Pining for wine in San Diego: The Farmers Insurance Open, Torrey Pines, January 24-27, 2024
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San Diego is a fabulous destination for wine as is the case with just about everything else you can do there. Within a half-hour of Torrey Pines, not accounting for any tournament-related traffic, you have an overload of great-sounding options. Most markets I feel like I can get a pretty good perspective from my desk in NJ. In San Diego I’m pretty sure I left some shots out on the course so I’m already looking forward to a revision next year if not sooner.
Restaurants
We’re going to break from our usual practice and start with a no-see-um, simply because Addison is the only three-star Michelin restaurant we’ve covered so far. It’s hard to say we covered it because the website is totally minimalist. I guess with that kind of acclaim, you don’t have to sell yourself a whole lot. The Wine Spectator says they have 2600 selections and 10000 bottles in inventory. I’m sure you can find what you want if you can afford it.
Whatever is on hand at Addison, it’s hard to imagine it’s light-years better than the profoundly cosmopolitan list at Stake Chophouse and Bar. The 60-page list is a veritable United Nations of Wine, including representation from China and England. Prices run high (we wince any time we see Opus over $1000), but in fairness the list begins with a nice cross-section of Sommelier Selections under $100 so you’re not necessarily going to get your pocket picked. The plethora of full-bodied reds ensures you can put your steak (sic) in the ground here.
Marine Room has an outstanding list that “climbs the ladder” nicely, meaning they generally give you the opportunity to choose wines from the same region at ascending price points. In most parts of the world the selection is relatively small but well-chosen. However, once you get to California cabs all bets are off. In addition to a hefty list of mid-range offerings, there are stunning verticals of a half dozen or so cult classics, with a special nod to Harlan. They certainly aren’t inexpensive in absolute terms, but these gems are priced right around retail, as if such a thing existed for Harlan.
Market Restaurant and Bar in Del Mar has a strong list much in the mold of Marine Room but without the insane verticals. Prices are very fair for the most part and there are quite a few nice wines under $75 if you’re saving up for an assault on Addison.
I really wanted to get solidly behind the program at WineSellar and Brasserie, which appears to be a one-stop-shop for wine lovers, combining a retail store, brasserie, tastings, education, tours and more., all presided over by a decorated Master of Wine. Mark-ups are described as retail, not restaurant, which would lead to some of the best pricing anywhere if true. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really verify it because the website and online wine store are a chaotic joke.
Solare gets a nod for its mostly friendly pricing and varied selection of Italian reds. You can go all the way from Schiava to Masseto here. It also gets a SwigCoach award for website landing page where patrons of all stripes appear to be either having the most fun or waiting to be discovered by a casting director.
The Fishery is a vertically integrated piscine powerhouse, combining a wholesale fish distributor, market and restaurant. I’ll assume the fish is fresh, and the wine list is too. It’s not particularly big but it’s carefully stocked with fish-friendly wine from all over. There’s a whole lotta love spilling out of the pages of the wine list and this would be a great place to bring your curiosity and sense of adventure.
Mille Fleurs in Rancho Santa Fe is a no-see-um. They claim to have 700 selections from all over the world so probably a safe bet if you can handle the $175 prix fixe menu.
Island Prime removed their full list from the web at some point in the last year. Here’s what I said during my last visit, but buyer beware: There are enough “eclectic” whites and “unique” reds to satisfy most curious drinkers, while the New World cab and Bordeaux options touch all the bases including about a 15-bottle vertical/horizontal of Bond.
Same story at Juniper and Ivy. Last year we found a compact list that had no prices, so we were off to a bit of a weird start anyway. We don’t know why they got stage fright because it looked like one of those relatively rare lists where you can tell some love and curation has gone into assembling a mix of diverse, artisanal labels. I can’t in good conscience regard it as a good sign that they don’t show it any more.
Retail
While you think they’d move together, it doesn’t necessarily follow that strong wine restaurants predict the presence of good retail outlets for wine in a given city. Maybe people don’t like to drink good wine at home or don’t have room for storage, or distribution is complicated or who knows. I had to look hard to find bona fide top quality wine stores with an online prescence:
Bird Rock Fine Wine in La Jolla has outstanding selections up and down the QPR continuum. Discerning drinkers can find some insane values vs. the market I will keep to myself for now. The no-see-um list at WineSellar described above may be good but there’s no way to know.
Vino Carta has sommelier-style sensibilities in its eclectic and exciting offers, and it now appears to be attached to a restaurant/wine bar. Claims to have more than 400 wines and not all are visible on the site. This one is a no brainer too.
