The Guide

The Restaurant Guide for Wine Lovers

522 reviews in 4 countries. Choose an area on the map, pick a region, or search above.

Each entry assesses a restaurant's wine programme at a point in time, and says when. Menus and lists move on, so we name bottles from the list we saw and say what to reach for by style, which holds when a bottle has gone. The score is for the programme, and a programme changes slowly even when the dishes change weekly. Once you are seated, At the Table in the Vinealto app reads the list in front of you.

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Manteca — London
AngloThai — London
Brunswick House — London
Waterfront Fishouse — Argyll and Bute
Diogenes the Dog — London
Northcote — Lancashire
Home Restaurant — Northern Ireland
The Victoria Hotel — Northumberland
Blackfriars Restaurant — Tyne and Wear
The White Swan — North Yorkshire
London Street Brasserie — South East England
Asador 44 — Wales
Escabeche — East Midlands
Bottles Wine Bar and Merchants — Worcestershire
The Vintner — Warwickshire
Paysanne — Conwy
Quo Vadis — London
BOX-E — South West
Carnicero — Hampshire
Santos and Co — Dorset
GlouGlou — Shropshire
Harry's Restaurant — South West
Upstairs at the Grill — Cheshire
Akoko — London
Hartwell House — Buckinghamshire
Marlowe's Restaurant and Bar — Suffolk
2 Bridges — Herefordshire
Glasfryn — Flintshire
James St — Northern Ireland
The Millworks — Cambridgeshire
Margo — Scotland
The Inn at Welland — Worcestershire
No.10 Bar and Restaurant — Scotland
The Plough Inn — Derbyshire
Elliot's — London
The Bishop's Cave — Hertfordshire
Banchory Lodge — Aberdeenshire
Olé Tapas — Somerset
The Marlborough Tavern — Somerset
The Mug House Inn and Restaurant — Worcestershire
Bottle and Rye — London
The Boat Inn — Aberdeenshire
Cadiz — City of Edinburgh
Cafe 1 — Highland
The Star Inn The Harbour — North Yorkshire
Porcini at No17 The Promenade — Argyll and Bute
Cabotte — London
The Mariners — Cornwall
Cambridge Wine Merchants, Cherry Hinton Road — Cambridgeshire
Clayton's Kitchen — Somerset
The Wykeham Arms — South East England
Watson and Walpole — Suffolk
Bryn Williams at Theatr Clwyd — Flintshire
The Woodspeen — Berkshire
Little Hollows Pasta Co. — South West
The Courtyard Restaurant at Seagoe Hotel — County Armagh
etch. by Steven Edwards — Brighton and Hove
Cin Cin — East Sussex
The Ship Inn — Fife
dickandwills — South West England
Provender — Scottish Borders
Goat on the Roof — Berkshire
The Whippet Inn — North Yorkshire
Piersland House Hotel — Scotland
Maison François — London
Auberge Brasserie — North West England
Dormy House: The Back Garden — Worcestershire
Ambassadors Clubhouse — London
Outlaw's Bistro — South West
Burnt Orange — East Sussex
The Whitebrook — Wales
Lita — London
The Black Swan at Oldstead — North Yorkshire
Chantrey's Restaurant, The Imperial Hotel — Wales
Tropea — West Midlands
Curado Bar — Wales
Dobson and Parnell — North East England
Humble Grape — London
Novi — Cambridgeshire
La Dolce Vita — East Lothian
Stuzzi — West Yorkshire
The Clunie Dining Room, The Fife Arms — Aberdeenshire
Butler Whites — East Yorkshire
The Lygon Arms: GRILL — Worcestershire
Buoy and Oyster — Kent
Clachan Grill — Aberdeenshire
The Lighthouse Restaurant — East of England
Samphire at Stanwell House — Hampshire
Kaltur — North East England
Vinoteca di Sartoria — London
Fothergills — Nottinghamshire
Lurra — London
Mangal II — London
Ox Club — West Yorkshire
RAGU — Bristol
BiBi — London
Maremma — London
Bar Crispin — London
Bravas — Bristol
Kyoto Kitchen — South East England
mrDeanes — Northern Ireland
The 10 Cases — London
Forza Wine — London
Porters Wine and Charcuterie — Hampshire
Trishna — London
Luca — London
Riddle and Finns — East Sussex
Goodfellows, Wells — Somerset
Hispi — Greater Manchester
English's of Brighton — Brighton and Hove
The Wilderness — West Midlands
The Bell Inn — Warwickshire
The Hind's Head — Berkshire
The Hut — Isle of Wight
Hide — London
The Old Vine — South East England
