Wine Spectator magazine honored Coronado’s Il Fornaio in its 2015 Restaurant Awards issue, which highlights restaurants around the world that offer the best wine selections.
To qualify for an award, restaurants must present a complete wine list with accurate information, which is judged for one of three awards: Award of Excellence, Best of Award of Excellence and Grand Award.
Il Fornaio was one of 2,563 internationally to be given the Award of Excellence, Wine Spectator’s recognition for wine lists that offer a well-chosen selection of at least 90 quality producers, along with a thematic match to the menu in both price and style. Il Fornaio was the only Coronado restaurant to be selected and one of just 39 in San Diego County.
The restaurant — which offers stunning views of the San Diego Bay and the downtown skyline — serves only Italian and Californian wines. “We focus on authentic Italian wines,” said general manager Luca Allieri. “But, recognizing that we are a California restaurant, we pay homage — as the French say — to California’s fantastic wines. Between those producers, we are more than sufficient in excellent wines.”
Il Fornaio also offers its own brand of wine: a Chianti and a pinot grigio produced in Italy and a chardonnay produced in California’s Mendocino County. “They are very high quality wines,” said Allieri.
Allieri suggests pairing Il Fornaio’s Chianti Classico Reserve with the filet mignon with balsamic reduction. “It’s just something you have to try for a real dining experience,” he said.
