Manolin
Pacific Northwest seafood meets old-world curiosity
Capitol Hill · Seattle · Seafood · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 11, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
The list at Manolin doesn't try to impress you with length — it tries to earn your trust with intention. Forty to sixty bottles, heavy on Europe, with a few Pacific Northwest anchors keeping things honest. It reads like someone actually thought about what goes with Dungeness crab and grilled whole fish, which is more than most seafood spots can say.
Selection Deep Dive
France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, and a couple of curveballs from Slovenia round out the old-world side, while Oregon and Washington hold it down locally. The list isn't deep by any standard, but the selections feel deliberate — you're not scrolling past twelve interchangeable California Chardonnays. Slovenia showing up at all in a Capitol Hill seafood spot is a small act of courage. The gaps are real — no Champagne to speak of, limited depth in any single region — but the overall curation punches above its bottle count.
By the Glass
Ten to fifteen options by the glass is a solid program for a restaurant this size, and it mirrors the bottle list's adventurous-but-focused personality. If the Slavcek Sivi Pinot Grigio is on pour, grab it — it's not the kind of glass you find at most places. Rotation doesn't appear to be a strong suit here, but what's on is generally worth drinking.
Slavcek Sivi Pinot Grigio, Slovenia 2015 — null
Slovenian skin-contact Pinot Grigio at a seafood restaurant is exactly the kind of low-key brilliant move that earns trust. It has the texture and grip to stand up to crab toast without steamrolling it, and you're almost certainly paying less than you would for something half as interesting. No price on record, but the value story here is about quality-to-obscurity ratio.
Antica Casa Scarpa Rossoscarpa, Monferrato Italy 2011
A 2011 red from Monferrato on a seafood-forward list is the kind of thing most tables walk right past — and shouldn't. Scarpa is a serious, old-school Piedmontese producer, and a wine with that kind of age on a by-the-glass or moderate-price list is a genuine find. Order it with the grilled whole fish and ignore the instinct to reach for white.
Without full pricing data, we're not in a position to call out a specific bottle as a rip-off. Based on what's available, the markup here reads as fair — so the skip-this concern is more categorical: don't default to whatever safe domestic white is listed first. That's the path to a forgettable glass.
Slavcek Sivi Pinot Grigio, Slovenia 2015 + Dungeness crab toast
The slight oxidative quality and saline edge of a Slovenian Sivi Pinot Grigio is almost purpose-built for sweet Dungeness crab. It doesn't compete — it amplifies. This is the pairing on the list that makes you feel like you figured something out.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Manolin's wine list is small, smart, and quietly adventurous — a Slovenian Pinot Grigio and a decade-old Scarpa red have no business being this easy to drink next to Puget Sound seafood, and yet here we are. Send a curious friend; just tell them to skip whatever they recognize and order what they don't.
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