Ugly Butterfly by Adam Handling — Cornwall
Tap and Kitchen — Northamptonshire
The Pint Shop — Cambridgeshire
Kudu — London
Domo Restaurant — South Yorkshire
The Greyhound on the Test — Hampshire
The Flint House — East Sussex
Andrew Edmunds — London
The Ginger Fox — West Sussex
Kricket — London
Maré by Rafael Cagali — East Sussex
Vynes of Kenilworth — Warwickshire
64 Goodge Street — London
Friends of Ham — West Yorkshire
Another Hand — Greater Manchester
Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels — London
Elnecot — Greater Manchester
Quality Wines — London
Duchy — London
No.23 — East Midlands
Crispin — London
The One Elm — Warwickshire
Brigadiers — London
Levan — London
The Marksman — London
The Salt Room — Brighton and Hove
Donostia — London
The Townhouse — Scottish Borders
The Remedy — London
Llewelyn's — London
Paisa — Hertfordshire
The Plume of Feathers — Dorset
The Fox and Willow — South Ayrshire
Sótano — North Yorkshire
Fiume — West Midlands
The Duncombe Arms — Staffordshire
The Waterfront — Fife
Noble Rot Lamb's Conduit Street — London
Willow (Trentham) — West Midlands
Purchases — South East
Branca — Oxfordshire
The Devonshire — London
The Oarsman — Buckinghamshire
The Olive Branch and Beech House — Rutland
Cor — South West
El Gato Negro Tapas — North West England
22 Yards Wine Bar and Merchants — North Yorkshire
Balloo House — Northern Ireland
Ora — Northern Ireland
Hotel du Vin — Scotland
The Fat Badger — North Yorkshire
Mara — Aberdeen City
Lido Troon — South Ayrshire
Corkage — Somerset
Native — South Yorkshire
Sorrento Restaurant and Pizzeria — Gloucestershire
The Bonnie Badger — East Lothian
The Star Inn the City — North Yorkshire
Casa Mia — Dumfries and Galloway
Samphire at The Old Quay House — Cornwall
The Sportsman — Kent
Outlaw's Fish Kitchen — South West
Arbor — South West England
Deanes at Queens — Northern Ireland
Sapori Restaurant and Bar — Leicestershire
Bouchon Bistrot — North East England
Edo — Northern Ireland
The Peacock at Rowsley — Derbyshire
La Bottega — Northern Ireland
Vino Tapas and Wine — Cambridgeshire
Cavita — London
Coq and Bull — Down
The Gallery Restaurant at The Cavendish Hotel — East Midlands
The Barnsdale (1760 Brasserie) — East Midlands
The Slipway — South West
Café 52 — Scotland
Barnaby's at the Vineyard — Cornwall
The Orange Tree Bar and Grill — West Midlands
River House — Highland
The Last Wine Bar and Restaurant — Norfolk
The Bull at Broughton — Yorkshire and the Humber
Tom Browns Brasserie — East Midlands
Omni Malton — North Yorkshire
Purslane — Gloucestershire
The Crooked Billet — Oxfordshire
Olive Tree — South West
The Box Tree — West Yorkshire
Askham Hall — Cumbria
Divino Enoteca — City of Edinburgh
The Corner House — Gloucestershire
Harbour House — South West England
Maray — Greater Manchester
63 Tay Street — Scotland
Bistro Eleven Fifty Five — Scotland
Sticks'n'Sushi — National
Ascough's Bistro — Leicestershire
Sysonby Knoll Hotel — Leicestershire
Bacchus — Buckinghamshire
Wright Brothers — London
Bar 44 — Wales
A Taste of Tanners — Shropshire
Blue Sardinia — South East England
Hambleton Hall — East Midlands
The Kensington Arms — South West
Arbequina — Oxfordshire
Melton's — North Yorkshire
The Seaside Boarding House — Dorset
North Port — Scotland
The Chilli Pickle — Brighton and Hove
Pasture — Wales
Gambas Tapas Bar — Bristol
Restaurant Twenty-Two — Cambridgeshire
Bedales of Borough — London
Pasta Ripiena — South West
Fourth and Church — East Sussex
The Pepperpot — Derbyshire
The Angel Hotel (The Oak Room) — Wales
Plateau — Brighton and Hove
Raymond's — Nottinghamshire
The Poacher's Pocket — County Down
The Black Bear Inn — Wales
The Black Bull Inn — Dumfries and Galloway
Moro — London
Mountain — London
Sterling — Greater Manchester
Gees — Oxfordshire
The Upper House — Staffordshire
The Suffolk — East of England
SIX Panoramic — Cambridgeshire
The Tolbooth — Scotland
Souk Kitchen — South West
The Boathouse Instow — Devon
Scotts Bar and Restaurant — South Ayrshire
