Beer bar with wine that earns its keep
Downtown · Manchester · Irish pub / European · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 18, 2026
Wingman Metrics
The Wild Rover is, first and foremost, a beer place — and it doesn't pretend otherwise. The wine list is short, California-forward, and built around a tap wine system that prioritizes accessibility over ambition. But here's the thing: at these prices, it's hard to be mad about it.
Eight to sixteen wines, mostly poured from tap, and leaning hard on approachable California producers like Angeline and Spellbound. There's no Old World presence here, no regional exploration, and the list won't challenge anyone's assumptions about what an Irish pub serves. What it does do is cover the bases — a red, a white, a rosé, and some bubbles — without embarrassing itself or gouging you in the process.
The by-the-glass program is the whole program, really, with six to ten options all flowing from tap. Angeline Pinot Noir and Spellbound Petite Sirah anchor the reds, while white wines and a rosé round things out. Tap wine gets a bad rap, but freshness and consistency are genuine upsides when the pours are moving regularly in a busy pub.
Spellbound Petite Sirah — $12
You're paying less than retail for a glass of wine at a bar. That's not a typo. Spellbound's Petite Sirah is a big, dark, fruit-forward pour that holds its own, and at $12 a glass with a negative markup, it's the easiest call on the list.
Cowboys & Angels Rosé
Most people at the Rover are ordering Guinness, so the rosé split flies under the radar. But if you're looking for something light and sessionable while your friends work through their pints, this is a solid, no-fuss option that rarely gets a second look.
Angeline Pinot Noir
At $13 a glass, it's still a fair price — but Angeline Monterey Pinot Noir is a thin, high-volume wine that doesn't give you much to hold onto. With the Spellbound Petite Sirah sitting right next to it at $12 and delivering more presence, there's just no reason to land here.
Spellbound Petite Sirah + Soft Pretzels & Provolone Fondue
A wine this dense and dark needs something salty and rich to lean against, and the provolone fondue delivers exactly that. The fat in the cheese softens the tannins, the salt makes the fruit pop, and suddenly a $12 tap pour at an Irish pub is doing some real work.
✔️ The Bottom Line
The Wild Rover isn't where you go to geek out on wine — it's where you go to watch a match, eat a pretzel, and not get ripped off on a glass of something red. On that front, it genuinely delivers.
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Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Manchester · Manchester · Mexican
Margaritas Manchester is a fun night out, and the bar program clearly gets the attention. The wine list is not the reason to come here — order the cocktails, enjoy the room, and don't overthink the glass pours.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Come here for the burgers and maybe a beer — the wine list is an obligation, not an attraction. If wine matters to your night out, this isn't your spot.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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110 Grill Manchester is the wine equivalent of a reliable friend — not the most exciting person in the room, but they always show up and they never let you down. Send your friends here if they want a decent glass with dinner and zero stress; just don't send the Burgundy nerds.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Willow · Manchester · Mexican
Shorty's is a margarita bar that happens to have wine on the menu — and the wine knows it. Come for the frozen drinks and the fajitas; leave the wine list to collect dust.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South Willow · Manchester · Tex-Mex
Cactus Jack's is a fun place to eat Tex-Mex and throw back a margarita, and that's exactly the order of operations we'd recommend. The wine list is an afterthought dressed up as a menu section — don't send a friend here for wine unless the friend truly doesn't care about wine.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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