Burgers and Biutiful in Montana's Backyard
Rattlesnake · Missoula · Cafe / Neighborhood Eatery · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 13, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Patio at Rattlesnake Market’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
You're at a neighborhood market patio in Missoula, ordering a burger, and somehow there's an Illahe Viognier and a Paco & Lola Albariño on the list. That's not what we expected, and we mean that as a compliment. The prices are honest — nobody's getting gouged here.
Nineteen labels isn't deep, but whoever put this list together was paying attention. The Pacific Northwest shows up strong with L'Ecole, Seven Hills, and Roco representing Washington and Oregon with genuine credibility. Italy and Spain get a seat at the table too — the Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre and the Paco & Lola Albariño are real picks, not tourist-trap imports. California fills out the middle with Decoy and Round Pond handling crowd-pleaser duty without embarrassing anyone. The gaps are real — no Pinot Noir to speak of, and the red side of the list is noticeably thinner — but for a casual patio market, this is punching well above its weight class.
Eight by-the-glass options running $11–$14 is a solid spread for this kind of spot. The range covers white, rosé, and red without leaning too heavily on any one category. No obvious rotation program visible, which means what's on the menu is what's on the menu — but at these prices, it's hard to complain too loudly.
Seven Hills Sauvignon Blanc — $11/glass, $44/bottle
Seven Hills is a respected Walla Walla producer, and getting a glass for $11 at a neighborhood patio is genuinely fair. Crisp, food-friendly, and won't feel out of place next to a burger or a Reuben.
Illahe Viognier
Most people at a burger joint are going to reach for the Chardonnay or the Malbec. Don't. Illahe is a solid Willamette Valley producer and Viognier is underordered everywhere — floral, a little stone fruit, and genuinely interesting in a way that Decoy isn't.
Decoy Chardonnay
At $48 a bottle, you're paying patio markup on a wine you can grab at any grocery store for under $20. It's not bad wine, it's just not a reason to be here when the Roco Gravel Road Chardonnay is sitting right next to it on the same list.
Maal Biutiful Malbec + Rattlesnake Burger
A big, juicy Mendoza Malbec against a proper beef burger is not a complicated equation — it just works. The fruit weight in the Biutiful holds up to the fat and char without getting lost, and it keeps the whole thing feeling a little more intentional than your average patio beer order.
🎲 The Bottom Line
This is a taco-stand-with-great-wine situation, Montana edition — a neighborhood market with no pretensions and a wine list that quietly outperforms its setting. Send your friends here, order the burger, and don't sleep on the Albariño.
South Missoula · Missoula · American / Chain
Applebee's Missoula isn't a destination for wine — it's a destination for Boneless Wings and a cold domestic beer, and there's zero shame in that. If wine is a priority, order a cocktail and save the bottle for somewhere that cares.
Grocery Store
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Missoula · Breakfast and Diner-Style American
The Shack is worth visiting for the food and the Missoula nostalgia — but the wine list is two bottles deep and priced like it knows you have no other options. Order coffee, order juice, order whatever they're putting in the Vodka Fettuccine, and save the wine drinking for somewhere that's actually trying.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Missoula · New American / Global
Red Bird is the best wine option in Missoula by a comfortable margin, and the curation is genuinely impressive for its size and location. The markups are uneven enough to require some navigation, but if you stick to the Cristom and the Italian picks, you'll drink well without feeling robbed.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Missoula · French / European
The Pearl Café is doing something genuinely unusual — running a thoughtful, fairly priced wine program in a mountain city where most restaurants would coast on a generic list and nobody would complain. Send your wine-curious friends here without apology; just steer them away from the Ste. Michelle.
Solid Range
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Missoula · Sushi, Japanese
SakeTome is a Wild Card: a lively downtown sushi spot with a mostly safe wine list that hides genuine Oregon ambition behind a wall of crowd-pleasers. Come for the rolls, order the Meiomi by the glass or splurge on Walter Scott if it's available — just skip the Priorat.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
South Higgins · Missoula · Italian
Ciao Mambo isn't a destination wine list, but it's honest, fairly priced, and doesn't embarrass itself — which puts it ahead of most Italian spots its size. Send a friend here for dinner and point them toward the Planeta or the Torrontés; they'll thank you.
Plays It Safe
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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