The Three Chimneys — Highland
Osip — South West England
Noble Rot Soho — Central London
Haar — Scotland
Brat — London
Collinsons — Dundee City
Brawn — East London
The Clove Club — Central London
Planque — London
Kelu — South Yorkshire
Washingborough Hall — Lincolnshire
The Whalley Wine Bar — Lancashire
The Whistledown Hotel — County Down
Albatross Death Cult — West Midlands
The Crazy Goose — East Sussex
Westerns Laundry — London
Cail Bruich — Scotland
Furna — Brighton and Hove
Salut Wines — Greater Manchester
Crabshakk Finnieston — Scotland
The Cork and Bottle — London
Bocca di Lupo — London
St. JOHN — London
Maray — Merseyside
No3 Restaurant — Herefordshire
Bistro Freddie — London
The Camberwell Arms — London
Thomas — Wales
Decimo — London
Poco — East Sussex
Belong Bar — Derbyshire
Lazy Elephant — Kent
Ox and Finch — Scotland
Petit Pois — Brighton and Hove
Naughty Piglets — London
Blue Jasmine Wine and Tapasía — Hampshire
Wild Flor — Brighton and Hove
Lorentes — Derbyshire
Trivet — London
The Walnut Tree — Wales
Castaways — Cornwall
Fifteen Square Metres — Kent
Orwells — Oxfordshire
Quite Simply French — Lancashire
The Clive Arms — Shropshire
The Chester Hotel — Scotland
Bench — South Yorkshire
Trullo — London
St John Bread and Wine — London
Coppi — Northern Ireland
Forgan's — Scotland
Café Bohème — Scotland
Layton's at The Leckford Hutt — Hampshire
Vercelli — Northumberland
Lytham House — Lancashire
Cogs Bar and Kitchen — West Midlands
Bishop's Dining Room and Wine Bar — East of England
Old Downton Lodge — Shropshire
Pen and Cob — Bedfordshire
The Snooty Fox — Northamptonshire
The Hoste Arms — East of England
Under the Stars — South West
The Three Swans Hotel — Berkshire
The Bow Room at Grays Court — North Yorkshire
Bower House — Warwickshire
Root — South West
Cafe Fish — Argyll and Bute
The Circus — Somerset
Barluga — North East England
Taylor and Clay — Northern Ireland
No.1 Ship Street — Oxfordshire
The Bell Inn — Hampshire
Friends of Ham — West Yorkshire
Vin Santo — Cheshire
Nàdarra — Scotland
Pintxo — Cornwall
Stones Restaurant — Derbyshire
The Bull Inn — South West England
The Bishop's Cave — East of England
Red Cow — North West
Fratelli — Northern Ireland
Iberico World Tapas — East Midlands
The One Bull — East of England
La Bobina — Wiltshire
The Mustard Seed — Highland
No.34 — East Sussex
The Royal Hotel (Geranium Restaurant) — Isle of Wight
Piccalilli — East Midlands
Castle Kitchen and Bar — Antrim
Amuse by Kevin Dalgleish — Scotland
Rocpool — Highland
The Castle of Brecon — Powys
Franco's Restaurant — County Fermanagh
The Engine Room — Derbyshire
Cherwell Boathouse — Oxfordshire
Old Aberlady Inn — East Lothian
The George of Stamford — East Midlands
La Bottega — South Yorkshire
The Cellar Door — County Durham
1 York Place — South West England
Sobo Sommelier — Dorset
Moor Hall — Lancashire
The Art School — North West England
Som Saa — London
Pompette — Oxfordshire
The George Hotel (The Conservatory) — Isle of Wight
Seaview Hotel (Aquitania and Pump Bar and Bistro) — Isle of Wight
The Inn at Whitewell — Lancashire
Tarantella — Cumbria
Barrafina — London
Trinity — London
Rafters at Riverside House — Derbyshire
Salt House Bacaro — Merseyside
Marmo — Bristol
The Coal Shed — Brighton and Hove
The Kilpeck Inn — Herefordshire
28-50 Wine Workshop and Kitchen — London
Soutine — London
Beach House — Wales
Sabor — London
Higher Ground — Greater Manchester
Wild by Tart — London
The Plough Inn — County Down
Tutto — Brighton and Hove
Smoking Goat — London
Stem — Brighton and Hove
The Pipe and Glass Inn — East Riding of Yorkshire
Kiln — London
Sune — London
Bistrotheque — London
The Spanish Butcher — Scotland
Bishop's Eye — Somerset
The Bell Inn — Cambridgeshire
Rochelle Canteen — London
The Swan Hotel, Wells — Somerset
Greens Bar and Kitchen — Hampshire
The Fountain Inn, Wells — Somerset
The King Alfred — Hampshire
Hawksmoor Manchester — Greater Manchester
Sager and Wilde — East London
Unalome by Graeme Cheevers — Scotland
Terre a Terre — East Sussex
