Charleston's Italian anchor does wine right
East End · Charleston · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Updated August 2026
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · March 28, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Ristorante Polcari’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
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Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Polcari reads like a love letter to the Italian boot — heavy on Tuscany, respectful of Piedmont, and clearly assembled by someone who actually eats Italian food. It's not flashy, but it's coherent, and in Charleston, West Virginia, that already puts it ahead of the pack.
The list leans hard into the Italian classics, with Tuscany and Piedmont doing most of the heavy lifting. You've got Antinori Tignanello and Gaja Barbaresco anchoring the prestige tier, Banfi Brunello holding down the Montalcino corner, and Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva filling the middle ground. Veneto and Sicily get some representation but feel more like supporting cast than co-stars. There are no real surprises here — no natural producers, no obscure southern Italian finds — but what's on the list is reliable and matches the food well.
The by-the-glass program runs 8 to 16 options, which is a respectable spread for this market. Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio almost certainly anchors the white side, which is fine but tells you something about the ambition level. We'd love to see a Vermentino or Etna Bianco sneak in here — the list has room to get interesting by the glass without abandoning its Italian identity.
Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva — null
Ruffino's Chianti Classico Riserva is a known quantity — Sangiovese with enough structure to stand up to the kitchen's red sauce and enough familiarity to not scare anyone off. It's the smartest mid-list pick for the money, and at a classic Italian restaurant, it's exactly what you want in your glass.
Banfi Brunello di Montalcino
Most tables at a neighborhood Italian spot in West Virginia are reaching for something safe. The Banfi Brunello is right there on the list and almost certainly gets overlooked — but if you're splitting the Veal Parmesan and want something that can actually age, this is the move. Banfi is a serious producer and this is a serious bottle that most diners here won't touch.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
Santa Margherita is the Ugg boot of Italian white wine — ubiquitous, overpriced for what it is, and carried by restaurants because customers recognize the name. You're paying a markup on a brand, not a wine. Order something else.
Antinori Tignanello + Chicken Polcari
Tignanello is Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon blended into something that's bigger and more structured than a straight Chianti but still unmistakably Tuscan. The Chicken Polcari — a house signature that almost certainly involves a rich pan sauce — wants something with enough weight to match it without burying the dish. Tignanello threads that needle.
The Bottom Line
Polcari is doing more with wine than most Italian restaurants its size in this market, and the Italian-focused list is a genuine asset. Just know the markups are real, and you'll want to spend a minute with the list rather than defaulting to the first thing you recognize.
Kanawha · Charleston · Steakhouse
Regency Morton's wine list is exactly what the room promises: polished, predictable, and priced for special occasions rather than value seekers. Send a friend here if they want a reliable Cab with their steak — just tell them to skip the Caymus and not to expect any surprises.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Charleston · Italian
Pallotta's isn't a wine destination, but it's a dependable neighborhood Italian that won't gouge you on glass pours and gives you enough options to drink reasonably well with dinner. Watch the bottle markups on anything mid-tier and you'll be fine.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Charleston · Unknown
The Cellar Door is doing more than most restaurants in this market, and the Wednesday half-price bottle program alone is worth building a dinner around. It's not a destination wine list, but it's a reliable one — and that Filliatreau Chenin Blanc earns its spot on any serious short list.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Acceptable
West Side · Charleston · American Fine Dining
High Thyme is the best wine list in the room by a wide margin — the room being Charleston, West Virginia, but still, credit where it's due. Come on a Monday, grab the En Route Pinot at half price, and order the duck.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Unknown · Charleston · Wine Bar & Bistro
Chambers is doing something genuinely worthwhile for the Charleston, WV wine scene: a real list, real staff knowledge, and a clear point of view. It won't blow the doors off a seasoned wine traveler, but as a neighborhood wine bar, it's the kind of place you'd actually send a friend — especially if that friend would otherwise be drinking house Merlot out of a cavernous goblet somewhere else.
Solid Range
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Unknown · Charleston · American
Well Hung is more wine destination than it first appears — it's a functioning winery concept in Charleston, WV, which is genuinely unexpected and earns points for regional identity alone. The markups are hard to stomach once you know the retail prices, but if you treat it as a tasting room experience rather than a restaurant wine list, the math starts to feel less offensive.
Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Gilbert · Gilbert · Italian
North Italia Gilbert is a chain that does the bare minimum of interesting things — and sometimes that's exactly what you need on a Tuesday in Gilbert. The Italian regional whites are the real reason to open this list; everything else is serviceable.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Nob Hill · San Francisco · Italian
Seven Hills is doing something most Italian restaurants in this city won't — building a wine list that actually reflects the breadth of Italian winemaking rather than the highlights reel. If you're even mildly curious about obscure Italian whites, this is one of the better places in SF to take the leap.
Deep & Eclectic
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Plano · Italian
Roma has enough wine on the list to get you through a good dinner, but it leans hard on California crowd-pleasers and marks them up accordingly. Stick to the Italian reds, avoid the Napa trophies, and you'll drink well enough — just don't expect the list to match the ambition of the cuisine.
Plays It Safe
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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