Adobe walls, Tignanello, and green chile
Taos · Taos · Regional · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 21, 2026
Wingman Metrics
You're in a candlelit adobe room in the high desert of New Mexico, and the wine list opens with Gaja Barbaresco. That disconnect — in the best possible way — is exactly what makes De La Tierra worth paying attention to. Wine Spectator has recognized this program since 2020, and it earns that badge without leaning on it too hard.
Patrick Hendricks has built a 150-plus bottle list that leans hard into California and Italy, and honestly, the combination works. On the California side you get the reliable crowd-pleasers — Caymus, Stag's Leap, Far Niente — but the Italian bench is where things get interesting, with Antinori Tignanello, Gaja Barbaresco, and Frescobaldi's Brunello di Montalcino all showing up. Opus One anchors the splurge tier if you're celebrating something. The list won't shock a seasoned collector, but for Taos, New Mexico, this is a genuinely serious effort — and it matches the kitchen's ambition with locally sourced elk and lamb.
Twelve to twenty pours by the glass is a strong number for a resort restaurant at this altitude, and the program appears to rotate with the list's California-Italy axis in mind. We'd expect to find Stag's Leap or a Far Niente adjacent pour in the mix on any given night. The range gives you legitimate options without forcing you into a bottle commitment.
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon — $90
Stag's Leap Cab is a known quantity — structured, reliable, with enough Napa credibility to feel like a treat without crossing into Opus One territory. In a market where markups can punish you on recognizable names, this one tends to sit at a more defensible price point and over-delivers on the glass.
Marchesi de Frescobaldi Brunello di Montalcino
Most tables at a resort restaurant in New Mexico are going to reach for the Caymus. Let them. The Frescobaldi Brunello is the sleeper on this list — serious Sangiovese from one of Tuscany's most established names, and it's a natural match for the kitchen's elk tenderloin and lamb. Most people skip it because Brunello sounds intimidating. It isn't. Drink it.
Opus One
Opus One is never a bad wine, but it is almost always a bad value at a restaurant. It carries enormous brand recognition, which means it carries enormous markup. You're paying for the name here, not a hidden discovery — and the Tignanello or Gaja will give you more to talk about at a fraction of the flex.
Antinori Tignanello + Elk Tenderloin
Tignanello is a Sangiovese-Cabernet blend with backbone and savory depth — exactly what you want next to a lean, mineral-forward game meat like elk. The wine's structure holds up to the richness of the tenderloin without steamrolling the kitchen's Southwestern seasoning. This is the pairing that makes the meal feel intentional.
🎲 The Bottom Line
De La Tierra is a genuine wild card — a resort restaurant in the New Mexico high desert that's quietly running a California-Italian wine program worth taking seriously. Come for the elk, stay for the Tignanello, and let Patrick point you toward something you wouldn't have ordered on your own.
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