Horizons Modern Kitchen + Wine Bar
Finger Lakes views, serious wine, real surprises
Fairport · Fairport · American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 18, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
You're on top of the highest point in Monroe County, looking out at rolling Finger Lakes hills and the Rochester skyline, and somehow the wine list keeps pace with the scenery. This isn't a hotel bar coasting on the view — the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence since 2023 tells you something real is happening here. Two named sommeliers on staff is not a thing most suburban New York restaurants can say.
Selection Deep Dive
The 100-150 bottle list covers California, France, Italy, and New York with enough conviction to justify the range. You've got Kistler Chardonnay and Jordan Cab holding down the California end, Antinori Tignanello pulling serious weight on the Italian side, and Louis Jadot keeping France honest. The real sleeper move is the Finger Lakes representation — Scarbrough Wine Co. and Red Newt Cellars sitting alongside those bigger names signals that someone here actually gives a damn about what's growing 30 miles away. Gaps exist — the list doesn't go especially deep into Burgundy or Rhône — but for Fairport, New York, this is genuinely impressive.
By the Glass
Twenty to thirty pours by the glass is an ambitious program for this market, and the $12–$18 price window is honest for the quality level on offer. We'd expect the Finger Lakes options to anchor the local section, with California and France filling out the rest — a solid daily rotation without a lot of adventure, but well-curated. If the sommeliers are steering the BTG program, there's a good chance what's open is fresh and worth drinking.
Red Newt Cellars Finger Lakes Riesling — $12
Finger Lakes Riesling at a restaurant with a real wine program and panoramic views of the same hills the grapes grow on? That's not just good value, that's the whole experience in a glass. Red Newt makes honest, food-friendly Riesling and you're not going to find it cheaper anywhere with this kind of ambiance.
Scarbrough Wine Co.
Most people at this table are ordering Caymus without looking up. Don't be that person. Scarbrough is a small Finger Lakes producer that most diners outside the region haven't encountered — and here it is, sitting right on the list of a restaurant that could've taken the easy route and ignored local entirely. Order it, ask Carrie or Alise about it, and feel good about your choices.
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus is fine. It's also on every steakhouse list in America at a markup that reflects the name recognition more than what's in the bottle. When there's Kistler, Jordan, and Tignanello on the same list — not to mention genuinely interesting local producers — reaching for Caymus is leaving something better on the table.
Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir + Pan-seared duck breast
Duck wants something with enough fruit to match the richness but enough acidity and earth to cut through the fat. Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir hits exactly that mark — Old World discipline, New World fruit, and the kind of structure that makes a proper duck dish sing.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Horizons earns its Wild Card badge by being genuinely better than it has any right to be for its zip code — two sommeliers, Finger Lakes pride, and a list that can keep up with a killer view. Send your wine-curious friends here and let them be surprised.
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