Italy-Forward Pricing That Defies Eastern Shore Logic
Easton · Baltimore · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Updated July 2026
Reviewed March 24, 2026
Wingman Metrics
Walking into The Wardroom, you half expect a wine list that leans on the same Pinot Grigio and California Cab that every Eastern Shore restaurant uses as a crutch. Instead, you get a genuinely Italian-focused list that feels like someone actually cared enough to do their homework. The room — all warm white oak and hand-thrown ceramics — sets a tone that the wine list, mostly, manages to live up to.
The list skews heavily Italian, with a particular eye toward northern regions: Alto Adige shows up multiple times, and there's a genuine attempt to showcase grapes most Maryland diners won't recognize on sight. It's not a deep list by any stretch, but the curation has intention behind it — you're not just scrolling past an ocean of Meiomi. California makes an appearance, presumably to keep the crowd comfortable, but the real action is in the boot. The gap is depth: once you move past the highlights, the bench thins out quickly.
The by-the-glass program is where The Wardroom genuinely surprises — and not just in selection. The pricing on the pours is frankly absurd in the best way: glass prices that are running at or below what you'd pay retail per-glass equivalent. The Sauvignon from Valle Isarco and the Elena Walch Chardonnay are both listed at prices that make you check the menu twice to make sure you're reading it right.
Chardonnay Elena Walch Alto Adige '23 — $16
A $30 retail bottle poured by the glass for $16 — you'd be hard pressed to find a better deal in a white-tablecloth room. Elena Walch makes clean, precise Alto Adige whites that punch well above their category, and at this price you should order two.
Sauvignon Eisacktal Valle Isarco Alto Adige '24
Valle Isarco Sauvignon is one of Italy's best-kept secrets — mineral, focused, nothing like the grassy New Zealand style most people default to. At $12 a glass on a retail-$25 bottle, most tables will walk right past it and order something familiar. Don't be that table.
2020 Tenuta Le Calcinaie Vernaccia di San Gimignano
A 130% markup on a $20 retail bottle is jarring when everything else on this list is priced with some generosity. The wine itself is perfectly fine, but at $46 you're paying for the label's familiarity more than anything in the glass. There are better values all around it on this list.
Gavi La Raia Pleo Piemonte '23 + Linguine with Lobster
Gavi's bright acidity and subtle almond note cut right through the richness of a lobster pasta without bullying the delicate shellfish flavor. La Raia's Pleo is an organic producer making cleaner, livelier Gavi than most, and at $14 a glass it's the move the moment that linguine hits the table.
🎲 The Bottom Line
The Wardroom is doing something quietly remarkable for an Eastern Shore Italian restaurant: pricing wine like they actually want you to drink it. If you're driving out to Easton, order by the glass, explore the Alto Adige section, and ignore the Vernaccia.
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Basic Stemmed
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Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
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Solid Range
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Basic Stemmed
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Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
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Crowd Pleasers
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
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Acceptable
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