Rochester's Italian anchor actually knows wine
Rochester · Rochester · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · April 16, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Terza Ristorante’s wine list and gave it The Reliable — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Take Vibe Match and we’ll tell you what to order here.
Wingman Metrics
When you open the list at Terza, the Italy-first philosophy is immediate and unapologetic — Piedmont, Tuscany, Veneto, all present and accounted for. California shows up as a credible supporting cast rather than an afterthought. For Rochester, Minnesota, this is legitimately impressive work.
The Italian backbone is the real draw here: Barolo from Piedmont, Brunello di Montalcino, and the Super Tuscan heavy-hitters Sassicaia and Tignanello all make appearances, which tells you someone actually curated this thing. Amarone della Valpolicella rounds out a serious northern Italian presence that you won't find at most restaurants in a mid-sized Midwest city. California pulls its weight on the other side of the ledger with Napa Cabernet and Napa/Sonoma Chardonnay — familiar territory executed without apology. The gaps are in the natural wine and Old World-outside-Italy space, but within its lane, this list delivers.
Twelve to twenty options by the glass is a healthy program — enough that you can actually explore the list over a meal rather than committing to a bottle blind. We'd expect a rotating Italian anchor or two among the pours given the list's focus, which keeps the by-the-glass experience honest. No structured rotation or featured pours program appears to be in place, so what you see is likely what you get visit to visit.
Amarone della Valpolicella — $80
Amarone is one of Italy's most labor-intensive wines to produce, and finding it in a fair price window at a non-wine-bar restaurant is a minor miracle. If it lands under $100 here, you're getting real value on a wine that commands serious money elsewhere.
Brunello di Montalcino
Most tables at Terza are probably gravitating toward the Super Tuscans because the names are recognizable, but the Brunello is where the real depth lives — longer aging, more complexity, and a Sangiovese purity that Sassicaia and Tignanello don't deliver.
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
You're in an Italian restaurant with legitimate Barolo and Brunello on the list. Ordering California Cab here is like going to a great ramen shop and ordering fried rice — the kitchen didn't build this wine program to showcase Napa, and the markup on name-brand Napa bottles rarely favors the diner.
Barolo + Fresh pasta
Barolo's high acidity and firm tannins are built for rich, slow-cooked meat ragù or butter-forward fresh pasta — the kind of pairing that's been working in Piedmont for centuries. At Terza, this is the most honest expression of what the wine program is actually here to do.
The Bottom Line
Terza is the rare Midwest Italian spot where the wine list actually earns the cuisine on the menu — the Italian selections are serious, the pricing is fair, and the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence (held since 2016) isn't just wall decoration. If you're eating pasta in Rochester, this is where you want to be drinking.
Northwest / 55th Street · Rochester · Italian-American
Olive Garden's wine list exists to check a box, not elevate a meal — it's priced above its station and assembled without much curiosity. Order the Chianti, eat the breadsticks, and don't come here expecting the wine to be the point.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Apache Mall · Rochester · American
The Cheesecake Factory's wine list is exactly what you'd expect from a high-volume mall chain: safe, recognizable, and marked up enough to make you wish you'd ordered a cocktail. Come for the Chicken Madeira, skip the wine hunt.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Downtown · Rochester · American, Sushi
CRAVE isn't a wine destination, but it's a perfectly competent place to drink on a Monday when those bottle prices get cut in half. Show up any other night and you're paying full markup on a list that doesn't earn it.
Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Seasonal Rotation
Acceptable
South / near Hwy 63 · Rochester · Casual American bar & grill
Ground Round is a solid spot for a burger and a beer — lean into that and don't look at the wine list. If someone at your table insists on wine, point them toward the Kim Crawford and move on.
Grocery Store
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
South · Rochester · American bar and grill, burgers
Newt's South is not a wine destination — it's a great burger bar that happens to sell wine at suspiciously cheap prices. Come for the food, order a beer, and if you must have wine, hit it on a Wednesday when the glasses drop to under four bucks.
Grocery Store
Steal
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Occasional
Acceptable
Downtown · Rochester · Thai
ThaiPop isn't a wine destination, but its list is smarter than the size suggests — just stick to the aromatic, low-tannin options and leave the Cab to someone else. If you're in downtown Rochester and want Thai food with a decent glass of something cold and food-friendly, you won't be disappointed.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
· Atlanta · Italian
Bici's wine list won't knock you sideways, but it's honest, Italian-focused, and fairly priced — a reliable partner to the food. We'd send a friend here and tell them to skip the Sauvignon Blanc and go straight for the Greco.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
East Parkway / Elks Plaza · Gatlinburg · Italian
The Best Italian's wine list does exactly what it needs to do: keep casual diners happy, not drain wallets, and get out of the way of the garlic knots. We wouldn't drive to Gatlinburg for the wine, but if you're already there and want something decent with dinner, you'll be fine.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
Vail Village · Vail · Italian
La Nonna brings a legitimately serious Italian cellar to a town where most restaurants are content to coast on their ski-town captive audience — and that deserves real credit. The markups are steep across the board, but the bones of the list are strong enough that the right bottle makes the whole evening.
Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
List Variety
Markup
Glassware
Staff
Specials & Deals
Storage & Temp
