U.S focused wine list

[edmundcarver]

Ok - bear with me on this, this is quite demanding: I have recently moved here from London, and I am trying to find a decent, modestly priced restaurant with a wine list that features a really good range of U.S produced wines. I am thinking of a neighborhood type place, not too fancy but somewhere that has put some thought into their wine list.

I have been here a few months now and I am surprised that many restaurant wine lists have a great selection of wines from all over Europe but the section dealing with U.S wines is often subordinate to this, in terms of quantity of wines and variety of different regions / grapes.

There are so many fantastic U.S wines, and the selection available to us in the U.K is generally limited, so it is my aim drink U.S as much as possible.

I am living in the downtown area but would love to hear any suggestions wherever they are.

Thanks!

[Alex]

Edmund, which city is "here"?

[edmundcarver]

Sorry New York

[Steve R.]

Henry's End in Brooklyn Heights. It's 2 minutes from Manhattan, at the end of Henry St, 1st stop into Brooklyn on the 2 & 3 trains (Clark St station).... very easy to get to, you can even walk over the Brooklyn Bridge to it.

At any rate, it's exclusively a US wine list, with hundreds of bottles, well chosen, from very moderate ($25) to high end (several hundred $). The restaurant itself is well above average, with creative American fare at decent prices. We spend about $50/person for dinner before wine, tax and tip.

I think this is just what you're looking for. We live in this neighborhood and go there very regularly. Let me know if you need any other info.

[Sneakeater]

Just to pile on, I think the Henry's End wine list is one of the hidden gems of the New York food scene. It really IS just what you're looking for.

[LPShanet]

Just to pile on, I think the Henry's End wine list is one of the hidden gems of the New York food scene. It really IS just what you're looking for.

To pile on further, the menu at Henry's End is also pretty special, in that it's very focused on game. So there's lots of interesting stuff to go with the wine.

Although the food may vary, here are two places that feature all-American wine lists: Buttermilk Channel and Henry's (105th and B'way). Zoe in Soho used to as well, but closed.

Lastly, you might want to check out some of the places with huge wine lists overall. Even though the percentage of American wines may not be high, the sheer size of the list means that places like Cru and Veritas have many American selections. And there are bargains to be had sometimes, as neither place was super flush due to the recession.

[Steve R.]

And, if you wind up at Buttermilk Channel, there's a dessert wine on their list that is great: Dashe Late Harvest Zin (I think '07). Very reasonable price as well.

[Fat Guy]

One way to get access to a big list that will be rich in American wines, while maintaining the price point and casualness of a neighborhood place, is to go to one of the restaurants that has both a fine-dining section and a more casual front/bar-type room. Gramercy Tavern's front room is the archetype for this. You get access to the whole restaurant's wine list but more casual, less expensive dining. Also the bar room at the Modern. I've heard Aureole now has a good casual room. The hotel-based restaurants are also promising in this regard, like Adour at the St. Regis -- you can sit at the little bar there and order from a list of a zillion wines. These places usually have their wine lists online, so you can do research.

[edmundcarver]

All these suggestions are great - I will be getting stuck into some American wine at these restaurants over the next few weeks. Henry's End in particular looks to be exactly the type of place/winelist I had in mind. Thanks!