The Chanler at Cliff Walk

The wine list at The Chanler arrives the way everything else does here — with intention and a certain amount of self-awareness about the setting. Ocean views, a Gilded Age mansion, and a list that leans hard into Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Napa. It's not trying to surprise you, and it doesn't need to.

The 200-400 bottle list reads like a greatest hits of the Old World and Napa establishment — Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet, Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin, Opus One, Stag's Leap Cask 23, Caymus Special Selection. These are names that move bottles in hotel dining rooms and they're executed without apology. What's missing is anything from the Southern Hemisphere, skin-contact wines, or any real exploration outside the prestige-label comfort zone. The Rhône Valley and Champagne round things out, which is appreciated, but don't come here expecting discovery.

With 12-20 by-the-glass options, there's enough range to navigate the meal without committing to a bottle — useful if you're doing the tasting menu. We'd expect a decent Champagne or Crémant by the glass given the setting, and likely a Burgundy white and something from Napa red-wise. What we don't know is how frequently those pours rotate, and given the 'Set & Forget' specials program, our hunch is the list doesn't move fast.