Wine Down Tuesday Can't Save This List
The Market Place · Irvine · American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed June 22, 2026
Wingman Metrics
Pull up the wine list at BJ's and you'll feel like you're scrolling the end cap at a Total Wine. The usual suspects are all here — Dark Horse, Apothic, Ecco Domani — and nothing is going to surprise you. This is a beer chain that sells wine because it has to, not because anyone in this building is particularly excited about it.
The list leans hard on California value brands and a handful of international crowd-pleasers, which is exactly what you'd expect from a corporate program built to offend no one. There's no regional depth, no interesting producers, and no sign that anyone curated this with anything more than a distributor's sales sheet. Italy shows up via Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio, which is about as adventurous as the list gets. If you came here hoping to find something from Paso Robles, the Rhône, or really anywhere with a story worth telling, you're going to be disappointed.
The by-the-glass program runs roughly 15–20 options, which sounds generous until you realize it's essentially the same labels in different formats. Pricing sits in the $7–$15 range on a normal night, which is reasonable for what you're getting. The real move is Wine Down Tuesday, when glass pours go half-price — at that point, a $7–$8 pour becomes genuinely hard to argue with.
Hess Select Chardonnay — $10
This one actually retails for more than BJ's charges on their takeout/delivery program, which means you're technically getting it below cost. It's a step above the Dark Horse tier — real fruit, a little structure — and at this price point it's the most honest pour on the list.
Hess Select Chardonnay
Most people reaching for white wine here are going to default to the Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio out of habit, but the Hess Select is the better bottle. Hess has actual estate vineyards in Napa and Monterey, and the Select tier punches above the grocery-store competition it's sitting next to on this list.
Apothic Red Winemaker's Blend
Apothic Red is built for people who want their wine to taste like a dessert — it's sweet, soft, and engineered for mass appeal. At $10 the markup is nearly nothing, so at least you're not getting ripped off, but life is short and there's a Hess Select on the same list.
Dark Horse Cabernet Sauvignon + Deep dish pizza
Dark Horse Cab is ripe, fruit-forward, and has enough body to hold up against the cheese and tomato weight of BJ's deep dish. It's not a sophisticated pairing — but neither is the setting, and that's fine. Sometimes you just want pizza and red wine and a big TV.
Tuesday — Wine Down Tuesday offers half-price wines by the glass and discounts on select bottles. Offers can vary by location and are subject to change; BJ's does not publish a specific list of included wines for this location.
❌ The Bottom Line
BJ's wine program exists to check a box, and it does that adequately — especially on Tuesday when the prices get cut in half. Come here for the Pizookie and the craft beers; treat the wine list as a backup option, not a destination.
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.