Best wine lists by Wine Spectator: Italy confirmed in the “Grand Award” elite

There is no such thing as quality dining without a first-rate wine list, and vice versa. An aspect well known to Italy with the Italian tricolor cuisine (which awaits Unesco recognition) and Italian wine that, over the years, have conquered the palates of the world, so much so that it can be said that there is no country where our products are not loved. But, of course, there are those who manage to show off more than others, thanks to talent and expertise in wine appreciation, all of which is thanks to sought-after “wine lists” that meet requirements of value, depth and variety. This can be seen, again this year, in the 2024 edition of the “Restaurant Awards” by “Wine Spectator”, the iconic U.S. magazine that, since 1981, has been awarding the best wine lists in the world restaurant industry.
More than 3,700 restaurants won the “Restaurant Awards” from Wine Spectator in 2024. The winning restaurants come from more than 75 countries and territories, three categories were awarded: “Award of Excellence”, “Best of Award of Excellence” and “Grand Award”. The latter is the most coveted with 96 establishments that “offer the highest level of wine service” and features four new entries, Grasing’s in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California (U.S.); Lazy Bear in San Francisco (U.S.); Le Bistro de L’Hôtel in Beaune (France); and The Yeatman in Porto (Portugal).
But, in the list, there is the confirmation of the 6 restaurants of Italy already present in the last editions and, therefore, the endless and detailed wine cellar of the three-starred Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence (awarded by “Wine Spectator”, with the highest recognition since 1984), Giorgio Pinchiorri’s masterpiece of investment and passion, with the collaboration of Alessandro Tomberli, and that of Heinz Beck’s three-starred (and newly renovated) La Pergola at the Rome Cavalieri, where the wine cellar, as well as the dining room, is overseen by chef sommelier Marco Reitano. And then shine the wine lists of Milan’s Michelin-starred Ristorante Cracco, in Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, whose wine selection is curated by sommelier Gianluca Sanso, but also the star of La Ciau del Tornavento in Treiso (on the “Wine Spectator” list since 2013), by chef Maurilio Garola, and which has more than 65,000 bottles from 450 producers for a total of about 5,400 labels from around the world. Marking appearances are two other “references” of Italian wine historically awarded by “Wine Spectator”, namely the Antica Bottega del Vino in Verona, a fixed stop for wine lovers, thanks to its extraordinary selection, in terms of depth of vintages and variety of labels, and for years owned by the Famiglie Storiche, led “by the innkeeper” Luca Nicolis (and awarded since 2004), and Il Poeta Contadino di Alberobello owned by Leonardo Marco, 25,000 bottles for 3,300 labels, where there is no shortage of the most important icons of Italian wine and the big names of Bordeaux (it has been awarded since 1997).
Also noteworthy are two new Italian entries for the “Best of Award of Excellence”, with the inclusion of the restaurant “Cannavacciuolo Le Cattedrali”, inside chef Antonino Cannavacciuolo’s Le Cattedrali Relais (5-star luxury) in Asti, with more than 2,000 labels from Italy and around the world, and the Osteria del Viandante, in Rubiera (sommelier Mauro Rizzi), which boasts a selection of more than 7,000 bottles and 2,000 different labels, from Emilia Romagna to the rest of the world.