Il Goccetto in Rome's Centro Storico is the historic wine bar with a 1500-label cellar, the city's oldest aperitivo room since 1969 and salumi boards from the counter.
Food program: Salumi and cheese boards, no kitchen
Tip: Cash only. Open from 18:30; no bookings. The back-room cellar is the spot to ask for after 21:00.
Address: Via dei Banchi Vecchi 14, 00186 Roma, Rome
Enoteca Corsi in Rome's Centro Storico has been a working-day lunch trattoria with retail wine shelves since 1937. Cash only; 12:00 to 15:00; the city's most traditional lunch.
Signature pour: Frascati Superiore by the carafe
Wine focus: Italian regional wines
Food: Roman trattoria lunches only
Tip: Cash only. Open lunch only; no dinner; closed Sunday. House wine by the carafe is 6 euros per half-litre.
Casa Bleve in Rome's Centro Storico is the Bleve family's salumeria-and-wine-bar with a 1000-label cellar, the daily lunch buffet of salumi and cheese and a courtyard back room.
Signature pour: Vintage Sagrantino di Montefalco, by the bottle
Wine focus: Italian regional wines, deep cellar
Food: Lunch buffet, dinner carte, salumi
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch buffet is 35 euros all-you-can-eat with a glass of wine.
Enoteca Bulzoni in Rome's Parioli quarter has run as a wine cellar since 1929. The cellar runs 4000 labels deep; the wine bar pours 40 by the glass nightly.
Signature pour: Cesanese del Piglio Damiano Ciolli, by the glass
Wine focus: Italian regional wines, deep Lazio cellar
Food: Salumi platters, cheese flights
Tip: Closed Monday. The retail bottle prices are 30 percent below the wine-bar pour markup; buy and uncork.
Enoteca Ferrara in Rome's Trastevere is the piazza-side wine bar with a 1200-bottle list, the all-natural cellar from the Trecca family and a small Roman-classics kitchen.
Signature pour: Sagrantino di Montefalco Paolo Bea, by the glass
Wine focus: Italian regional and natural wines
Food: Small plates kitchen, Roman classics
Tip: Open daily 18:30 to midnight. Book a piazza terrace seat ten days ahead in May to September.
Ai Tre Scalini in Rome's Monti district is the wine-bar trattoria with a 200-label list, the polpette al sugo carte and the small front pavement seats for the aperitivo crowd.
Signature pour: Bombino Bianco from Lazio, by the glass
Wine focus: Italian regional wines, 200-bottle list
Food: Roman trattoria classics, aperitivo plates
Tip: Open daily 12:30 to midnight. Reservations only after 19:00 for tables of four or more.
Enoteca Corsi in Rome's Centro Storico has been a working-day lunch trattoria with retail wine shelves since 1937. Cash only; 12:00 to 15:00; the city's most traditional lunch.
Signature pour: Frascati Superiore by the carafe
Wine focus: Italian regional wines
Food: Roman trattoria lunches only
Tip: Cash only. Open lunch only; no dinner; closed Sunday. House wine by the carafe is 6 euros per half-litre.
Casa Bleve in Rome's Centro Storico is the Bleve family's salumeria-and-wine-bar with a 1000-label cellar, the daily lunch buffet of salumi and cheese and a courtyard back room.
Signature pour: Vintage Sagrantino di Montefalco, by the bottle
Wine focus: Italian regional wines, deep cellar
Food: Lunch buffet, dinner carte, salumi
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch buffet is 35 euros all-you-can-eat with a glass of wine.
Il Tiaso in Rome's Pigneto district is the natural-wine cellar with a 250-label biodynamic Italian list, the small kitchen of salumi and cheese boards and a late-night crowd to 02:00.
Signature pour: Foradori Teroldego, by the glass
Wine focus: Natural Italian wines, biodynamic cellar
Food: Small plates, salumi flight, cheese boards
Tip: Open daily 18:30 to 02:00. The Tuesday and Thursday wine flights of three glasses cost 15 euros.
