Wine Spectator announced the winners of the 2023 restaurant awards last week, unveiling three winning restaurants in Central Oregon: Brickhouse Steakhouse and Bos Taurus in Bend and Brickhouse Steakhouse in Redmond.

The restaurants were chosen from all 50 U.S. states and more than 70 countries for the annual restaurant awards issue, according to a press release.

“This annual issue celebrates the places where wine is at the top of that conversation,” said Marvin R. Shanken, editor and publisher of Wine Spectator. “I’m pleased to congratulate all 3,505 restaurants for their dedication to wine and wine-loving diners.”

Brickhouse Steakhouse in Bend has received recognition by the publication since 2011, Redmond’s Brickhouse Steakhouse has been awarded since 2022 and Bos Taurus won its first award in 2023 with the Award of Excellence, the first tier in a three-tier program, followed by the Best of Award of Excellence and the Grand Award.

Brickhouse in Redmond is a recipient of the Award of Excellence and Bend’s Brickhouse is a recipient of the Best of Award of Excellence, which requires a selection of at least 350 wine bottles, said Brett Larson, wine director and general manager at Bos Taurus.

Driven by numbers

Larson, who is a level two sommelier, said after receiving the Award of Excellence, he is hungry for the next one.

“I’m super happy to get recognition because everything that the kitchen (at Bos Taurus) does every day is pretty incredible,” he said.

The biggest limitation for the steakhouse to compete in the awards was making room for all of the wine bottles. The restaurant is small by design, with 10 tables offering an intimate experience. Larson has a 50-square-foot office in which he stores 400 bottles of wine, in addition to other areas in the restaurant, he said.

“The parameters with Wine Spectator rewards are very much numbers-driven,” Larson said.

The lack of space meant the restaurant fell short of the Best of Award of Excellence category with 320 wine selections. Larson hopes to carve out additional storage space to expand the wine list in preparation for next year’s awards.

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Matching the culinary skills at Bos Taurus

The wine list at Bos Taurus features a Captain’s List with difficult-to-find and age-worthy wines, Larson said. Wines on the list include 2002 and 2004 champagne and a 2007 Harlan Estate bold red wine, introduced at the restaurant last week.

Another page of the wine list includes Eccentric Oddities, which Larson described as oddballs that don’t fit into specific regions or are composed of uncommon varietals.

Pull Quote

“The stuff that the kitchen does day in and day out is amazing. So being able to offer a wine that matches their cooking skills is where I see my focus.”

Larson views his role as accentuating the quality of food at Bos Taurus. Diners generally won’t see the same wines on the menu because the list is fluid and Larson often selects a bottle to match one of the restaurant’s running specials.

“The stuff that the kitchen does day in and day out is amazing. So being able to offer a wine that matches their cooking skills is where I see my focus,” he said.

Larson was first exposed to the craft in Texas “of all places,” he said. He grew up helping his uncle, who owned a vineyard and winery in the hill country of Austin. His uncle started the vineyard in the early ‘90s and Larson describes him as “one of the early pioneers of Texas wine.”

Larson subsequently worked in restaurants through grad school and earned his level two sommelier certification through The Court of Masters Sommeliers program in 2017.

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Restaurant awards

Wine Spectator’s Restaurant Awards issue was released July 11. Find more about the awards on Instagram @wsrestaurantawards, at the hashtag #WSRestaurantAward or online at winespectator.com.

There’s also Restaurant Awards, a free app for iPhone and iPad users allowing users to search restaurants that have received the awards.