In the Drink

Meet Mia Van de Water, the wine director at North End Grill. In 2014, Mia passed the Advanced Sommelier Exam from the Court of Master Sommeliers. Mia had the distinction of receiving the highest score in her group, and earned the Rudd Scholarship, which is offered by the Guild of Sommeliers. During her time at North End Grill, Mia has overseen the expansion of the wine list from 120 to 240 selections, with a focus on cool, off-the-beaten-path American bottles that include rare, little known grapes being made really well for a reasonable price. She has also created a beverage education program has turned into a major part of why aspiring restaurateurs and sommeliers come to work at North End Grill. Tune in to this week’s episode of In the Drink and hear Mia’s story, what she enjoys drinking and what she tries to accomplish with the program at North End Grill. This program was sponsored by Michter’s.

“While the current demographic is certainly weighted more towards men, I think that the momentum and the amount of women working in wine is expanding in a really great way.” [27:00]

–Mia Van de Water on In the Drink

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E.Pira e Figli is a key player in the history of Barolo. The Pira family, whose members have been vignerons for generations, started producing and bottling wineat the end of the 19th century, receiving immediate recognition for their stellar quality! When the Pira lineage ended tragically with the death of Luigi Pira, theestate was sold to the Boschis family, of Giacomo Borgogno & Figli. Chiara Boschis took the reins in 1990 with a clear vision of what she wanted to accomplish: to marry the extraordinary power of Barolo with approachability, enticing elegance, and lush, intense aromas. She vinifies exclusively fromproprietary vineyards, located in the very best crus of Barolo: Cannubi, Mosconiand Via Nuova, for a grand total of only 6 acres! Annual production is a miniscule 2,000 cases. In the short time Chiara has run the estate, she has quickly become a ‘Superwoman’ in the area, as one of only a few female winemakers in the Langhe. Her wines are also no strangers to the limelight, regularly garnering high praise from international publications. This is truly a rare gem of an estate! Chiara’s Baroli are reminiscent of great Burgundy. She is a farmer first, as winemaker, she is a master at tannin management, crafting finessed and sophisticated wines that are some of the most aromatically dynamic expressions of Barolo today. This program has been sponsored by Bonnie Plants. Today’s music provided by Pamela Royal.

“The youngsters are always a little bit revolutionary.” [11:30]

–Chiara Boschis on In the Drink

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Mike Martin, the Wine Director at Vintry Fine Wines, is this week’s guest on In the Drink. Vintry Fine Wines, located at 230 Murray Street in the pedestrian pathway, is bringing fine wine to New York City’s revitalized downtown. With over 2,500 selections focusing on both collectibles and drinkables, Vintry Fine Wines is a destination in bourgeoning Battery Park City. From Boedgea owner to Martin Brothers wine to Vintry, hear Mike’s wine journey and what he’s up to these days. This program was sponsored by Rt. 11 Potato Chips

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Wine & Chinese Food..a match made in heaven? That’s what Jason Wagner, sommelier at Fung Tu restaurant, says. Tune in to this week’s episode of In the Drink, as host Joe Campanele chats with Jason about wine pairings, wine lists and life as a sommelier in a forward thinking restaurant. Find out why it’s easy to be the wine guy at a restaurant with a chef who knows his wine. Riesling isn’t the only thing that pairs well with Chinese food — tune and and find out more! This program was sponsored by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

–Jason Wagner on In the Drink

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Meet Carlton McCoy, Wine Director at the Little Nell in Aspen, Colorado and one of only two African American Master Sommeliers. He’s Joe Campanale’s guest this week on In the Drink, and the two wine professionals chat about everything from regional clientele to the masters sommelier test. This program was sponsored by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

“The title mater sommelier itself is a very aggressive sounding thing, it’s not a very approachable title.” [15:00]

