Raise A Glass
By Lisa Gmur, CSW
Alec Bruggenthies
National Beverage Director
T
he first Smith & Wollensky steakhouse occupies a
stand alone building in New York City and showcases
the trademark Smith & Wollensky green and white
colors; colors they inherited from Manny Wolf ’s, the previous
steakhouse that had been serving steak at this location since
1897.
Smith & Wollensky was founded in 1977 when Alan Stillman
and Ben Benson purchased the steakhouse. The only thing they
changed at the time was the sign so it would read “founded in
1977” and the name using the exact same letters.
Smith & Wollensky has two restaurants in Boston and Chicago,
the original one in New York, Columbus, Ohio, Miami and the
newest one in Las Vegas. (A second Florida location is in the
works.)
We talked with Smith & Wollensky’s Beverage Director Alec
Bruggentheis about everything from his take on wine trends,
to the videos we produce for him and a few grapes he thinks
everyone should try.
How long have you worked at Smith &
Wollensky and what experience did you bring
with you?
“I have worked here for almost 10 years.
Previously I had been the sommelier/beverage
manager at a number of restaurants throughout
Chicago, notably Ambria and Blue Water Grill.
I received my sommelier certification in 2005
and I have been running beverage programs
since.”
How does your wine program work?
“All of our locations have a dedicated beverage
manager and they make most of the decisions
for their individual locations. I oversee those
lists as well as create our by the glass program.”
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There are so many wines out there. How do you decide which
wines are best for your restaurants?
“I try and take a number of factors into account, the most
important being the quality of the wine. Even if it’s a popular
wine, I do not want to list it unless it is also a good wine. I mostly
look for wines that are well made and express a sense of where
they are from.”
A sense of place is so important, and the stories.
“Yes. The Mark Wine Group has created great videos for us that
talk about the wines and the stories, which are so useful for our
staff.”
We love to hear that. Thank you. What are some of the wine
trends you are following?
“I have been an advocate for screw cap enclosures for a very long
time. There is a need for over 25 billion wine corks each year
and only 17 billion wine corks are available so other means of
enclosure are necessary. Although not traditional, wines under
screw cap enclosures have begun to lose their stigma as being
“cheap” or ‘lesser’ because of the screw cap. Wine is one of the
rare fields that had not embraced innovation throughout its history
and, thankfully, that has been changing in recent decades.”
How about the grape varietal trends like Prosecco, Rosé and red
blends?
“Prosecco sells well because it is our least expensive sparkling
wine and the wine drinking public is starting to see the difference
between different styles of sparkling wines. Rosé has been a
nonstop juggernaut for the past four years or so. When it comes to
red blends, there needs to be either some clarity or demystification
with this category. I am very pleased that the idea of a ‘Red
Blend’ is a popular trend, but this should also come with a bit of
education.”
We get that. What kind of education do you have for your staff? Is
that where the videos come in handy?
“Yes. The videos are great for this. We also have an extensive
training program. Our staff has a significant
beverage training section as part of their
initial training. All of our staff then has weekly
notes that take that initial training and expand
upon it. We conduct tastings at each of our
locations and I always welcome special guests
like winemakers or brewers to speak to the staff
when available.”
Do you find your guests being more
adventurous?
“Guests are being more adventurous but they
still want to have an anchor of familiarity when
they are being adventurous; for instance a red
blend consisting of a different mix of grapes
or a Pinot Noir from a region that is new to
them.”
THE MARK WINE NEWS