Old-School Glamour Meets Four Seasons Wines
Surfside · Miami · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Updated September 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · February 20, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Surf Club Restaurant’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at this Four Seasons outpost feels designed for people expensing dinner—thick leather-bound book, Italian-heavy selections, and prices that assume you're not checking your bank account before ordering. It's the kind of place where the sommelier wears a tastevin and the Barolo section has more pages than most restaurants' entire lists.
The Italian focus makes sense given the cuisine, with strong representation from Piedmont, Tuscany, and Veneto. You'll find the expected Super Tuscans and Brunellos, plus a respectable showing of northern Italian whites that actually pair with seafood. The list plays it safe with recognizable producers—Antinori, Gaja, Allegrini—which means you're paying for names you know rather than discovering something new. There's a token California section and some French standards, but this is clearly an Italian wine program at heart.
By-the-glass offerings lean toward crowd-pleasers that won't scare off guests more focused on the ocean view than their wine. Expect a Pinot Grigio, a Chianti, maybe a Prosecco for toasting. The pours are likely generous given the Four Seasons service standards, but don't expect the list to rotate beyond seasonal tweaks.
Roero Arneis — $65
Northern Italian white that's food-friendly, properly stored, and won't bankrupt the table
Etna Rosso from Benanti
Volcanic Sicilian red that's more interesting than the obvious Tuscan picks
Tignanello
$300+ for a bottle you can find for $90 retail—peak resort markup
Gavi di Gavi + Branzino
Classic Ligurian white cuts through whole roasted fish without competing
The Bottom Line
The Surf Club delivers what you'd expect from a Four Seasons Italian restaurant: safe choices, proper service, and prices that reflect the zip code. Come for the scene, stay for the Barolo, but maybe expense it.
Miami · Miami · Mediterranean
Casa Neos earns its Wine Spectator nod with a focused, well-executed list guided by someone who clearly knows wine — just know the markups are Miami-level and plan accordingly. Send a friend here who wants a serious wine experience alongside serious Mediterranean food; they won't leave disappointed.
Solid Range
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Brickell · Miami · Mexican
Chateau ZZ's is the kind of place where the setting does half the work and the sommeliers do the other half — if you let them. The list may not be adventurous, but it's professionally managed, properly stored, and served in a room that makes even a straightforward Chardonnay feel like an event.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Miami · Miami · Steak house
Hereford Grill earned its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence on the back of a respectable, if predictable, California-focused cellar that does exactly one thing well: getting a serious Cab on the table next to a serious steak. If you're hunting for discovery or value, look elsewhere — but if you want a classic steakhouse wine experience with Venezuelan flair on the plate, this delivers.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Miami · Miami · Italian, Steakhouse
Sofia is a polished Italian-steakhouse with real ambition behind the wine list — the Italian producers are legit and the Wednesday half-price night is one of the better deals in Miami. Just go in knowing you're paying for the room as much as the wine, and order accordingly.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Proper
Miami · Miami · American
Michael's Genuine earned its Wine Spectator nod with a French-focused list that's more considered than most Miami restaurants bother to be. It's not a destination wine experience, but it's a genuinely reliable place to drink well while eating well — and in this city, that counts for a lot.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
South Beach · Miami · Asian
Lucky Cat earns its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence on the strength of solid French producers, even if the list plays it a bit safe for a restaurant this loud and bold. Send a friend here for Champagne and sashimi — just don't expect the wine program to keep up with the room's ambition.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Healdsburg · Italian
Ciao Bruto is running one of the smallest and most coherent wine lists in wine country, which is either audacious or brilliant — probably both. If you want a 200-label deep-dive, go somewhere else. If you want eight smart picks at prices that won't make you wince, this is the move in Healdsburg.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Geyserville · Healdsburg · Italian
Diavola earns its Wild Card badge because it's a wood-fired pizza joint that punches well above its weight on wine — sommelier on staff, regional focus, and a setting that practically demands you order a second glass. We can't give you the bottle-by-bottle breakdown until we get eyes on a current list, but the bones here are good enough to say: don't just order a beer and move on.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
· Healdsburg · Italian
Ca'Bianca is a genuinely lovely place to eat, and if the food lives up to its reputation for house-made pasta and classic Italian technique, a bottle of something from the list is absolutely worth ordering. We just can't tell you exactly which bottle to order yet — the wine program's specifics aren't publicly documented well enough for us to make a confident call. When in doubt, ask your server what's local and what they're excited about, and go from there.
Plays It Safe
Steep
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.
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