California and Bordeaux. Corkage is $35 per 750ml, limit two bottles. The wine pairing is where the real action is: a sommelier matching seven courses with bottles from regions that don't appear on any other wine list in Atlanta. This is not a traditional restaurant wine program. It is a chef-driven global exploration that happens to involve wine, and it works. Wednesday through Sunday, dinner only.