Solid neighborhood red sauce, dependable pours
Lansdowne / Nicholasville Road · Lexington · Italian-American · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · June 4, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Sutton's Italian Restaurant’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 Sutton's feels like it was built to complement the pasta and not cause any arguments. It's an Italian-leaning lineup that checks the expected boxes — Chianti, Pinot Grigio, a few California names — without venturing too far off the beaten path. Comfortable, familiar, and pretty much exactly what you'd expect from a relaxed neighborhood Italian joint.
The list runs 30 to 60 bottles deep, anchored by Italian workhorses from Tuscany and Veneto with a California bench for those who want something closer to home. Ruffino and Santa Margherita represent the Italian side — reliable commercial producers, nothing obscure — while the presence of Antinori's Tignanello is a genuine surprise and the most serious bottle on the menu. There's no real push into Piedmont's Barolo or Barbaresco territory, and the Veneto coverage beyond Pinot Grigio is thin. It's a list built for guests who want wine with dinner, not guests who came for the wine.
Eight to fourteen pours by the glass is a respectable spread for a casual Italian spot, and you can expect the usual suspects — Pinot Grigio, Chianti, probably a California Cab or Merlot holding down the red side. Rotation doesn't appear to be a priority here; the glass list feels like it was set once and left to run. If you're ordering by the glass, stick to the Italian options and you won't go wrong.
Ruffino Chianti — $32
It's a crowd-pleaser Chianti that drinks cleanly alongside red sauce dishes without a markup that makes you wince. Nothing adventurous, but dependable and priced where it should be for what it is.
Antinori Tignanello
A Super Tuscan built on Sangiovese with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, Tignanello is a legitimately great wine that most tables here will walk right past in favor of something familiar. If you're splitting a bottle and want the best thing on this list, this is it — full stop.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
Santa Margherita is the wine that launched a thousand markups. It's fine, it's inoffensive, and it costs more than it should everywhere it appears. You're paying for the brand recognition, not the wine.
Ruffino Chianti + Spaghetti with marinara
Chianti and tomato-based pasta is one of the least controversial calls in Italian dining — the wine's bright acidity and cherry fruit cut right through the sauce's sweetness and keep everything tasting fresh.
The Bottom Line
Sutton's isn't a wine destination, but it's a perfectly reasonable place to drink a bottle of Chianti while someone else handles the cooking. The Tignanello alone earns this list a second look if you know to ask for it.
South Lexington / Harrodsburg Road · Lexington · Italian, Contemporary Italian, Seafood
Giuseppe's isn't a wine destination, but Monday night half-price bottles make it one of the better value plays in Lexington — show up then, lean on the seafood, and you'll leave happy. Any other night, the markups ask a lot and the list doesn't ask you to think very hard.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
Downtown / Gratz Park · Lexington · New American / Southern
Jonathan at Gratz Park is the kind of reliable wine room you'd expect from a historic inn with a real sommelier — competent, well-stocked, and leaning safe. Pricing is on the steeper side and the list won't surprise you, but in Lexington, this is still one of the better places to order a full bottle with dinner.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Palomar / Harrodsburg Road · Lexington · Italian, Seasonal American-Influenced
Bella Notte isn't a wine destination, but it's a reliable neighborhood spot with one genuinely smart move: Thursday half-price bottles turn a steep list into a real value play. Go on a Thursday, order the Decoy Cab with a wood-grilled steak, and you'll leave happy.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
Downtown · Lexington · Italian
ItalX is a dependable Italian wine list for a night out downtown — not exciting, but not embarrassing either. Send a friend here knowing they'll drink well enough, as long as they steer toward the Italian reds and away from the obvious tourist traps.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Summit at Fritz Farm · Lexington · New American / Southern
33 Staves is a perfectly competent hotel wine list in a city where nobody's really coming for the wine. Drink it for what it is, keep your expectations calibrated, and save the serious bottle hunting for somewhere else.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Lexington · Contemporary American
Lockbox is the wine list of a restaurant that cares about wine but hasn't fully committed to obsessing over it — solid producers, a bit steep on price, and playing it safe where it could take chances. Send a friend here knowing they'll drink well; just tell them to skip the rosé and go straight for the Jadot.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Proper
Ocean Casino Resort · Atlantic City · Italian-American
Superfrico is a reliable wine program in a setting designed to get you to spend money — and it mostly delivers without being a total shakedown. Send a friend here for a fun night, not a wine education.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
Downtown / Broadway · Saratoga Springs · Italian-American
Come to Wheatfields for the house-made pasta — it earns its reputation. But the wine list is a lazy lineup of commercial brands at steep markups, and no one on staff is going to steer you toward anything interesting. Grab a glass of Prosecco during happy hour (50% off Monday through Friday, 3-7pm) and redirect your wine energy somewhere else in town.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
Broadway · Idaho Falls · Italian-American
This is the wine list equivalent of unlimited breadsticks — comforting, familiar, and not something you'd brag about to anyone. Come for the pasta, order a cocktail, or bring your own bottle if they'll let you.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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