By Bruce Schoenfeld

Erin O’ Shea is the sommelier at Press, a steakhouse in St. Helena, California, that sources wine exclusively from the Napa Valley, which is like playing the bass drum when you used to conduct an entire orchestra. As the former wine director of Ken Oringer’s three Boston-area restaurants, she constructed eclectic collections that provided liquid accompaniment to dishes from ham croquetas to raw sea urchin. Now she longs to sell Spanish wine again. “The wine geek in me really got into the different varieties,” she says. “Everybody’s sort of tasted the gamut of California Chardonnay, but nobody knows Txakoli. I miss the excitement of introducing them to it.” When a customer arrives at Press with his own bottle of something Spanish, O’Shea will get wistful, like she’s seen a snapshot of an old sweetheart. “I’ll say, ‘Oooh, look at that,’” she says.

Selling wine is a sommelier’s job description, but the best of them sell different wines in different ways. Two decades ago, Spanish wine was barely in the conversation at most American restaurants. You’d find some sherry or a Rioja here and there, but mostly California wines, and Bordeaux and Burgundy, and a little Italian, and maybe a bargain Chilean or Australian. Spanish restaurants? They served sangría – if not margaritas. Now Spain has arrived as the source of some of the world’s best wine, and the go-to country for many top sommeliers. Want a match for oysters or sushi? Try Albariño. An older vintage for under $100? Rioja Reserva. A pairing with lamb or beef that isn’t overly jammy or alcoholic? Look to Ribera del Duero, even Priorat. But selling Spanish wine is also challenging. It may seem hard to fathom for a sophisticated consumer living in San Francisco or New York, but a significant number of America’s fine diners show up at the table with the expectation of drinking (a) California Cabernet or Chardonnay; (b) Bordeaux, Burgundy, or something Italian; or (c) Yellowtail. So what’s a well-rounded sommelier do?

What follows are six secrets of the trade:
1. Relate it to something they know. Many patrons turn to Napa Cabernets because that’s all they’ve ever drunk. “There’s a good opportunity when people say ‘I really like Cab,’” says Fred Dexheimer, an industry consultant who previously worked at New York’s Jean Georges and Gramercy Tavern, among other prestigious restaurants. “At BLT Steak, we’d cross people over to Ribera del Duero, Jumilla, even Rioja. And it isn’t just Cabernets. If someone said, ‘I love Chateauneuf du Pape, then, hey, Priorat. It’s about listening to what the guests want and steering them in that direction.”

Spanish wines seem ideal for leading diners from the known to the unknown. “They bridge the gap between New World and Old World,” says Evan Williams of Denver’s Rioja, a pan-Mediterranean restaurant that features wines from a dozen countries. “They have traditional flavors, but with more ripeness and maybe more alcohol than some.” While ultimate satisfaction will depend on what’s in the bottle, names of wines and even bottle designs can help smooth the transition. “I often find myself turning to the Jorge Ordóñez portfolio,” says Andrew Green of San Francisco’s Spruce, referencing the importer who brings some of Spain’s hottest wines to America. “They have packaging that appeals to a younger generation. And they’re clean wines, easy to drink. If some of them lack the soul of the most traditional wines, that’s OK. For the California drinker, it’s an easy segue.” Once the door has been opened to Spain, the journey deeper becomes almost inevitable, says Dexheimer. “If I can get people to say ‘I like Rioja,’ the game is on. I can take them anywhere in Spain.”

2. Sell them on value. In the supermarket or wine shop, an explosion of bottlings from previously unknown regions has helped Spain gain a reputation for good value. “People will try a $10 Monastrell at Whole Foods and be blown away,” says Green. They’ll come to him seeking that wine, but thinking of the whole country in a different way.

The economic downturn has helped push customers toward wines they might never have considered. “Consumers are more open to value than ever, even if it means wines outside their comfort zone,” says Jorge Mendoza of Cioppino, in the Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne. “I work the floor every night, and I’ve never heard so many guests ask me for advice rather than just order what they usually drink. They’ll say, ‘I’m looking at this price point. What do you suggest?’ That usually gets me to Spain. Up and down the list, they’re the best values we have.” Even bottles at the highest end can be a good buy. At Spruce, Green has a collection of R. Lópezde Heredia’s Viña Tondonia and Viña Bosconia dating to the 1940s. “The people who buy them are accustomed to drinking aged Bordeaux,” he says. “Occasionally, I’ll say ‘I know you like mature wine. Would you like to have a different experience tonight?’ I’ve never had anyone complain.”

3. Use food pairings. Sometimes a wine will work so well with a dish, sommeliers can’t help but gush. Such enthusiasm will often get unfamiliar wines to the table – and in the best possible setting. “We have an octopus dish that isn’t exactly Spanish, but it’s Spanish inspired,” says Chris Lara of Seattle’s Matt’s in the Market. “It’s phenomenal with La Guita Manzanilla, which we sell by the glass. It’s often the first time a guest will try sherry.” Spanish wines work so well with food, Lara says, that he finds himself suggesting one after another for specific dishes: “I’ve even paired red Rioja with salmon. If the wine has a little age on it, it goes really nicely.”

