Aposto at the Scala House
Italian classics in a Victorian mansion done right
Sherman Hill · Des Moines · Italian · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed April 12, 2026
Wingman Metrics
First Impression
Walking into a restored 1880 Victorian mansion in Sherman Hill, you half-expect a dusty wine list to match the wallpaper. Instead, Aposto hands you something with actual ambition — Italian-forward, regionally coherent, and priced like they actually want you to order a bottle. It's a pleasant surprise for Des Moines.
Selection Deep Dive
The list leans hard into the Italian canon, and that's not a criticism — when you're doing Barolo, Brunello di Montalcino, Amarone della Valpolicella, and Super Tuscans under one roof, you're covering the heavyweights. The bottle range of $45–$200 is broad enough to accommodate a Tuesday-night splurge and a special-occasion flex without feeling like a trap. American wines make an appearance too, giving the list a bit of breathing room beyond the boot. The gap here is depth in lighter Italian styles — Vermentino, Etna Bianco, Soave — the kinds of bottles that could anchor the seafood and pasta dishes without competing with them.
By the Glass
Glass pours run $12–$20, which is honest pricing for this caliber of restaurant. The specific by-the-glass selection isn't published openly, which is a missed opportunity — a curated Italian list like this should be showing off its pours, not hiding them. If the BTG program reflects the bottle list, there's real potential here; we just want the menu to prove it.
Barolo — $45–$70 (bottle entry)
Barolo at the lower end of this list's bottle range is where the value lives. You're getting one of Italy's most serious reds in a setting that complements it, without the downtown steakhouse markup you'd pay elsewhere.
Amarone della Valpolicella
Most tables at Aposto go straight for the Brunello and sleep on the Amarone. Big, brooding, and built from dried Corvina grapes — it's a different kind of Italian power and it deserves more attention than it gets on most American wine lists.
Super Tuscans (top tier)
Super Tuscans at the upper end of the pricing here can creep into markup territory that doesn't justify the glass. The category's cachet often inflates the price tag more than the wine itself — you can drink better for less by leaning into the Barolo or Brunello instead.
Barolo + Anatra: seared duck breast with orange & herb butter sauce
Barolo's firm tannins and dried cherry character cut through the richness of duck breast without fighting the citrus brightness of that orange butter sauce. It's a classic match that the kitchen and the wine list seem almost designed to pull off together.
✔️ The Bottom Line
Aposto isn't trying to be a wine destination, but it's doing more than most Italian restaurants in the Midwest — and doing it fairly priced, in a genuinely beautiful space. Send a friend here who wants to drink Barolo with duck and feel like they made the right call.
Comments
Get the Weekly Wingman
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.