The Monarch

The wine list at The Monarch lands like a flex — in the best way. Four to six hundred selections deep, anchored by California cult wines and serious Burgundy, this is a list that means business. White tablecloths, a dedicated sommelier, and a Best of Award of Excellence since 2019 all signal that the wine program here is not an afterthought.

Sommelier Ryan Brown has built a list that skews hard toward the power regions: California, Burgundy, and Italy. On the California side, you're looking at Harlan Estate, Screaming Eagle, Opus One, and Caymus Special Selection — the steakhouse hall of fame, yes, but executed with real depth rather than just name-dropping. Burgundy gets serious treatment with Domaine de la Romanée-Conti anchoring the prestige end and Louis Jadot and Joseph Drouhin providing more approachable entry points into Gevrey-Chambertin and Chambolle-Musigny. Italy punches above its weight with Sassicaia, Gaja, and Giacomo Conterno representing Barolo at its finest. The gaps are minor — if you're hunting obscure natural wine or deep Southern Hemisphere selections, look elsewhere — but for the classic steakhouse power grid, this list is hard to beat.

With 20 to 35 options by the glass, the program is generous for a restaurant at this price point. Expect rotating access to producers like Jordan and Silver Oak by the pour — solid, food-friendly choices that work hard against a dry-aged ribeye. We'd love to see more Burgundy representation by the glass, but in Aspen, the bottle orders tend to do the heavy lifting.