Via Paolo Sarpi 30, in the heart of Milan. Forty square meters, two thousand wine labels, and a counter that’s a stage. Cantine Isola—a wine shop with a tasting bar—is celebrating its 130th anniversary and has no intention of moving, as Emanuele Baj Rossi tells us.
There are places that sell wine and places that, through wine, tell the story of a city. Cantine Isola undoubtedly belongs to the second category. The historic location on Via Paolo Sarpi has just celebrated its 130th anniversary, confirming its status not only as one of Milan’s longest-running wine bars, but above all, one of the last true bastions of urban social life.
A Story That Spans Milan
It all began in 1896, when a certain Giovanni Isola — a friend and ideological ally of Filippo Turati — purchased a space on what was already one of Milan’s liveliest streets at the time and opened the Boeucc dell’Isola. In the socialist magazine The Battle, Turati inserts the advertisement: “Wines to serve with meals, to be brought along, in the hope that my companions will become regular customers. Signed: Giovanni Isola ”. “Not much,” many would say. And yet, from that glass—served to those friends, on that street where the tram still ran—unfolds A story that spans two world wars, three families, and an entire vision of Milan.
After World War II, the business passed to another Isola family—with the same name but no relation—five brothers who went on to open five wine cellars between Via Paolo Sarpi and Viale Monza. Of all of them, only one survives: the one run by Carlo, the most enterprising. The baton is then passed to his grandson Giacomo, known as Jack the stappoeur: an unerring nose, according to Ferdinando Frescobaldi, and an extraordinary personal story—sentenced to death in a concentration camp, saved by the arrival of the Russians at dawn on the day of his execution. With him, the wine shop gained the soul that still sets it apart today.
Luca Sarais and the Legacy of the Bar
In 1991, the Sarais family , and today it is their son Luca, then an economics student, is carrying on the most precious legacy. “I never graduated —he says— “but I earned my diploma behind the counter.””. Milly, the previous owner and one of Italy’s first female sommeliers, takes him by the hand and teaches him two things he’ll never forget: to provide customers with a better experience at the bar than they could ever have at home, and to always honor the producer behind every bottle. “Even before describing the scent of apricot or blackberry in the glass, – Luca says —we must first speak of the sweat of those who tended that vineyard”.
In 2022, Luca Sarais was named Best Wine Merchant in Italy in the category of wine bars with on-site service. This recognition comes after thirty years spent behind that same bar.
The counter is a stage
The counter is a stage. Luca says this with conviction and without any rhetoric. The hosts are the actors, and the paying audience must leave satisfied. Or at least have learned something new. Cantine Isola currently has about 2,000 permanent labels — which can number as many as three thousand over the course of the year — with a focus on Mediterranean Europe and the occasional foray into New Zealand and Australia, when the producers are worthy. The selection ranges from everyday wines to those that “ Every wine enthusiast dreams of having in their cellar”. Barolo and Barbaresco, Amarone, Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux. And it’s all served by the glass.
This is the rarest and most consistent feature of the bar’s identity. There isn’t a single bottle that can’t be served by the glass, either at the waiter’s suggestion or at the customer’s request. The steady flow of customers ensures a good turnover: bottles don’t stay open too long. Here, you can enjoy wines to suit every budget without feeling like a first- or second-class customer.
Wine as a Shared Culture
The staff knows wine. It’s a requirement, not a preference: Anyone who works here must know their way around wine, with a FISAR or AIS certification or other relevant training, or build that expertise day by day. Trade shows, winery visits, and ongoing exchanges with producers and colleagues fuel a quest for knowledge that never stops. “It’s a constant chatter ,” says Luca, “ where one person tells me about something, I pass it on to another, we go taste it, and then we decide.”
But the true nature of Cantine Isola isn’t found in the catalog. It lies in something Luca calls sharing, and which is actually a philosophy of place. “Even before the wine ,” he says, “Here, being together has always been what matters most.”. A Norwegian friend who used to live across the street, having returned after many years, summed it up best. “ This place doesn’t just sell wine. It conveys culture. “.
Poetry, Every Tuesday
It is from this conviction that, for over ten years now, “La Poesia del Martedì”. Every Tuesday at 8:30 p.m., in the midst of happy hour, the bar pauses for a few minutes. Luca reads a poem or a short story, which are then posted on the shelves thanks to his mother’s help.
There have been plenty of temptations to open a second location—in Miami, London, Turin, Rome—and the answer is always the same. “Our strength is right here inside.” – says Luca. – It’s an oven that keeps baking little things”.
130 years ago, Filippo Turati’s comrades used to come here for a glass of wine with their meal. Today We get neighborhood kids, aspiring sommeliers, collectors, tourists from all over the world, and the few remaining veteran artisans. The bar is still there. The stage is the same.
