All-Italian, All Day, No Apologies
Church Street Marketplace · Burlington · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 24, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Pascolo Ristorante Italiano’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Pascolo is short, focused, and does exactly what it says on the tin — every bottle is Italian, full stop. There's a refreshing lack of pretension here: no California Cab slumming it next to a Barolo, no obligatory New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. You came to an Italian restaurant, you're drinking Italian wine.
Ten labels isn't a lot to work with, but Pascolo makes their cuts count. The whites lean into northern Italy's strengths — Zenato's Trebbiano di Lugana from Lombardy, a Verdicchio from Azienda Santa Barbara in Le Marche, and a Gavi di Gavi from Giordano Lombardo covering the Piedmont angle. The reds show similar intentionality: Ciacci Piccolomini brings Tuscan credibility with their Sangiovese-led blend, Pico Maccario's 'Villa Della Rosa' Barbera is a solid Asti producer, and Cardedu's 'Praja' Monica is a nice nod to Sardinia that most Burlington wine lists would never bother with. Where it falls short is depth — there's no vertical, no aged bottles, and the full list is only available on request, which feels like an unnecessary friction point.
All ten wines are available by the glass, which is genuinely impressive for a list this size — essentially the whole program is open. Pours run $8 to $13, which is reasonable for a sit-down Italian in a Vermont college-town tourist corridor. No obvious rotation or seasonal swap program in sight, but when the whole list is available by the glass, you're not exactly hurting for options.
Zenato Trebbiano di Lugana — $10/gl, $38/btl
Zenato is a serious Lugana producer and this is a legitimately good white — mineral, textured, and food-friendly in a way that generic Pinot Grigio never is. At $38 a bottle it's priced like an afterthought and drinks like the star of the table.
Cardedu 'Praja' Monica
Monica di Sardegna rarely shows up on restaurant lists anywhere, let alone in Burlington, Vermont. Cardedu is a respected producer making honest, earthy, medium-bodied reds that have zero in common with the fruit-bomb crowd pleasers dominating most Italian-American wine lists. Order it before someone else figures out it's there.
Canaletto Prosecco
Canaletto is a perfectly fine supermarket Prosecco, but at $9 a glass it's the weakest value on the list — you can grab this bottle for well under $15 retail. It's an easy opener pour that the restaurant is leaning on too hard. Start with the Gavi instead.
Cieck 'Rosso Canavese' Barbera / Nebbiolo + House-made pasta
Cieck's Canavese blend brings the bright acidity of Barbera and the structural backbone of Nebbiolo, which is exactly what you want cutting through rich, butter-finished pasta. It's a northern Italian wine with a northern Italian pasta — the logic writes itself.
The Bottom Line
Pascolo's wine list won't win any awards for ambition, but it's curated with more care than most Italian spots bother to show. If you're eating house-made pasta in Burlington and want to drink something Italian that actually means something, this gets the job done.
Waterfront · Burlington · Craft Brewery with Bar Snacks
Foam is a brewery first, but the wine program punches way above its weight class — it's small, local, and priced like they actually want you to drink it. If you're on Burlington's waterfront and want something interesting in your glass that isn't a hazy IPA, this is your spot.
Small but Thoughtful
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Burlington · New American with Vegan Options
The Daily Planet isn't a wine destination, but it has the instincts of one — a thoughtful natural wine pick, Monday half-price bottles, and fair pricing in a casual room that doesn't take itself too seriously. Send a friend here on a Monday and tell them to ask about the orange wine.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Downtown · Burlington · New American Bistro
The Gryphon is a reliable neighborhood bistro with a wine list that matches its ambitions exactly: familiar, functional, and forgettable. Come for the burgers and brick walls, but don't expect the wine to be the highlight of your night.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Burlington · Neapolitan wood-fired pizza and Italian cuisine
Pizzeria Verità isn't trying to be a wine destination and it doesn't need to be — it's a smart, Italy-focused list with honest markups and a few genuinely interesting bottles tucked in among the crowd-pleasers. Go for the pizza, order the Nebbiolo or the Cirò, and leave happy.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Church Street Marketplace · Burlington · Upscale American Steakhouse
EB Strong's has a wine list that does the job well and occasionally surprises you — especially if you look past the Caymus and dig into the European picks. Wednesday's half-price bottle program makes it one of the better wine-value nights in Burlington, full stop.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Acceptable
Downtown Waterfront · Burlington · Seasonal New American, farm-to-table
Hen of the Wood Burlington is the rare restaurant where the wine list is as considered as the food, and that's saying something when the kitchen is this good. If you're driving through Vermont and care about what's in your glass, this is worth a reservation.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Seasonal Rotation
Proper
· West Palm Beach · Italian
Sant Ambroeus Palm Beach is a reliable, if unambitious, wine experience — Italy and France, done cleanly, priced for Royal Poinciana Way. If you're here for the scene, the truffle pizza, and a glass of something Italian and uncomplicated, it delivers. Just don't come looking for value or discovery.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Newark · Italian
Five Corners has stocked four respectable Italian reds and essentially stopped there. Without pricing, pour options, or a list that can accommodate the full table, it's hard to call this a wine program — it's more like a wine shelf. Come for the Italian cooking; manage your expectations on the wine side.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Decatur · Decatur · Italian
Sotto Sotto is a genuinely Italian wine list in a city that usually settles for Italian-American approximations — the Timorasso, the Lambrusco di Sorbara, the Franciacorta all signal real intent. The glass program is accessible, markups are reasonable, and the bubbles section alone justifies a visit. If you want depth across all of Italy, you'll hit the edges fast at 68 labels, but what's here is well-chosen. Send a friend who likes to drink something they've never heard of.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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