Café Murano — London
Wreck Bistro — Merseyside
Sael — London
Celentano's — Scotland
The Gingerman — East Sussex
Chishuru — London
Tharavadu — West Yorkshire
Crabshakk Botanics — Scotland
Sorella — London
The Haven Bar and Restaurant — Hampshire
The Maynard — Derbyshire
The Seahorse — Devon
Dan's Restaurant — Wiltshire
The Royal Standard — Dorset
The Mermaid Inn — East Sussex
Crab Shed — South West England
Four and Twenty — Cumbria
The Wine Shed — East Midlands
The George at Burpham — West Sussex
Old Stamp House — Cumbria
The Black Lion — Suffolk
The Wine Press — Scotland
The Cambridge Chop House — Cambridgeshire
The Pickled Sprout — North Yorkshire
The Marlborough Inn — Wiltshire
Wilks — South West
Skosh — North Yorkshire
Don Paddy's on the Square — East Midlands
1086 Wine Bar and Charcuterie — Hampshire
The Silver Darling — Scotland
The Broad Chare — Tyne and Wear
Middletons Steakhouse and Grill — National
Deanes Meat Locker — Northern Ireland
The Vine — West Yorkshire
Veeno — United Kingdom
Coast — Argyll and Bute
The Courtyard Bar and Restaurant — South East England
Sotto Sotto — Somerset
The Waterside Bistro — East Lothian
OXTWO — Oxfordshire
The Box Tree — West Yorkshire
The Dining Room at Bodysgallen Hall — Wales
The Selkirk Arms Hotel — Dumfries and Galloway
Noble — Northern Ireland
Bar Iberico — Nottinghamshire
Wildes — Warwickshire
Benedicts — Norfolk
Plonk'd — South West
Sargasso — Kent
The River Mill — Cambridgeshire
Pulpo Negro — Hampshire
RT Café Grill — Isle of Wight
The Danesbury — Worcestershire
Jamaica Inn — Down
The Port Gaverne — South West
The Angel of Corbridge — Northumberland
The French Quarter — Tyne and Wear
Damson and Wilde — East of England
The Old Bicycle Shop — Cambridgeshire
Sonny Stores — South West
GRAZE — Cornwall
Arco Bar and Ristorante — West Midlands
Melville and Sons — East of England
Shu — Northern Ireland
Tapasya@Marina — East Yorkshire
Underground Dining — Down
Ten Tables — South East England
Burts Hotel — Scottish Borders
Russell's of Broadway — Worcestershire
Wallop — Cheshire
Hazels — Hertfordshire
Los Moros — North Yorkshire
MUST Wine Bar — Hertfordshire
The Beckford Bottle Shop — Somerset
The Wine Cellar — Essex
Martinez Wines — West Yorkshire
The Jew's House Restaurant — East Midlands
The Old Butchers — Gloucestershire
Rocksalt — Kent
The Fat Duck — Berkshire
The Nest at The Feathers — Oxfordshire
French Living — East Midlands
The Sun Inn — Essex
21 — Tyne and Wear
Sutherland House — East of England
The Cottage in the Wood — Cumbria
Fancett's — East of England
Rhubarb — North Yorkshire
The Wine Rooms — Cambridgeshire
The Fitzherbert Arms — West Midlands
The Westwood Restaurant — East Riding of Yorkshire
The Back Street — Dumfries and Galloway
Beckford Canteen — Somerset
Timberyard — City of Edinburgh
Paul Ainsworth at No.6 — Cornwall
Porthminster Beach Cafe — South West England
Castle House — Herefordshire
Prawn on the Lawn — Cornwall
Baresca — Nottinghamshire
Linden Stores — Cheshire
The Lord Crewe — Northumberland
Duchy Larder — South West
Fernery (Grove of Narberth) — Wales
Beckford Bottle Shop — Somerset
Caldesi in Campagna — Berkshire
The Tobermory Hotel — Argyll and Bute
The Star Inn at Harome — North Yorkshire
Grace and Vine — Warwickshire
The Parsons Table — West Sussex
Shesells Seashells — Kent
The Tannin Level — North Yorkshire
The Gallery Restaurant, Denbies Wine Estate — South East
The Castle Inn — Wiltshire
Regatta Restaurant — Suffolk
Oggi Simply Italian — Leicestershire
V Gastro and Bar — South East England
The Great Room — Northern Ireland
The Lake Isle — East Midlands
The Palmerston — City of Edinburgh
The Union — East Sussex
The Bothy — Scotland
The Beaumont Hexham — Northumberland
Waterman House — Northern Ireland
Loxleys Restaurant and Wine Bar — Warwickshire
Wedgwood the Restaurant — Scotland
Harbourmaster — Wales
The Barn at Moor Hall — Lancashire
Moonfish Cafe — Scotland
Ramore Wine Bar — County Antrim
The Talbot Hotel — East Midlands
Cosa Nostra — North Yorkshire

