Wine Wednesday in the Pearl- Update

I've been getting a lot of questions the last week or so as to what's going on for the next WWIP. Hopefully this will give some of you an insight into what's planning, and where I'm hoping to take these events in the future.

I'm still in the process of developing relationships with Pearl Neighborhood restaurants. My goal is to turn WWIP into a truly neighborhood event, not something that is my wine crawl on my day off. I'd like to have special deals offered to WWIP attendees at various places all night long.

My portion of the event is a little more focused this time around. Last month I enjoyed just having a whole bunch of people over to open some bottles and chat, a little networking as it were. I've had multiple requests for some wine-training to be involved, so this time I'll be presenting a class.

In my year and a half in Portland, I've only seen a handful of wines opened properly. Now, generally speaking, proper service etiquette isn't observed- you don't need to go through all the steps for popping a bottle at home, nor is it necessary to observe all the steps in most of our dining establishments. However, on those occasions when something really special is being opened up (even if the server doesn't think it's all that special, it might be special for the table), it's vital to observe the rituals. Although I think that Wine Opening 101 is a primarily industry focused class, there are some very valid reasons why consumers should attend as well.

Wine Opening 101- Learn the proper steps of opening wine: Still service; Presentation; Cork Presentation; Serviette Usage; Sparkling Service. This class is vital for any person seeking to work in the service industry where proper wine service might be required. This class is also extremely helpful for the consumer who is serious about proper dining (don't you want to know that your server is doing things *right*?).

I'm all for tipping 20-25% for service, but only if it's warranted. If my server can't open my wine properly, they're not getting that extra bump.

So, to summarize:

Next Wine Wednesday in the Pearl is scheduled for Sept 23, 2009.
Special wine deals at local Pearl restaurants to be announced!
Wine Opening 101 class at Asa Skylounge 6:30pm -8:30pm

The joy of the class at Asa? We're gonna drink all the wine we open up during class. The drawback? It will have a minor cost involved.
I'll start posting more aggressively as we get closer to the event, looking forward to seeing you all there!

08/28/09 - My life as a working Sommelier

The difficulty (ok, ONE of the difficulties) I face frequently at my "day" job is that I'm not the Somm of the restaurant, but I *am* a Somm. I often feel like I'm "stepping on toes" when I help out with wine for my fellow servers. It's not so much an issue when I'm starting a table for a server who just hasn't shown up for work yet. It's a whole different ball game when a table asks me to open some wine for them as I stroll past the table.

I got to the restaurant 2 and a half hours before my shift was scheduled to begin. I like to be early. I can fold my napkins, buff out my section, make everything pretty, all long before people arrive and stress time starts. I also don't mind taking the early table now and again ;) I started a table for another server, opened up some Shafer Merlot '04 for them, and passed the table on. It was one of two tables that I started at 4pm, the absolute beginning of dinner for our restaurant. The other table I kept.

A very nice couple in town for a mini-family reunion, flew down from Spokane, WA. (Mad props to Horizon Air for being the best damn airline around!) Merlot really is making a comeback folks. After a nice app of scallops and goat cheese stuffed figs with a couple of Goose Martinis, they decided wine was appropriate with the meal. I love tables that are engaging. I mean- I'm damn charming at the table, and I love it when people will joke back with me, talk about what they enjoy in food, and are willing to listen to recommendations and descriptions. I think my point is this- I'm a professional, I can make your dining experience thrilling, and it's joyous to me to be able to perform on point for you. We discussed seafood, and moved to the beef. They were considering some white, we moved into- you guessed it, Merlot. The '04 Twomey showed beautifully next to the ribeye *and* the shortribs, everybody happy :)

This shift was the beginning of a mini-competition between another server and myself. We have at the restaurant 22 labels on/off the list of current inventory 5 bottles or less. The other server and I are going to sell the rest of these bottles out in the next month, to see who can empty the bins *and* make the most money off the remaining bottles. The Twomey was the only bottle I counted for me last night- he moved a Rosenblum Syrah and a Girard Petite Sirah. He's up by $20 on me. I'll get it back soon. We still haven't determined the prize for the competition; I'm sure it'll be stellar since it's coming out of the loser's pocket.

I got home to another blind tasting- thanks baby! My logic on the wine in question was good, but I ruled out a crucial factor based on not tasting the acid enough. My initial conclusion was off by half the world (thinking OR PG, actually NZ SB), and as the wine warmed, it became much more obvious to me. The wine ('08 Nobilo Sauv Blanc, Marlborough NZ) never showed as much acid as I would have expected, but was much more typical of the style as it came up to the 40-45 degree range.

08/25/09 - My life as a working Sommelier

Yesterday's post was sort of a "Debbie-Downer," and I'm still in the same funk for today's. It gets frustrating to watch so many wines go out that could be so much better. There are innumerable opportunities for salesmanship at our restaurant, and there are times when I feel that my co-workers drop the ball.

One of my co-workers who shares this view, and has some damn good ideas about wine also, proposed a challenge to me, a mini sales-contest between he and I. We've got something like 22 selections on or off list right now that are down to the last 1 or 2 bottles in house, and his proposal is to see who can move through the most of them. I might have some fun with this one, especially since it's just a friendly wager between friends. The last contest that the *restaurant* put out has left a sour taste in my mouth, and this is hardly the venue for it.

Didn't sell any wine all night long. One table brought in a 1992 Caymus Special Select, the cork was in beautiful shape. Should I rant about corkage fees? I've written notes about them in the past-

I'm all for Corkage fees. I'm sorry if this offends you, but I've a very strong restaurant background, and I firmly believe in corkage fees! (Cake-age fees too, but that's off topic) Further, I think it's appropriate for the restaurant to have a HIGHER corkage fee if you bring in a bottle that the restaurant carries.
Having said that, I must relate the following:

Tonight I waited on a party of four. They were a pair of affluent, well spoken, mid 40s couples. They brought in two bottles of wine- the '07 J. Lohr Seven Oaks Cab, and the '06 Chateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Cab. I'll not belabor the whole story of their dining experience, suffice it to say that I decanted both of these wines through a Rojaus Vine Decanter, with much explanation and flourish. Now, these people knew what they were drinking, and made no claims as to its' virtues, nor did they bat an eyelash at the corkage fees on the bill.

Here's my question- would you ever bring such a wine into a restaurant? I'm not belittling the wine, I've purchased the same CSM IW Cab for home consumption. I'm VERY familiar w/ the J. Lohr- having worked for a winery not more than a stone's throw from the Lohr vineyards in Paso (East Side baby!) Robles. These wines are great every-day drinking wines (for those enjoy who that particular style). They are NOT wines for memorable events. So again- would you take that type of a wine to a restaurant? Pay a corkage that's more expensive than the wine itself? Really?

So, I obviously don't harbor resentment to this couple for bringing in the '92. Maybe I'm just bummed that the couple didn't pour a taste for me?

I got home to a treat. My girlfriend bought a bottle of red and greeted me with a blind test. Awesome. I haven't been challenging myself on wine tasting lately, just enjoying it and taking it all in. I did okay on the test, nailed varietal, was 1 yr off vintage, and had region just not sub region. I asked my girlfriend to test me more often, as it dovetails nicely with so many of my current ambitions of furthering my Somm certifications.