Noble Riot

"Grape geeks unite at this alleyway RiNo retreat, where the extensive selection is rife with natural, organic, and biodynamic small-production finds, each cooler than the last: Extra-brut Pinot Blanc Champagne or sparkling rosé of Nerello Mascalese from Sicily’s Mt. Etna? Georgian Khikhvi or Ligurian Pigato? How about a Mencía not from Spain but Columbia Gorge, Oregon, or a blend of Malbec and Pinot Noir from Colorado’s own West Elks AVA? The list literally goes on and on, and Noble Riot’s staff is well-versed in it all — while serving up tinned-fish boards and buckets of fried chicken to absorb every last drop." - Ruth Tobias

"Noble Riot opened in 2019 as a nerdy, funky wine bar. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it started serving fried chicken for people craving comfort, forming a combo meal that 'mixes classy with trashy,' as co-owner Troy Bowen puts it. Ordered by the bucket (which feeds two for $19 or four for $36), the juicy chicken is breaded in a gluten-free cornstarch and rice flour mix that’s unfailingly crunchy. Look out for specials, like buckets of Champagne and chicken for Valentine’s Day, and don’t sleep on the smashed fingerling potatoes. Accompany your bucket with whatever bottle the sommelier likes that day." - Eater Staff

"With one of the coolest wine lists in town, this RiNo bar is out to prove that fried chicken shows just as well alongside a bottle of, say, bubbly or rosé as a pitcher of beer. Sweet-spicy dipping sauce and potato salad accompany a bucket of four or eight pieces, which are brined in a mixture of salt, sugar, lemon, thyme, and peppercorns, then soaked in buttermilk overnight before they’re battered in a gluten-free blend of rice flour and cornstarch." - Lucy Beaugard, Paul Albani-Burgio, Ruth Tobias, Eater Staff

"Noble Riot is the first of its kind in a town that has been excruciatingly slow to acquire a taste for wine as a whole, never mind the sometimes nostril-shocking, palate-scrambling stuff poured here. If ever there were evidence that wine is finally having a moment in Denver, it’s the cool young things gathered here: Decked out in beanies and Vans, they’re hanging out as casually as if they were meeting for an espresso . What is this, Europe? Each wine on the list promises a wildly different experience, be it old-vine Jacquère from the Savoie or a Moscatel-based orange wine from Chile. What they all have in common are the “natural” methods by which they’re produced, which could include Biodynamic farming, wild fermentation, amphora aging, and more. The somms here get it. They devote their time to education as well as service, explaining their recommendations and answering questions in detail in the most casual, nonjudgmental of ways." - Ruth Tobias

"RiNo’s newest lounge brings a wine bar from the owners of Nocturne Jazz Club. Noble Riot is now pouring vino from small farmers and winemakers who produce wines 'with character and honesty.'" - Susan Stapleton