There's no doubt that the food world is full of exciting women—Christina Tosi, April Bloomfield, Kerry Diamond and Claudia Wu to name a few. This month celebrates Women's History Month, and though International Women's Day occurred yesterday, it really should be celebrated year round. So, what about the ladies who work strictly with wine? From one sommelier who founded her own wine studio to another who leads an all female team of sommeliers, read two stories of women who are changing the world of wine, one glass at a time.
Jessica Certo of Del Frisco's
Jessica worked her way up from a server at Del Frisco's to become the wine director where she now leads an all-female team of sommeliers.
Harper's Bazaar: How did you get your start?
Jessica Certo: I've always worked in restaurants. I came to New York to get my Master's degree in Opera and Performance at Manhattan School of Music. That required a day job. I started working at Del Frisco's as a server back in 2007. I had never been at a restaurant that had such an extensive wine list and I was a little bit lost. While working at Del Frisco's I decided to take a wine class—Viticulture and Vinification—so I could gain more knowledge and give better tips. It's just a really fancy way of saying, "The basics of wine all over the world." I really fell in love with the subject matter. I decided, maybe, I was happier doing wine than music. I passed my level one course, and they didn't have a job open for me as a sommelier on the Del Frisco's team. I was hired by Veritas in the Flat Iron district, which is no longer open. I worked there for a grand total of three days before Del Frisco's called me and had a job for me.
HB: What's a typical day like?
JC: Right now I'm studying for the Master Sommelier exam. I study producers and vintage. I'll usually go into Del Frisco's at noon and take up the invoices—I go through and make sure the proper vintages and proper wines have arrived. I'll work the lunch service—usually 12:30 though 2 PM, depending on how busy we are. Then, I put together the wine orders for the next day and the weekend. On Thursday, I teach a class to my staff. I do an hour wine class, it's a 14 week program to prepare them to take the level one Court of Masters exam. Then, it's down to the cellar. We have three cellars that are white and three cellars that are red. Anything that's really expensive lives in our showcase cellar. It's a little manual labor—lifting boxes, putting wines away, and organizing it. I'll go through tips with my staff on a wine that might be really hot right now, or something I tasted that blew my mind, then we'll run though dinner. I'll pull myself off the floor around 9:30 and do some computer work updating vintages on the wine list.
HB: What is it like working as a woman in the wine industry?
JC: In general, the sommelier community in New York is lovely. Our restaurant has an entire female team. There are more women now in the industry than ever and a lot of classes in the city are gaining a big following—there's a lot of ladies that want to be sommeliers.
HB: What's trending in wine right now?
JC: A lot of lesser-known regions in Italy are trending, like Umbria, Puglia. Sherry has been catching steam for a while now. Riesling continues to have its heyday. And in our restaurant, Spain has really blown up in the last 18 months because Spain has so many different sides. You can offer something earthy, full, aged, or white.
HB: What advice can you give to someone who wants to go into the wine industry?
JC: Read a lot, drink a lot and taste a lot. You can't have a really good picture of the world if you only ever drink Chardonnay. Drink outside your box and don't be afraid to pour something out if you don't like it.
HB: What's your favorite non-conventional pairing?
JC: Champagne and French fries. It's the best of all worlds combined—crispy, salty, sweet, bubbly.
HB: What's your favorite part of your job?
JC: Teaching. If there's something I can share with a table that they didn't know before, or teaching my staff.
Laura Maniec of Corkbuzz
Laura was a wine and spirits director for over 20 restaurants across the country before founding her wine studio, Corkbuzz. She is currently one of two female Master sommeliers in New York.
Harper's Bazaar: How did you get your start?
Laura Maniec: I wanted to get into the restaurant business at an early age—as early as 10 or 11. I went to community college for two years, then planned to go to the Culinary Institute of America. In between the two, I heard about this wine class in Windows on the World at the World Trade Center. I thought it would be fun to register for this class with some girlfriends. I took the class, and fell in love. I turned 21 that summer. I withdrew from culinary school after 9/11. I did a stint at Ruby Foo's and worked at Del Frisco's then got an offer to work at Blue Fin. I ended up working with them for 10 years until finally I became the wine director for the whole company.
HB: What's a typical day like?
LM: I have the original Corkbuzz in Union Square and Corkbuzz in Chelsea Market, then I also have a project in Charlotte, North Carolina. Usually in the morning, I do emails. I'll go into Corkbuzz for a couple of hours in the morning. I'm training one of my sommeliers for a wine competition right now. Then I have a meeting with business partners from Charlotte. I'll run over to Union Square. Then, tonight we have a party so I'll run over and work service at Chelsea Market. I spend most of my time mentoring my staff and marketing my businesses. I definitely work at the restaurants on a regular basis and do a little bit of travel.
HB: What's the best part of being a woman in the wine industry?
LM: What's exciting with women and wine right now is that everybody wants to collaborate.
HB: What advice would you give someone who wants to go into the wine industry?
LM: Get a great mentor, reach out if you can. Reach out to someone who has your dream job, set up a call with them. Take some wine classes.
HB: What's trending in wine right now?
LM: I would say, servers becoming more educated. It's happening in food too—people want to know where their food comes from. That's great for lesser-known regions. Let's say we all drink Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, maybe now we're more likely to try a local grape.
HB: What's your favorite part of your job?
LM: Teaching. But that can be anything from talking to our guests at the bar to holding a wine class for staff on Saturday morning. I love the education, and I love watching people experience that "aha" moment.
HB: What's your favorite bottle of wine right now?
LM: I have so many favorites. I always love a great bottle of champagne, the top one for me is from a producer called Georges Laval. I love their champagne brut at the moment.
