Live Music, Decent Pours, No Complaints
Downtown · Missoula · Bar · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 13, 2026
RagingWine reviewed The Top Hat Sidecar Bar’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
You're here for the bands, not the Burgundy — and the Top Hat knows it. The wine list is a single tight page of crowd-friendly bottles that covers the bases without any pretense. It fits the room: dark, loud, and fun.
Fourteen labels, fourteen by-the-glass options — meaning every bottle on the list pours by the glass, which is actually a smart move for a bar crowd. The list leans California-heavy with workhorses like Copper Ridge and Conundrum, but there are flickers of ambition: a Lan Rioja Crianza from Spain, a Bodega Benegas Juan Malbec from Argentina, and a La Quercia Montepulciano from Italy show someone made a small effort to go beyond the Napa default. Glaring gaps include anything from Burgundy, Germany, or the Pacific Northwest beyond a single Acrobat Pinot and a Heritage Cab — but this is a live-music bar in Missoula, not a bistro in the 11th arrondissement. The list does exactly what it needs to do.
Every bottle pours by the glass, which keeps options flexible and waste low — a practical win. Prices run $6 to $12 a glass, which is genuinely reasonable for a downtown bar in any city. Rotation appears static, so don't expect anything new next time you're in.
Lan Rioja Crianza — $11/glass
Tempranillo from Rioja with real structure and oak integration — this is a legitimate wine at a bar price. It punches well above what you'd expect to find at a live-music venue.
Bodega Benegas Juan Malbec
Most people at a bar reach for the Cab or the Pinot out of habit. This Argentine Malbec is the interesting pour on the list — richer and darker than most people expect, and easy to miss on a menu full of familiar names.
Copper Ridge Cabernet
It's fine the way a gas station granola bar is fine. The Lan Rioja is right there for roughly the same money and it's actually worth drinking.
Bieler Pere & Fils Rosé + Bar snacks or charcuterie
A Provence rosé is light enough to survive whatever's on the bar menu, dry enough to not feel silly, and cold enough to make a loud venue feel like the right place to be.
✔️ The Bottom Line
The Top Hat isn't trying to be a wine destination, and the wine list isn't pretending otherwise — but the prices are fair, a few solid picks hide in plain sight, and the Lan Rioja alone earns this place a pass. Come for the music, order better than the house Cab, and you'll be fine.
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
Downtown · Missoula · Bar
The Top Hat is a live-music venue first, and the wine list reflects that honestly — approachable, fairly priced, and wide enough to keep most people happy. You're not going for the wine, but you're not going to regret the Rioja either.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Island View Casino · Gulfport · Bar
This is not a destination for wine drinkers — it's a slot machine bar that happens to stock one bubbly. Come for the Sunday bottle deal at Carter Green Steakhouse next door, not for anything happening at the bar itself.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
MIA
Occasional
Acceptable
Downtown Fargo · Fargo · Bar
The Library is a solid neighborhood bar that happens to serve wine — nothing more, nothing less. If you're in Downtown Fargo and want a glass of something recognizable in a comfortable room, you'll leave fine; just stick to the Duckhorn and skip the Kim Crawford at that markup.
Crowd Pleasers
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.