Wine bar in Milano: my top 5

What are the best wine bar in Milano?
Along with France, Italy is more and more famous for its wines. If you are in Italy on a holiday there is a great chance that you want to try some of our local favorites.

In this post I will try to suggest you a couple of wine bar in Milano where you will be able to discover the world of Italian wines, and maybe have have a chat with some locals. Don’t worry, you won’t need to do the grand tour of Italy! All of them are in Milano.

Cantine Isola
Via Paolo Sarpi, 30 (Metro Moscova or Domodossola)
Open from Tuesday to Sunday / 10.00 -22.00

This is for sure one my favorite wine bar in Milano where to hang out in Milano, in one of my favorite areas of the city: via Paolo Sarpi, also known as the China Town of Milan. This shop saw this street changing again and again in the past 20 years. Cantine Isola has a long history: it existed 120 years ago and it is owned by the same wine lover since 1992 in the current location: it is to say 24 years!
Here you can sip your glass of selected good wine standing inside the tiny bar or sitting in the dehor (if you manage to find a seat). On Tuesday evening (from 20.30) there is a special moment for poetry lovers since there is the traditional open mic session! They always have a wide and constantly changing selection of open bottles to try. Moreover, if you are on your way to a dinner party and you need a bottle to bring with you as a present to the host, this is the perfect place to choose a bottle of wine to take away that will make a statement!  They have about 1700 bottles inside the shop ranging from low priced (but still quality wines) to rarities and special edition bottles. Have a chat with the owner of the shop…I promise it will be inspiring!

UPDATE 2019: Unfortunately, Ciclosfuso is closed 

Ciclosfuso
Via Sartirana, 5 (Metro Porta Genova)
Open Tuesday to Saturday / 10.00 – 22.00

Courtesy: Ciclosfuso

I love this wine-bar-slash-bike-shop for many reasons:

• the wine from casks is super cheap but still high quality at least for the reasonable price
• you can buy some bottles of the wine from cask and bring them home for about 4 € per bottle
• they offer a limited but very good choice of wines
• they propose many tasting events that you find out on their Facebook Page
• the interior design is just brilliant, and this is not only a wine bar but also a bike shop with a bike mechanic that can pimp your vehicle while you have your glass of Nebbiolo
• the owners are very down to earth, inventive and kind pals!

Also, not all wine bar in Milano can host a group of friends with babies, but this one can!

Sidro
Via Federico Ozanam, 15 (Metro Lima)
Open Monday to Saturday / 18.00 – 2.00

I have a thing for tiny places, I admit it! Sidro is the wine bar in Milano to be if you want to have aperitivo with a good glass of wine (but the bar offers also drink and beers). It is owned by two girls from Marche, a region located in central Italy, that chose the best wines from their homeland and brought them to Milan in a cozy, simple yet very cute bar few steps from Corso Buenos Aires shopping area. During the happy hour they provide a set of 2 to 3 dishes filled with original delicacies and finger foods, mostly made with local specialities from Marche. During summer, have a seat on the benches in the pedestrian seat!

La Cieca
Via Vittadini, 6 (Metro Porta Romana)
Open every day / 18.30 – 1.00

Here you will meet only true wine lovers, on both sides of the counter. The wine offered are mainly biodynamic and organic wines and if you feel brave enough you can play a very intriguing and difficult drinking game: ask them to try one of their wines “alla cieca” (the wine version of a blind date). Now drink your wine, feel it and try to guess what you are drinking; if you can tell the wine you they will give you a bottle of that wine to bring home with you as a prize. Will you accept the challenge?

Signorvino
Piazza del Duomo (Metro Duomo)
Open every day / 8.00 – 24.00

Signorvino is a retail chain with many shops in Milano and Italy. Their first wine bar in Milan was this one behind Duomo. I usually don’t like retail chains and franchising shops since I think they lack of that personal and human touch that I love. Nevertheless, I definitely  suggest you to chose this place if you want to have a glass of wine in Piazza del Duomo. It always surprised me how cheap a bottle of their wine served at the table would be (from 15€ per bottle). You won’t pay your bottle more just because from the windows of the restaurant you can see the arches and spires of the net-gothic church! If you liked the wine you tasted, you can buy it from the wine shop downstairs that usually have some special offers that will for sure convince you to buy a couple of bottles!

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