Giovanni's Ristorante
Cleveland's Grand Award cellar doesn't disappoint
Beachwood · Cleveland · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed March 22, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
The Wine Spectator Grand Award hanging on the wall isn't decoration — it's a promise. Giovanni's wine list arrives like a small novel, and the Chardonnay section alone clears 100 labels before you've even touched the reds. This is a room that takes wine seriously, full stop.
Selection Deep Dive
Italy is the anchor and it shows: Piedmont delivers with the 2019 Barolo from both Giovanni Rosso and Prunotto, Tuscany punches in with the 2019 Ornellaia and Antinori's Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Superiore, and the Veneto holds its own with the 2013 Amarone Pasqua Valpolicella Superiore. California gets its due with legacy names like Robert Mondavi Napa and Chateau St. Jean Sonoma alongside the expected French Champagne presence — Veuve Clicquot, Dom Perignon vintages going back to 1970, and a 2013 Cristal for when someone's celebrating something real. The list skews traditional and European-forward, which fits the room perfectly, though natural wine explorers will find nothing to chase here. The depth in the cellar is the story — this isn't a restaurant that restocked last week.
By the Glass
Twelve options by the glass is respectable for a list this size, though the pours lean toward the accessible end — the 2022 Tiefenbrunner Pinot Grigio and Sand Point Chardonnay are crowd-friendly anchors that do their job without exciting anyone. We'd love to see more of the Italian depth make its way into the glass program, but what's here is competently chosen and properly served.
2022 Pinot Grigio Tiefenbrunner — $18
Tiefenbrunner is a reliable Alto Adige producer doing clean, precise Pinot Grigio — not the flabby grocery store version. At the lower end of the by-the-glass range in a room like this, it drinks way above its ask.
2013 Valpolicella Amarone Superiore Pasqua
Most tables at Giovanni's are chasing the Barolo or splurging on Ornellaia — which means the Amarone with a decade of age on it sits there being quietly brilliant. Valpolicella Superiore from a good year drinks rich and complex without requiring a second mortgage, and this one has had time to settle into something worth ordering.
Dom Perignon 1970
We respect the ambition of stocking a 50-plus-year-old Champagne, but provenance questions on bottles that old are legitimate, and the markup at a fine-dining restaurant on a trophy wine like this is going to be aggressive. Unless you're celebrating something that genuinely warrants it, the money is better spent deeper in the Italian cellar.
2019 Barolo Giovanni Rosso + Milk Fed Veal Chop
Barolo's firm tannins and dried cherry depth are exactly what you want next to a rich, buttery veal chop. Giovanni Rosso is making modern-style Barolo that's approachable at the table without losing any of the Nebbiolo backbone — it cuts through the fat and makes both the wine and the dish taste better.
🔥 The Bottom Line
Giovanni's is the kind of place where the wine list earns its own reservation — deep Italian cellar, proper storage, a sommelier who actually knows the list, and enough range to keep serious drinkers busy for years. Markups are what they are for a white-tablecloth room at this level, but the selection justifies the trip.
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