Gilded Age glamour, wine list to match
Newport · Providence · Fine Dining · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 19, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Chanler at Cliff Walk’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list at The Chanler arrives the way everything else does here — with intention and a certain amount of self-awareness about the setting. Ocean views, a Gilded Age mansion, and a list that leans hard into Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Napa. It's not trying to surprise you, and it doesn't need to.
The 200-400 bottle list reads like a greatest hits of the Old World and Napa establishment — Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet, Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin, Opus One, Stag's Leap Cask 23, Caymus Special Selection. These are names that move bottles in hotel dining rooms and they're executed without apology. What's missing is anything from the Southern Hemisphere, skin-contact wines, or any real exploration outside the prestige-label comfort zone. The Rhône Valley and Champagne round things out, which is appreciated, but don't come here expecting discovery.
With 12-20 by-the-glass options, there's enough range to navigate the meal without committing to a bottle — useful if you're doing the tasting menu. We'd expect a decent Champagne or Crémant by the glass given the setting, and likely a Burgundy white and something from Napa red-wise. What we don't know is how frequently those pours rotate, and given the 'Set & Forget' specials program, our hunch is the list doesn't move fast.
Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin — null
Pricing data wasn't available, but if you're going to spend money on this list, a village-level Gevrey from Jadot is where the quality-to-prestige ratio makes the most sense. It's a name serious enough to feel right in this room without tipping into the Cask 23 stratosphere.
Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet
Most tables at a place like this are reaching for red. Don't. Leflaive's Puligny is one of the benchmark whites in the world, and it's criminally overlooked when steak and lobster are on the table together — which they are here.
Caymus Vineyards Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus Special Selection is a fine wine, but it's also one of the most marked-up bottles in American restaurant dining. At a property like The Chanler, you're paying for the label twice — once for what Caymus charges and once for the zip code. The Stag's Leap Cask 23 is the better splurge if you're going Napa Cab.
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cask 23 + Dry-aged beef
Cask 23 is built for exactly this moment. The structure and dark fruit stand up to the intensity of dry-aged beef without either one overpowering the other. If you're going to spend on one bottle at The Chanler, this is the one that earns its place on the table.
The Bottom Line
The Chanler's wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a luxury Newport hotel — prestigious, safe, and priced accordingly. It won't blow your mind, but it will hold up its end of the bargain if you're celebrating something or just want to drink well without doing homework.
· Providence · Restaurant
Mare Rooftop is a great place to watch the sunset with a cold glass of Whispering Angel — and that's about the ceiling of its wine ambition. If you're here for the view and the vibe, lean into it; if you showed up hoping for a thoughtful wine experience, you're in the wrong place.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Providence · Italian (modern trattoria)
Sarto's wine list is a credible, Italy-focused program that earns its place in a serious Italian kitchen — just go in knowing the markups lean steep and the list doesn't reward wandering outside the boot. Order the Vermentino, eat the pasta, and you'll leave happy.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Federal Hill · Providence · Italian-American
Joe Marzilli's Old Canteen is a Providence legend for its food and its history, not its wine list — which reads like something assembled in 1994 and never reconsidered. Come for the veal cutlet and the nostalgia, but don't let the wine list talk you into spending $48 on a Kendall-Jackson.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Side · Providence · American Brasserie (French-Influenced)
Red Stripe isn't a wine destination, but it's not pretending to be one either. Fair prices on recognizable bottles in a lively room that actually makes you want to stay for another glass — that's a respectable thing to get right.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown Providence · Providence · Upscale American Steakhouse with Seafood
The Capital Grille Providence is a well-oiled machine with a wine program that earns more respect than most chains deserve — the depth is real, the staff knows the list, and the Generous Pour event is a legit reason to show up. The markups are steep and the soul is corporate, but if someone else is expensing dinner, you could do a lot worse.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
Downtown Providence · Providence · Seafood
Hemenway's is the rare seafood institution that earns its reputation on the wine side too — the sommelier presence is real, the French whites are well-chosen, and the list is built with actual intention. The markups are real and the BTG program could use more energy, but if you're eating raw bar in Providence, you could do a lot worse than starting with a glass of Fèvre Chablis here.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown / The Little Nell · Aspen · Fine Dining
The Little Nell's wine program is the real deal — one of the deepest cellars you'll find anywhere in the mountain West, staffed by people who actually know what they're talking about. The markups will sting and there's no bargain-hunter's night to soften the blow, but if you're eating here, you already knew what you signed up for.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Mount Joy / Greater Lancaster Region · Lancaster · Fine Dining
Cameron Estate Inn is a genuinely lovely place to have dinner, but the wine program is on autopilot — steep markups on recognizable, uninspiring labels with no corkage deal or local wine angle to redeem it. Order a cocktail or commit to the Moët, and spend your wine energy somewhere else.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Montecito · Santa Barbara · Fine Dining
The Stonehouse is not a wine list for everyone, and that's exactly the point — if you have even a passing interest in aged Madeira, rare Port, or dessert wines of serious pedigree, this place belongs on your list. Come for the experience, not the value.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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