The concept of food having a profound impact on wine – and vice versa – isn’t lost on educated diners. “Someone might love Napa Cabernets, but those aren’t necessarily the wines that work with our food,” says Alec Riveros, the former wine director at Boston’s elegant Clio. “Our clientele tends to be a little more open-minded, and servers stress food pairings. That often leads them to some of the wines from around Spain that tend to be less fruit-forward, less dense. It matches with the meal, and they end up discovering a great wine.”

4. Tap into the excitement. Years ago, most wine drinkers had steady favorites, and they’d buy them by the case as their house white and red. But the best wines of the world are available everywhere now, and a growing segment of consumers is eager to explore. “People have tried Burgundies,” Riveros says. “They’ve had the different wines from Tuscany. But Spain is still somewhat undiscovered. When you say ‘Tempranillo,’ a lot of people aren’t sure what that translates to. So you get to take them on a journey and discover it.”

“I’ve turned a lot of people on to Spanish wine through the years,” says Dexheimer. “They’ll start with one, and then they’ll come back a week later and say, ‘Let me try another.’ Or else, ‘I’ve heard about Jumilla. How about that this time?’ But you need to take it step by step.” It isn’t only the customer who gets excited. “What keeps us coming to work every day is the thrill of turning somebody on to something new and exciting,” says Rioja’s Williams. “Getting people to love Spanish wine is one of the best parts of my job.”

5. Tell a story. Spruce’s Green loves when customers allow him to bring several bottles to their table unopened and expound on each – the producer, a vineyard, a grape, even a technique. “You take them on a little tour,” he says. That’s good practice for selling any wine, but in Spain compelling narratives abound. The geography is wide-ranging and largely unknown, and varieties such as Mencía, Xarel.lo and Prieto Picudo are downright mysterious. “It’s the most unique wine country,” says O’Shea. “You’re looking at varieties that aren’t found elsewhere,
and fascinating stories.”

Brian Duncan, the wine director and a partner of Chicago’s decade-old Bin 36, has relied on Spanish wine since his restaurant opened. He’s also an inveterate traveler. “The last time I went to Spain, everything was so amazing,” he says. “I show people pictures of the food, and I talk about the amazing breadth of the cuisine, and the wines to match. People love to hear those personal stories. It’s not even like making a sale, it’s like being a real good travel guide.” Occasionally, the stories flow in the other direction. “Some of the greatest guests are people who’ve just traveled somewhere,” says Dexheimer. “They’ll say, ‘I was just in Spain and I had such-and-such, do you have it?’ And I’ll say, ‘No, but I have this.’ And they’re thrilled.”

6. Run specials. Selling unfamiliar wines in flights, on theme nights or by the glass, are time-tested ways to get customers to try them. With Spanish wines, single-glass pours and specials aren’t merely an introduction to a producer or grape, but often an entire category. At Clio, Riveros offers a Verdejo by the glass. “You see the same people who tried it drinking one of our Albariños, or Garnacha Blanca.” Duncan can’t remember the last time he didn’t have a Spanish wine in one of his flights. Currently, he offers an international Pinot Noir sampler that begins with an Aria Brut Rosé Cava. “People order it and they’re shocked,” he says. “The versatility with the food, the fact that Pinot Noir can exist in that form. And we sell a lot more of that Cava than we would if it just sat there on the list.”

When he worked at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Spice Market, Dexheimer always sold at least one Ribera del Duero by the glass. He felt confident that a taste would lead to a full exploration of the category. “People would be, like, “I’ve had Cabernet, I’ve had Merlot, I’ve had Pinot, but what’s this Ribera del Duero?’” he says. “And they’d get into
it. Next thing you know, they’re drinking a Palacios wine from Bierzo.”

If different grapes and regions and wine styles represent tools in a sommelier’s kit, Spain is a Swiss Army Knife. Many Spanish wines didn’t even exist in the U.S. market a decade ago. Now they give sommeliers the means to fill specific needs in a way they never could with the usual suspects. “It gave me a way to have older notes come through, like in an aged Rioja, but without the guest spending a fortune,” says Lara. “And an elegance from the Old World even in the biggest wines, like Priorats.”

Some sommeliers, like O’Shea, don’t appreciate how much they rely on Spanish wine until they lose access to it. Others do. “If I couldn’t sell Spanish wine, it would be like missing a member of my family,” says Green. “Like losing Uncle Joe. Oh, you’d still have Thanksgiving, you’d still have Christmas. But without Uncle Joe around, it wouldn’t be much fun.”

About the author:
Bruce Schoenfeld has been writing professionally for nearly 25 years. First for newspapers, then magazines, with books and television projects along the way. These days, he writes most often for Travel & Leisure about wine and food (he is the Wine and Spirits Editor
there), and also for many other national and international publications. He has been visiting Spain annually since 1987. Visit Bruce's website at www.bruceschoenfeld.com.

Bin 36
339 North Dearborn St.
Chicago, IL
Tel: 312-755-9463
www.bin36.com

Cioppino
Ritz Carlton Hotel
455 Grand Bay Drive
Key Biscayne, FL
Tel: 305-365-4500
www.ritzcarlton.com

Clio
370 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston, MA
Tel: 617-536-7200
www.cliorestaurant.com

Press
587 St. Helena Highway
St. Helena, CA
Tel: 707-967-0550
www.presssthelena.com

Rioja
1431 Larimer St.
Denver, CO
Tel: 303-820-2282
www.riojadenver.com

Spruce
3640 Sacramento St.
San Francisco, CA
Tel: 415-931-5100
www.sprucesf.com