Sempre Oggi

The wine list at Sempre Oggi reads like someone with a serious Italian obsession was given a budget and told to go wild — in the best way. You're on the Upper West Side, in a buzzy modern dining room, but the list punches well above the neighborhood's usual expectations. This is not the kind of Italian-American spot where Pinot Grigio and Chianti Classico are the bookends of ambition.

The list leans hard into Italy's prestige appellations, and it doesn't blink. You've got Barolo covered by both Giacomo Conterno and Bruno Giacosa — two of the region's most serious names — alongside Biondi-Santi and Poggio di Sotto holding down Brunello di Montalcino. Dal Forno Romano's Amarone shows up for those who want something brooding and massive, and the Super Tuscan contingent includes Sassicaia and Ornellaia, which are crowd-pleasers but legitimate ones. On the white side, Vermentino di Sardegna and Greco di Tufo give the list some regional texture beyond the obvious Soave-and-Pinot-Grigio trap. Gaja's Barbaresco caps things off at the prestige tier. The breadth is real, though Southern Italy and Sicily feel underrepresented if you're hunting for discovery.

With 12 to 20 pours available, the by-the-glass program is genuinely usable — not just a token Chianti and a house white. Expect to find representation from both north and south, and the whites here are worth paying attention to given the kitchen's seafood-forward menu. Rotation feels limited, so don't expect a different list every week, but what's on offer is consistently solid.