Italian Country Cooking With a Serious Cellar
Simpsonville · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Updated September 2026
Reviewed April 23, 2026 · How we review
RagingWine reviewed Tavola Italian’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Tavola, you half-expect a wine list that leans on Pinot Grigio and calls it a day — this is suburban South Carolina, after all. What you actually get is a tightly curated Italian list that punches well above its zip code, with a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence (2025) to back up the confidence. The Italian countryside aesthetic isn't just decoration; the wine program actually commits to the bit.
The list runs 80-120 bottles and stays almost entirely Italian, which in this case is a strength rather than a limitation. You've got Antinori Tignanello representing Tuscany's Super Tuscan wing, Banfi Brunello di Montalcino for the big-bottle-occasion crowd, and Gaja Barbaresco holding down Piedmont with serious credibility. Zenato's Amarone della Valpolicella rounds out the north, and the Castello Banfi Rosso di Montalcino gives budget-conscious drinkers a proper entry point into Tuscan terroir. There are gaps — no real exploration of southern Italy, no Sicilian or Campanian representation we can see — but what's here is coherent and well-chosen.
Ten to eighteen pours by the glass is a solid range for a restaurant of this size, and pricing sits between $8 and $16 — reasonable enough that you can work through a few without wincing at the bill. The Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio and Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva are predictable anchors, but they're crowd-pleasers that actually deliver in context. We'd love to see more rotation here, but what's on offer is consistent and drinkable.
Castello Banfi Rosso di Montalcino — $30-$40
Rosso di Montalcino is Brunello's younger sibling — same Sangiovese Grosso grape from the same hill, just released earlier and priced lower. It's a back-door into serious Tuscan wine without the serious Brunello price tag, and at Tavola's bottle range it's the smartest order on the list.
Zenato Amarone della Valpolicella
Most tables in a place like this gravitate toward Chianti or Pinot Grigio and never look north toward Valpolicella. That's a mistake. Zenato's Amarone is a rich, concentrated wine made from partially dried grapes — it's a completely different experience from anything else on this list, and most diners walk right past it.
Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
It's fine. It's always fine. But Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio is the wine equivalent of ordering a plain burger at a steakhouse — you're at a restaurant with Gaja Barbaresco on the list, and you're drinking the wine your aunt brings to Thanksgiving. Aim higher.
Antinori Tignanello + Filet Mignon
Tignanello is a Sangiovese-Cabernet blend with enough structure and dark fruit to stand up to beef without overwhelming it. A filet's tenderness and clean, beefy flavor lets the wine do the talking — this is the kind of pairing that makes a Tuesday night feel like a special occasion.
The Bottom Line
Tavola is doing something genuinely surprising for Simpsonville — building a focused, Italy-serious wine list in a market that would happily settle for far less. No sommelier on staff and no wine events to speak of, but the list itself earns the Wine Spectator nod and gives you real reasons to order a bottle.
Vinings · Vinings · Italian
Cotto is doing more with a 51-bottle list than most Italian restaurants do with twice as many labels — the Italian whites alone make this worth a visit for anyone tired of the same old Pinot Grigio rut. The markup is fair, the by-the-glass program is genuinely generous, and the presence of bottles like the Bocale Trebbiano Spoletino signals real intent. We'd send a friend here and tell them to skip the Santa Margherita and work their way through the Vermentinos instead.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Atlanta · Italian
Tavola Trattoria's wine program is five bottles deep and priced without apology — $101 for a Saracco Moscato is the kind of markup that makes you consider ordering water and going wine shopping after dinner. The list has no still wines at all, which is a strange call for an Italian restaurant. Order a cocktail or ask if they have a corkage policy, because this wine list isn't doing you any favors.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
· Atlanta · Italian
La Tavola is an Italian restaurant with a five-bottle wine list that stops at sparkling and rosé — no reds, no whites, no depth whatsoever. The pricing on what's there is difficult to justify. Unless you came specifically for Lambrusco or Franciacorta, you're better off calling ahead to ask about corkage.
Grocery Store
Steep
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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