The Wandering Palate was in San Francisco recently for a Robert Parker gig and had a wonderful LONG lunch for my birthday with legendary New Zealand winemaker, Marcel Giesen of Bell Hill and Giesen winery, pictured here at Zuni Cafe and immersing ourselves in freshly shucked local oysters and a bottle of Marcel’s single vineyard “The Fuder” Sauvignon Blanc – awesome pairing!
(pronounced suh-mal-‘yAy)
In Medieval Provençal times they were saumaliers, animal pack drivers who evolved during Middle French kingdom to become court officials charged with transportation of supplies. So what does a modern day Sommelier actually do? Well, Wikipedia outlines as such, “A sommelier or wine steward is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally working in fine restaurants who specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food matching. The most important work of a sommelier is in the areas of wine procurement, wine storage, wine cellar rotation, and expert service to wine consumers.” Read More >
