“Bar Month” at OnMilwaukee.com is back for another round! The whole month of February, we’re serving up intoxicatingly fun bars and club articles -- including guides, bartender profiles, drink recipes and even a little Brew City bar history. Cheers!
Most OnMilwaukee.com readers that know the name Nate Norfolk, recognize it from his work as a local musician -- currently in The Candliers. But Norfolk was a long-time employee at Downer Wine & Spirits, where he could always be counted on to uncork good wine advice with a smile.
Now, he works for local wine distributor Purple Feet and sells wine to retailers, restaurants and bars. The new position has helped Norfolk become even more acquainted not only with wine but also with the business of wine.
Bar month being heavy on beer in these parts, we thought we'd ask Norfolk about the wine scene in Brew City.
OMC: Tell us about your entry into the world of wine. How did you end up working in wine distribution?
NN: I worked at Downer Wine and Spirits from 1998 until the beginning of 2007. That started as a college job. It turned out I was much more interested in wine than college. Then in 2007 Chris Weyland the owner of Purple Feet wines approached me about a sales position they had. Chris had been my salesman when I was the buyer at Downer Wine and Spirits, so I was familiar with him and I loved the wine portfolio that Purple Feet had, so it seemed like a logical evolution.
OMC: We still think of ourselves as a beer town, but is Milwaukee becoming more sophisticated when it comes to wine?
NN: I try not to think of it in terms of sophistication. I like the idea of the liberation of the world's oldest libation. The masses just need to be exposed to different kinds of wines and it's up to retailers and restaurateurs to do that.
So, yes we are becoming more sophisticated when it comes to wine and there are some incredibly adventurous restaurateurs and retailers, and credit needs to be given to them, but a lot of the diversity we now see has to do with wines from places like Austria and Portugal that are trickling in to our market and the wholesalers are being progressive and promoting these wines.
There is a world of affordable wine out there that meets the criteria of being: affordable, high quality, small production, geographically specific. There's more to the world than Chardonnay and Cabernet.
OMC: Outside places like Bacchus and Eddie Martini's, what makes a good wine list at a restaurant; let's say a mid-price restaurant, the kind people can go to on a regular basis?
NN: Variety, uniqueness and having wines that compliment the cuisine. Don't glass pour stuff that's at every grocery store! What really gets my goat and I won't name names, is when I go to a Thai, Indian or Japanese restaurant and there just aren't any dry aromatic white wines on the list! Come on people, it's called Riesling. You want to tell me you don't like it, but that's like someone who's only ever eaten Velveeta saying they don't like cheese.
Riesling manifests itself in just about every form imaginable: sticky sweet -- which we are all too familiar with -- bone dry, rich and mineral laden, and even sparkling. It is the food wine, yet it is sorely lacking on wine lists.
NN: It's an uphill battle, if you're a restaurateur; you want to appeal to a broad range of people. Unfortunately, many of them believe that that means having a very basic wine list. The places where it works work at it. If we take the old, "a chain is only as strong as its weakest link" analogy and apply it to dining you see that if the server doesn't know anything about the wine and doesn't try to promote it, it probably won't sell.
They are the gatekeepers and management should be informing them about the wine, if not having them try it! Imagine if the server didn't know the specials.
I don't want to get in trouble with anybody for saying this but off the top of my head there are some mid-priced places that really stand out when it comes to wine: Nessun Dorma, La Merenda, Libiamo, Laissez Faire, Cafe Lulu ... please forgive me whomever I've forgotten.
OMC: How can the consumer help get those small wine lists at the local pizzeria, for example, to become more adventurous?
NN: Don't be afraid tell the owner or bar manager that you would be buying wine there if they were a little more adventurous, make suggestions. Don't be afraid to be vocal.
Another thing is that consumers have to stop complaining about wine prices at restaurants. Admittedly, there is a lot of overpriced wine in restaurants, but think of it this way: If you're going to pay $3.50 for a bottle of Miller Lite at some restaurant in a mall, you shouldn't bat an eye at forking over $7 dollars for a glass of wine at a local pizza joint.
People forget that every wine is finite and comes from a certain area and a certain time. I don't mean to get all mystical here, but each wine is like a history lesson, it's like drinking culture. Well, at least when it's good.
I'm biased here. Restaurateurs need to reassess their margins when it comes to wine. If you think that you should be making the same kind of margin off of wine as you do on tap beer, well kudos to you, but, ouch, you're taxing people and savvy consumers know it. A restaurateur makes a higher margin on rice than they would on beef; why can't they do they same with items at the bar.
Places like Pizza Man and Dream Dance are incredibly successful with their wine programs because they sell wine at great prices. So, inevitably they become destinations for wine drinkers, and in turn sell a greater volume of wine.
OMC: How can budding wine enthusiasts learn more and taste more wine on a tight budget?
NN: The best thing I can recommend is to buy wine somewhere that not only has a great selection, but also has staff that you can talk to. Form a relationship with someone there. I'm talking about the kind of relationship you have with a barber, stylist, mechanic or doctor. This is someone you should trust ... maybe find a couple of people. If you don't have that relationship, you aren't buying wine at the right place.
I love reading about wine. I recommend any books by Hugh Johnson, Jancis Robinson, Tom Stevenson and for those just getting into wine male or female, check out Leslie Sbracco's "Women and Wine." She breaks it down in a light-hearted and easily to digest manner.
Form an informal tasting group with friends. It can have a theme such as wines made from a certain type of grape or wines only from a certain area, meet with some frequency and always change the theme.
As cheesy as this sounds this is good Web site for anyone looking for wine events: www.localwineevents.com.
OMC: What's your favorite wine right now?
NN: Tough question. I'm an equal opportunist, but I will say that Hupfeld 2006 Rheingau Riesling Kabinett has been on pretty heavy rotation at the homestead. This is an example of the kind of dry Riesling I wish I could find when I go out to eat. I swear I can almost hear angels singing when this wine is paired with gingery foods.
I'd surely drink Patz and Hall 2006 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir every waking moment if it were possible. Sandrone 2004 Nebbiolo Valmaggiore, is an Italian treat from a great vintage and has amazing floral and earthy characteristics that really tickles my fancy the way only the Nebbiolo grape can.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
