Village Pizzeria & Ristorante
Biondi-Santi Next to Your Margherita? Yes.
Middle Grove · Middle Grove · Italian, Pizza · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 8, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
You pull up to what looks like a perfectly nice neighborhood Italian joint on Route 29 and then the wine list lands on the table — and it stops you cold. This is not a pizza-place wine list. Tignanello, Sassicaia, Biondi-Santi Brunello: these are bottles that belong in rooms with white tablecloths and hushed tones, not next to a wood-fired oven in Middle Grove, New York.
Selection Deep Dive
The list runs 150-250 bottles and leans hard into its two strongest suits: Tuscany and California. On the Italian side, you've got Super Tuscans from both Antinori and Ornellaia anchoring a roster that also includes Brunello heavyweights Banfi and Biondi-Santi — serious producers, not grocery store filler. California holds its own with Caymus, Silver Oak, and Far Niente Chardonnay covering the crowd-pleaser lane without the list feeling lazy about it. The range won't satisfy someone hunting obscure Jura pours or skin-contact skin-contact anything, but for a restaurant of this size and setting, what's here is curated with genuine intention.
By the Glass
Somewhere between 12 and 20 pours by the glass is a respectable spread for a neighborhood Italian, and with sommelier Jessica Mancinone on staff there's real oversight happening here. The glass program appears to stay consistent rather than rotating aggressively, which is a small ding — but the upside is you're not rolling the dice on freshness.
Banfi Brunello di Montalcino — $75
Banfi Brunello sits at the approachable end of one of Italy's most prestigious appellations — expect real Sangiovese structure, dried cherry, and earthy depth without the three-figure shock of the Biondi-Santi. At a restaurant in this price range, it's the move that makes you look like you know exactly what you're doing.
Ornellaia Super Tuscan
Most tables here are ordering Caymus or Silver Oak on autopilot, and we get it. But Ornellaia — one of Bolgheri's crown jewels — sitting on this list at a pizza restaurant in upstate New York is genuinely surprising. It's the kind of bottle that rewards the person willing to look past the obvious California picks.
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon
Caymus is everywhere, marked up predictably, and delivers the same jammy, crowd-pleasing experience you've had a dozen times before. With Sassicaia and Ornellaia on the same list, spending your money here feels like ordering chicken tenders at a steakhouse.
Antinori Tignanello + Veal Saltimbocca
Tignanello's Sangiovese-Cabernet blend brings enough structure to hold up to the sage and prosciutto in the saltimbocca while its savory, earthy character mirrors the veal without bulldozing it. This is the pairing that makes the whole experience click.
🎲 The Bottom Line
Village Pizzeria is the Wild Card in the truest sense — a warm, casual Italian spot where you can genuinely drink Biondi-Santi Brunello with your wood-fired pizza, guided by an actual sommelier who cares. It's earned its Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence since 2011 for a reason, and the reason is that nobody expected this list to be this good.
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