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A full assessment

80/100

Cin Cin

Hove, East Sussex · Modern Italian · Beta

Cin Cin is a modern Italian neighbourhood restaurant on Western Road in Hove, cooking seasonal small plates and handmade pasta from a menu that changes month to month. The kitchen reads Italy through a Sussex larder (Nutbourne tomatoes, Kentish strawberries, local produce worked in an Italian idiom) across snacks, antipasti, fresh pasta and a short run of mains: cured sea trout with crushed peas, pansotti in walnut sauce, clams with samphire and espelette, a slow-cooked Sussex lamb strozzapreti, a pork scaloppine with artichoke. It can be taken à la carte, as a two- or three-course set lunch, as a mid-week dinner with a shared carafe, or as a four-course Chef's Menu with a wine flight alongside. The price point sits in the mid-range (small plates in the low teens, mains in the low to mid-twenties), and the restaurant is listed in the Michelin Guide.

What marks it out for a wine lover is the seriousness of an all-Italian list that travels the country properly (Piedmont, Tuscany, Sicily, Sardinia, Friuli, Veneto, Campania, Alto Adige) and reaches a genuine fine-wine tier most neighbourhood Italians never attempt: Barolo and Barbaresco, Amarone, a Campanian Taurasi from Aglianico, a Bolgheri red, a rare Piedmontese Timorasso. The unusual part is the fine-wine-by-the-glass programme: serious bottles poured in 125ml and 375ml measures, so a table can drink a Barbaresco or a Taurasi by the glass without committing to the bottle. By-the-glass runs across every colour, and the list is tiered plainly from house classics through regional gems to a special-night-out shelf.

Food-wine integration. The all-Italian list is built to the modern-Italian small-plates format and answers it well (high-acid unoaked whites for the cured fish and seafood, Sangiovese for the lamb and tomato, the fine-wine-by-the-glass tier letting a diner trade up plate by plate), and the Chef's Menu prints a matched flight, which shows kitchen and cellar in dialogue.

Buying philosophy. This is curated, not assembled: a coherent all-Italian point of view that runs region by region and is deepened by a seriously chosen fine-wine tier, the work of a buyer who plainly knows the country.

Value integrity. The markup appeared to be medium and was consistent at the time of reviewing; the by-the-glass pricing is honest, and the fine-wine-by-the-glass measures (a Barbaresco or a Taurasi opened for a single fair pour) are where a wine lover's money goes furthest here.

List architecture. Cleanly built and easy to move through (by the glass across every colour, then bottles tiered from classics through regional gems to a special-night-out shelf, with a separate fine-wine and fine-wine-by-the-glass section), so the diner is guided rather than overwhelmed.

Customer communication. Grape, region and vintage are stated throughout, tasting notes sit beside the fine wines and the by-the-glass measures are clearly marked; there is no printed pairing against individual à la carte dishes, so on the harder plates the spoken steer from the floor carries that work.

Regional diversity. All-Italian by design, but it reads Italy in real depth from Piedmont to Campania, which for an Italian kitchen is the right coherent breadth rather than a limitation.

Sparkling and Champagne. The thinnest part of the programme: Prosecco, a semi-sweet Lambrusco and a southern rosato brut cover the sparkling slot, but there is no traditional-method depth. A Franciacorta or a grower fizz would earn its place against the fried snacks and the seafood.