–Carlton McCoy on In the Drink

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The Taste of the Nation event is coming up in New York City on April 28th! Joe brings in whole panel to discuss the event for this week’s episode. Jenny Z. Dirksen is Share Our Strength’s National Director of Culinary Events. In her role, Jenny is responsible for a team of 18 that organizes culinary fundraising events coast to coast, including oversight for chef relationships, all with the goal of ending childhood hunger in the US. John DeLucie is the chef and owner of three New York City landmark restaurants: The Lion in the West Village; Crown, situated steps from The Metropolitan Museum of Art in the Upper East Side; and Bill’s, the midtown landmark three-story townhouse that held the famed prohibition-era bar, Bill’s Gay Nineties. His restaurant group, Crown Group Hospitality, also did a pop up of the Lion in The Brompton Club in London, April 2012, and is currently working on launching several projects in tandem with select hotels across the country. In addition, DeLucie consults for the prestigious King Cole Bar & Salon in the St. Regis NY which he recently reopened in November 2013. Celebrated for her 3-star desserts, Heather Carlucci’s pastry reads like a history of NY’s most esteemed eateries. A pastry position at Tom Colicchio’s Mondrian and a pastry chef gig at Union Square Cafe set the tone for an illustrious career. Over the next 15 years she created desserts at L’Impero, Veritas and Judson Grill — each receiving 3 stars from The New York Times. For her first personal venture, Heather opened Lassi, a tiny take-out restaurant featuring Northern Indian home cooking. After leading a successful re-branding and expansion of the family business, Mr. Cardona moved to New York City to pursue a career in wine, first landing at Italian Wine Merchants (“IWM”) where he spent four years working closely with IWM founding partner Sergio Esposito. With the formation of Epicurean Capital and Epicurean Management Company (“EMCo.”), Mr. Cardona was able to solidify both a flexible pool of dedicated capital for new business initiatives and the foundation of an experienced management team to successfully operate and brand existing and future businesses. This program has been sponsored by Whole Foods Market. Today’s music provided by Cookies.

–Jenny Dirkson on In The Drink

“Most kids don’t even know where fruit comes from anymore.” [21:10]

–Heather Carlucci on In The Drink

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Shelley Lindgren is the woman behind A16 and SPQR, two of the Bay Area’s most celebrated restaurants. She’s also one of the nation’s most celebrated experts on wine and pairing. Lindgren has been named “Best New Sommelier” by Wine & Spirits, “Best Wine Director” by San Francisco magazine and was nominated for Best Wine Service by the James Beard Foundation for four consecutive years since 2010. She has also co-authored the award-winning “A16: Food & Wine” cookbook and wine guide celebrating the traditions of Southern Italy and released the “SPQR: Food & Wine” book in late 2012. Shelly is this week’s guest on In the Drink. This program was brought too you by Heritage Foods USA.

“As sommeliers, our job is weed through what you don’t want to drink, find the hidden gems and focus on those. I wouldn’t put something on the list that I don’t want to drink.” [18:00]

–Shelley Lindgren on In the Drink

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Sarah Krathen fell in love with restaurant work at the age of fifteen. She started as a barker for a restaurant on Duval Street in Key West, which meant her job was to get tourists to come in off the street and eat there. The owner of Fogarty’s, a much bigger, newer, and better restaurant, saw her at work and hired her as a hostess. At Fogarty’s, she went from hostess to server to expo (the intermediary between the kitchen and the customers) and then decided to attend culinary school. She enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America, received an associate degree in culinary arts, and then completed a fellowship under her mentor, John Storm, in the on-campus Ristorante Caterina de’ Medici. It was during that fellowship that she met Emma Hearst, a meeting that she describes as the most important of her life. The pair became best friends, roommates, and eventually business partners. Sorella opened on New York’s Lower East Side in 2008, with Sarah managing the front of the house and beverage program. In Fall 2013, Sarah and Emma launched their debut cookbook:Sorella: Recipes, Cocktails & True Stories from our New York Restaurant, featuring over 100 recipes adapted from the Sorella’s menu, woven together by the story of how they went from culinary school friends to young business partners, driven by a shared dream of opening a restaurant. This program has been sponsored by Tabard Inn. Today’s music provided by The Hollows.

“We were nobodies, but we mentioned that we wanted to open a restaurant, and we were treated like gold.” [11:40]

“She took some things off the menu that I never thought would come off..but I realized that was a good idea.” [25:25]

Sarah Krathen on In The Drink

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Before opening Estela, Thomas was beverage director at the award-winning Blue Hill at Stone Barns for six years. He previously worked in wine service for Alain Ducasse at the Essex House, and as a cook at New York restaurants including Le Bernardin, Mercer Kitchen and Union Pacific. Thomas has degrees from Columbia College Chicago and the Culinary Institute of America. This program has been sponsored by Whole Foods Market. Today’s music provided by The Hollows.

“I think cooking at home is maybe one of the best things in the world.” [27:30]

–Thomas Carter on In The Drink

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James Christopher Tracy was exposed to great wines, wine regions and foods from an early age.

“We love to celebrate the specific.” [4:10]

“Water is the be all end all of everything, no matter where you are.” [5:30]

“We’ve gotten a little crazy…but we like that!” [27:15]

–Christopher Tracy on In the Drink

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