Familiar Names, Unfamiliar Prices
Rochester Hills · Detroit · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Updated April 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · March 22, 2026
RagingWine reviewed La Collina’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at La Collina reads like a greatest hits of grocery store staples — Kendall-Jackson, Santa Margherita, Silver Oak — names your aunt recognizes and your wallet will regret. It's comfortable in the way a hospital waiting room is comfortable: nothing offensive, nothing exciting, nothing that makes you feel great about being there. The Italian-American framing gives it a pass for a moment, but the pricing kills the goodwill fast.
The list leans heavily on California with a thin Italian presence, which is at least thematically appropriate for an Italian-influenced room. You get the Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino at $80 as the lone serious Italian bottle — and honestly, that's the only wine here that earns its keep on merit. Beyond that, it's Sonoma Cutrer, La Crema, and Kendall-Jackson doing the Chardonnay heavy lifting, with Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet anchoring the big-spend end at $130. Argentina gets a token mention in the region focus but doesn't show up in any named bottles we can confirm. The gaps in old-world depth and any adventurous producers make this feel like a list built for familiarity, not discovery.
We don't have confirmed glass pour details from the research, so we can't tell you exactly what's available by the stem — and that uncertainty itself is a mild red flag for a restaurant that should have that information front and center. Given the bottle list, expect the usual suspects poured by the glass at markups that'll make you wince if you do the math. No evidence of any rotation or active by-the-glass program.
Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino — $80
At $80 it's the only bottle on this list where you're actually getting something worth talking about. Brunello from a solid, consistent Montalcino producer for under a hundred bucks in a restaurant setting — take it, especially compared to the marked-up California grocery brands surrounding it.
Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino
In a list full of California crowd-pleasers, this Brunello is the one bottle most diners here will scroll past on their way to the Silver Oak. Don't. It's a real wine among brand names.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
At $58 for a bottle you can find at any wine shop for $20, this is a 190% markup on a wine that's already coasting on name recognition. There is no universe where this bottle is worth $58. Order a cocktail.
Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino + Braised lamb or osso buco
Brunello wants something with weight and fat to push against — a slow-braised lamb shank or a proper osso buco gives it the savory richness it needs to open up. It's the one pairing on this list that feels like it belongs in an Italian restaurant.
The Bottom Line
La Collina is a perfectly decent neighborhood Italian spot that treats its wine list like an afterthought — familiar names, steep markups, no real sense of curation or care. Drink the Brunello or order a Negroni and don't look back.
Renaissance Center · Detroit · Regional Steakhouse
Highlands is a reliable special-occasion wine stop backed by a knowledgeable sommelier in Kevin Williams and a Wine Spectator Award it's held since 2022. The list won't surprise you, but at 71 floors up with a bone-in ribeye in front of you, you probably weren't asking it to.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Corktown · Detroit · Italian, Swiss
Alpino is doing something genuinely unusual for Detroit — an alpine-themed kitchen with a wine list that actually matches the room's ambition, not just its vibe. Send your friends here, tell them to order Austrian, and sit near the fireplace.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Southfield · Detroit · Northern Italian
Bacco is the kind of wine program that makes you feel like Detroit's been holding out on you — 11,000 bottles, a sommelier who actually knows the cellar, and a room serious enough to let a 2000 Gaja breathe properly. The prices will make your eyes water, but this is a destination list worth the trip.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown Detroit · Detroit · Contemporary American
The Apparatus Room is the wine list Detroit didn't know it needed — thoughtful, fairly priced, and backed by a sommelier who actually shows up. If you're eating downtown and you care about what's in your glass, this is your spot.
Solid Range
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Unknown · Detroit · Steakhouse
Shanahan's is playing a different game than most Detroit restaurants — the wine list is destination-worthy on its own merits, even if the markups reflect the ambition. If you're serious about wine with your steak, this is where you go.
Deep & Eclectic
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Detroit · Detroit · Italian-American
Bona Sera is a reliable neighborhood wine program that won't embarrass you on a date night, but the markup math on some bottles is hard to ignore and the list plays it safe enough that adventurous drinkers will run out of road fast. Order the Ridge, skip the commodity pours, and you'll have a fine evening.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Johns Creek · Italian
Pasta Vino isn't trying to be a wine destination, and that's fine — it's a neighborhood Italian with a list that actually makes sense for the room. Pricing is fair across the board, the by-the-glass program gives you real options, and the Italian selections (especially the Chianti duo and the Lugana) show some genuine thought. Send a friend here for dinner knowing they'll drink well without overpaying.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Arlington · Italian
Piccolo Mondo punches above its Arlington zip code with a genuinely Italy-forward wine list that includes some names worth ordering. We'd love to see pricing and by-the-glass details more clearly published — and without knowing the markups, we can't fully endorse the value play — but the producer selection alone puts this ahead of most neighborhood Italian spots in the DFW suburbs. If you're going, head straight for the Tuscan reds and don't look back.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Lakeland · Italian
The Macaroni Grill Lakeland wine list is functional the way a vending machine is functional — it dispenses what you ask for without fuss or personality. The by-the-glass breadth gives casual drinkers options, but the markups on several bottles and the complete absence of anything interesting or Italian-forward make this a list you tolerate rather than enjoy. Order the Lambrusco or the Trapiche Malbec and call it a night.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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