Aldo Sohm - A Totally Approachable Guide from a World-Class Sommelier

Acknowledgments

I never planned to write a book,
and yet here we are!

My deepest gratitude goes to Eric Ripert and his Angels, Cathy Sheary and Chelsea Renaud, for setting me on this path. But being lucky doesnt come easy; there is a lot of work behind the scenes. Special thanks to Kimberly Witherspoon and her team for doing the heavy lifting of the contracting and for being so patient during that process.

To Christine Muhlke: Without you, this book would be a strange combination of German and English, sprinkled with a ton of Aldo-isms. I wrote this book on my days off, weekends, in morning meetings at Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, and at your apartment. While I still think your cycling up New Yorks Sixth Avenue to meet every Friday morning was crazy, I admit your croissants were better than mine! Im going to miss those morning meetings, not to mention the long hours on FaceTime. Thank you for your talent and for your wisdom to know how to make this book really sound like me.

To the dining room team, led by Ben Chekroun and Tomi Dzelalija: You guys make me smile every day, and I feel were brothers from other mothers. Thanks also to the kitchen team, led by Chris Muller and Eric Gestel, and Kris Sullivan at the wine bar.

Then, theres the best boss Ive ever worked with: Maguy Le Coze. Because of your high standards, you have made such a magic place to work, and I couldnt envision a better platform on which to strive. Thank you for the trust you put in me, and for making sure the office is always neat and tidy!

Susan Kamil from Random House, thanks for pushing me for years to do my own book. Coming from you, it meant a lot and gave me the confidence I needed.

To Jennifer Sit from Clarkson Potter, for putting all of your heart and passionand incredible editing skillsinto this project, and for guiding me in the right direction.

To designer Alaina Sullivan, for making this book (and proposal!) so exceptional to look at.

To the rest of the Potter teamMia Johnson, Terry Deal, Andrea Portanova, Heather Williamson, and David Hawkfor their talents and bringing this book into the world.

To Sarah Thomas, for your passion, talent, and always being there when I needed you. Thank you for correcting my social media posts, spicing up the talking points, and letting me pick your brain to see questions through a different lens.

To my great sommelier teams at Le Bernardin and Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, passionately led by Katja Scharnagl and Andr Compeyre: Im only as good as you are! Gili Lockwood and Marie Vayron, I still consider you part of the teamthank you for proofreading and for your input.

To my bar team: I love tasting and elaborating on new cocktails!

To the guinea pigs, Ali Slagle, Charlotte Woodruff Goddu, and Nao Mizuno, for allowing me to tap your brains at our SriPraPhai dinner and to learn from you.

To Gerhard Kracher, my partner in the Sohm & Kracher project, and to his wife, Yvonne, for your deep friendship, support, and building this amazing project. Ive learned so much!

To Josef Karner and Martin Hinterleitner from Zalto Glass: What an amazing journey weve had. Thank you for the continued support!

To my early mentors: Wolfgang Hagsteiner, Otmar Pfeiffer, and Prof. Mag. Ingrid Nachtmann at the Tourism School in St. Johann/Tirol: I was a challenging student, but thank you for setting me on this path.

To Adi Werner and Helmut Jrg, who lit the fire in me to become a sommelier: Thank you for allowing me to attend tastings during my few hours off and then always correcting my tasting notes.

To Norbert Waldnig, my mentor in sommelier school and trainer for the sommelier competitions: I know I said No way, but thank you for pushing meand also for our deep friendship!

To Tom Engelhard and Willi Balanjuk, for being the best tasting trainers. To Andrew Bell of the American Sommelier Association, for welcoming me so warmly to the US and helping me to spread my wings. THANK YOU!

To Dr. Steven Schram, Dr. Patrick Mizrahi, and Michaela Angerer, for constantly looking after my health and mental condition, and for keeping me rolling. Youre the fathers and mother of my success, working tirelessly in the background.

To the great friends and clients of Le Bernardin, from whom I get so much joy in my daily work on the dining room floor. To my sommelier friends in New York, the US, and around the globe, who inspire me and make me want to become better all the time.

To the winemakers who shared their expertise. To Jean-Marc Roulot, for being such a great mentor. To all the wine importers and distributors with whom I share a relationshipthanks to you, I learn every day.

To all the journalists and press, thank you for believing in me and sending me on such a career.

To Bobby Stuckey, Rajat Parr, Pascaline Lepeltier, and Alice Feiring: Thank you for taking the time to chat about natural wine. It was eye opening, and I learned a lot from you. Thank you for being my friends.

To my great friends Aldo Diaz and Murray Hardie: Thank you for helping me to discover a new passion for cycling. To Aldo, thank you for knowing only one speed: full gas! Murray, Ive never seen anyone become more passionate about wine in such a short period. #trainwithchampane doesnt work; #trainforchampagne does!

To my father, Josef, and my mother, Roswitha, for leading me in the right direction to make the tough decisions for my professional path. To my brother, Ivo, my half-sisters, Tina and Joana, and to my Austrian family, for all my great childhood memories.

And to Margit Sohm. With our long history, I dont even know where to start. You saw the very beginning, with all the growing pains and the difficult times during the competition years. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It wouldnt have been possible without you.

And to my partner, Catherine Roman, who stands patiently by my side and supports all of my projects with unconditional love. While I keep myself busy all the time, I truly love that you calm down my life, make sure I get on the bike, and make sure I get some sleep. When we cook and have a great bottle of wine together, nothing gives me more happiness than when you shake your tailfeathers and say, Oh, que rico! (How delicious!)

ALDO SOHM is the James Beard Awardwinning wine director of Le Bernardin and partner in the eponymous Aldo Sohm Wine Bar. Sohm was named Best Sommelier in the World in 2008 by the Worldwide Sommelier Association, Best Sommelier in America in 2007 by the American Sommelier Association, and Best Sommelier of Austria four times by the Austrian Sommelier Union. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

CHRISTINE MUHLKE is a contributing editor at Bon Apptit and the former food editor of the New York Times Magazine. The creator of the Xtine newsletter, she has also authored cookbooks with Eric Ripert, David Kinch, and Eric Werner.

1: What Is Wine, Anyway?

Its cultural. Its historical. Its a lifestyle product. It brings us together across countries and generations.

And yet wine is simply fermented grape juice. (Or, to be a little more technical, its the juice from crushed grapes in which the sugars are fermentedwith the help of buried in the ground. Some wines are bottled immediately and sold young, while other wines spend time in their fermentation vessels before making their way into bottles, or are aged further in bottles prior to release. The differences in flavor, color, and even texture are infinite.