Vintage policy. Vintages are stated across the list and the fine-wine tier reaches back to the mid-2010s, so there is real attention to the year and some maturity to be had by the glass.

Sustainability and local. The local story is on the food rather than the wine; an organic Chianti is noted as fact, but the list carries no broad stated organic or low-intervention thread, and an all-Italian programme cannot be a local-sourcing story.

Fortified and dessert. A small but proper corner: a Tuscan Vin Santo and a sparkling sweet Brachetto d'Acqui, both in 50ml measures, with a deep amaro and grappa shelf to finish.

Accessibility. This is a welcoming place to drink well without knowing wine: house white and red by the glass and the carafe, a set lunch and a carafe-inclusive mid-week dinner, by-the-glass across the board, and a plainly tiered list that signals where the entry level sits.

The two hardest plates

48-hour cured sea trout, crushed peas with mint and garlic, pickled mushrooms. This is the hardest plate on the menu, and the difficulty is built into it whatever you pour: sea trout is an oily salmonid, the 48-hour cure concentrates that oil and stacks on salt, and oily cured fish turns sharply metallic against any oak. The reply has to be a bone-dry, high-acid, unoaked white with a saline edge: the acidity cleaves the oily richness and meets the salt of the cure and the pickled mushrooms rather than amplifying it, and no oak goes near the fish. Cin Cin pours several glasses that do exactly this: a Vernaccia di San Gimignano (high-acid, faintly bitter-almond, saline), a Sardinian Vermentino (saline and citrus-driven), or a Gavi from the Cortese grape (mineral and lemon-clean), any of them a precise glass-for-plate match. The oaked Langhe Chardonnay on the by-the-glass list is the one to keep away from this dish.

Pork scaloppine, wild garlic sausage, pickled summer squash, artichoke and pine nuts. Artichoke is the wine-killer of the vegetable world: it carries cynarin, a compound that briefly switches off the palate's sweet receptors so the next sip of wine tastes oddly sweet and metallic. The way through is not to fight it but to ride over it: a dry sparkling, whose acidity and bubble cut clean across the distortion, or a neutral high-acid mineral white with no aromatic frills to be thrown out of shape, which also has the acid for the pickled squash and the presence for the pork. Here the Prosecco by the glass is the simplest answer, with the same Gavi or Vermentino as the still alternative. A tannic red would take the cynarin distortion full in the face, so the artichoke, not the pork, sets the choice.

What to drink

One bottle for the table. A high-acid Italian white carries more of this menu than anything else: a Sardinian Vermentino (saline, citrus-driven, low in alcohol) or a Gavi from the Cortese grape (mineral, lemon-clean), either of which handles the snacks, the cured trout (high acid, no oak), the stracciatella and the clams, and rides the artichoke on the pork. Both sit in the accessible middle of the list and are wines an ordinary household can buy and open this week. Neither carries the slow-cooked lamb strozzapreti, which wants a red; for that, add a glass alongside.

If that is not your style. For a red across the lamb and the richer pasta, a Tuscan Sangiovese (a Chianti Classico, or a Rosso di Montalcino as the gentler, earlier-drinking cousin of the Brunello-method wines on the list) brings the savoury cherry and bright acid Italian red sauces are built for, without the heavy tannin that the cured fish and the artichoke would punish.

Across two bottles. Open with the high-acid white through the snacks, the cured trout, the stracciatella and the clams, then move to the Sangiovese for the lamb strozzapreti. Keep a glass of the white, or a glass of the Prosecco, back for anyone at the espelette-spiked clams, where a low-alcohol or sparkling pour lifts the gentle heat cleanly and a high-alcohol red would only stoke it.

At a restaurant of this standard the sommelier's knowledge is this guide's most valuable complement: read this before you arrive, use it to frame the conversation, then trust the person at the table with the current list in their hands, and on the cured sea trout or the artichoke pork, ask for a high-acid unoaked glass and keep oak well away.

In summary

Cin Cin is a modern Italian neighbourhood restaurant in Hove, cooking seasonal small plates and handmade pasta from a monthly-changing menu. The wine programme earns its standing on an all-Italian list that reads the country in real depth and reaches a serious fine-wine tier, much of it poured by the glass, let down only by a thin sparkling shelf and a wine list with no local or organic story to match the kitchen's. It will most reward the diner who comes to eat Italian and wants to drink seriously by the glass, trading up plate by plate with the floor to guide them.

The Restaurant Guide for Wine Lovers

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