Gabriele's Italian Steakhouse
Old-School Italian Muscle With Serious Bottle Depth
Westport · Westport · Italian, Steakhouse · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 11, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
The wine list at Gabriele's arrives feeling like the restaurant itself — confident, old-school, and dressed for the occasion. Italy dominates, as it should in a room built around veal chops and osso buco, and the French and California sections give it enough range to avoid feeling like a one-trick pony. This is a list that knows its audience and plays to it without apology.
Selection Deep Dive
The Italian spine is the real story here: Barolo from Piedmont, Brunello di Montalcino, Amarone della Valpolicella, and heavy-hitter Super Tuscans like Sassicaia and Ornellaia anchor the list with the kind of serious red wine firepower a proper Italian steakhouse needs. Burgundy Pinot Noir and Bordeaux red blends round out the French corner, while Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon handles the California contingent — a sensible nod to the steakhouse crowd. At 150-250 bottles, the list isn't encyclopedic, but it's curated with clear intent: bold reds that can stand up to a ribeye or a plate of hearty braised meat. The gaps show up in whites and lighter styles — if you're after a crisp Vermentino or something funky and natural, you're in the wrong room.
By the Glass
Twelve to twenty pours by the glass is a respectable spread for a Connecticut steakhouse, and the $12-$18 price range is honest if not exactly generous. The glass program likely mirrors the bottle list — Italian-forward, red-heavy — which is exactly what you want when you're working through a three-course Italian dinner.
Amarone della Valpolicella — $40 (by the glass range entry point on bottles)
Amarone is one of the most food-aggressive wines on the list — dense, dried-fruit intensity that earns its keep next to anything braised or slow-cooked. If the bottle pricing stays honest relative to retail, this is where you get the most wine for your money at a table like this.
Brunello di Montalcino
Most tables here are going straight for the Super Tuscans because they recognize the names. Brunello is the more patient, more complex choice — Sangiovese at its most serious, with the structure to outlast every course on the table. Most people walk right past it.
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
In an Italian steakhouse with this much Italian firepower on the list, ordering a Napa Cab feels like flying to Rome and eating at Applebee's. The markup on California bottles at restaurants like this tends to be punishing, and you're leaving better wine on the table.
Barolo (Piedmont) + Osso Buco
Barolo and braised veal shank is not a suggestion — it's essentially a law. The wine's tar-and-roses intensity, firm tannins, and high acidity are built for exactly this kind of long-cooked, gelatinous richness. Order both and stop overthinking it.
✔️ The Bottom Line
Gabriele's earned its Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for good reason — the Italian backbone of this list is genuinely well-stocked and suited to the kitchen's ambitions. Markups keep it from being a destination wine experience, but as a neighborhood steakhouse with real bottle depth, it absolutely delivers.
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