Semi Tropic Wines — Restaurant in Costa Mesa

Do NOT come here if you are looking to drink good wines at a good price.

I had been hearing about this place for so long from my roommate who goes regularly and as someone who is studying for their level 3 certification, I always love checking out new wine spots. However, I was nothing but disappointed the minute I walked into their "cellar". Not only do they have a very limited selection of mostly blends, the bartender that was assisting us seemed to be making it up as she went. After asking her about some Italian wines, she made her recs and we went with one of her picks. Let me say that this bottle was absolutely terrible and none of the 3 people I was with where able to take more than a sip of this "rotten" wine. I knew I had to say something. After very calmly explaining to our server that no one could drink the wine and seeing how we could come to a solution, she very blatantly said there was nothing they could do. Even when I asked her to try the wine and taste why it was bad, she responded with "I know what that wine taste like." The only solution that she offered was that we could buy another bottle. Now after already spending $50 (with tip) on a waste of a bottle, last thing I was going to do was give them any more of my money. We left with our wine glasses full and knowing I would never come back.

In my opinion, it seems like they just over charge for cheap blends which I guess they get away with. Also, how can you pride yourself on only selling sustainable/organic wine when they do not even require certifications of sustainable/organic growing methods from these winemakers.

Overall, bad wine, bad service, and a...

Rating purely based on the bottle shop and wine service at the bar:

Wishing for more from Semi-Tropic. Far less of a boutique wine shop than a see and be seen semi-exclusive tipple tavern/pop up restaurant venue. But I feel all is not lost.

Ways of improving bottle shop:

Have employees taste wines and provide tasting notes! Its really impossible to browse if you don't know the wine varietals or regions

Import wine with appellations and or details on varietals if blends... lots and lots of "red blends" with no details about what is being blended! Imported from Italy to CA doesn't tell you much.

Organize wines by region or varietal or anything really.

And finally offer a 15-25 dollar shelf or two. There are many many natural wines that are excellent in this range and they are well priced for people stepping beyond TJs or Whole Foods. This would bring in more people ready to step out of their comfort zones.

Ways of improving wine bar:

Offer more than 4 wine choices by the glass. Its wild that a wine bar is that limited in their offerings.

Don't over chill wines. I had two of glasses of red that were so cold their taste was muted. There is a big difference between slightly chilled and ice cold.

Remove corkage fee. 10 bucks is a high premium if you are already spending 30-50 bucks on your bottle. People would be more inclined to buy a bottle to split amongst...

Super disappointed to be giving this place one star but after my experience I have to. I bought a bottle of wine after it was recommended by one of the staff members after I asked for a Lambrusco. I was super excited but when I opened it, the smell was awful, the taste was disgusting & the bottle was obviously rancid. I decided to call and ask for a refund or exchange and was told that natural wines are funky and I’m just not used to the taste but to bring it in so they can try it. I have been drinking natural wine for years and this tasted like the bottom of a trash bin, it was not funky, I am used to funky, this was rancid. I was told I can’t get a refund because if they gave everyone a refund who didn’t like their wine they would be out of business. She did not give me a new bottle or anything after I brought it in. She even tried it and tried to tell me it was fruity and fresh and tasted how it was supposed to which was a lie. I decided to buy another bottle from another place of the same wine. It tasted COMPLETELY different. Super disappointed because the natural wine community is so fun and nice and helpful and this manager ( I think her name was madison) was the opposite. Customer...