20 Questions for Kelly Coggins, Wine and Beverage Director at Rialto, Cambridge
Posted 05/08/2008 at 11:49 PM by Cathy
How does someone who's 25 years old come to be Wine and Beverage Director for Jody Adams at Rialto? In other words, how did you get the job?
If you are asking me I would say I was lucky! But most people who know me believe that I have depth of knowledge on wine, particularly Italian wine. Jody is a luminary chef and restaurateur, she saw a passion and drive in me that I think spoke to her. She is also a very smart entrepreneur and she saw my age as a huge asset, which many people might have not. With the location of the restaurant, she knew that my generation (which is really starting to make themselves know on the wine world) would be more comfortable with someone of their own age talk about wine with them. Ultimately, I see wine in the same way that she sees food, so it was a very natural fit.
Let's start at the beginning. When did you start drinking wine (be honest!), and how did you know that drinking wine would evolve into a career in the restaurant business?
Many people think that due to my age I must have learned about wine from my parents, but my parents only drink sweet and sparkling wine and only very rarely. I have worked in restaurants since long before I could do so legally, but I was always a cook.
When I was 18 I went to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. It was at a party to celebrate the end of our first class that I really had my first taste of wine. I still remember it, Bellenda Prosecco. After that I was hooked, I read everything I could about wine and tasted as many things as I could, something that was rather hard at 18. It wasn't until I was almost 20 did I really think about making wine my career. I had begun hanging out with a few other people who were interested in wine, and it started to click that this is what I wanted to do. My friend Crystal is really the person who encouraged me to follow the passion into a job, up until then I just thought I was a cook who happened to love wine.
Who has influenced your wine career so far?
I have been extremely lucky with so many great people willing to give me a chance at a very young age. There really are a lot of people who would never hire a 21-year old talk about wine with people. The person who helped me the most is Kevin Cassidy at the Wine Bottega. I spent three years working with Kevin and helping to run the store. The Wine Bottega is a store that I think will forever be the epitome of true wine geeky-ness! Kevin might be the most knowledgeable and passionate wine buyer in Boston. While I was working at the Wine Bottega, I was also lucky enough to have the chance to spend a year working for Jeannie Roger at Adonna Imports. Jeannie has an encyclopedic knowledge of Italian wine and can tell you about any wine as well as the producer and his family. I was able to spend two weeks with her in Italy, and I saw how much a producer's choices can affect the wine. There are many other names that should be mentioned; Peter Nelson who hired me and got me hooked up with Kevin, Andrea Alexander who continually questions my every choice to make sure I am buying for my guests not me, and Crystal Edgar who I credit for really getting me into wine.
What's your aim at Rialto, in terms of the wine list?
I want the wine list to be a reflection of the menu. Every month the tasting menu changes to one of the twenty different regions of Italy and I pair wines from the region with the four courses. The rest of the menu is seasonal and when possible utilizes local farmers. I that style and translate it slightly for the wine list. I am working harder to find small grower-producer styled wines that taste like the region that makes them and that work with Jody's amazing food. I really like finding things people have never heard of or regions they might not think about. At the start of this year I have also been printing the list in color, which allows me to highlight wines that are organic or biodynamic in green print rather than the usual black.
What's your aim at Rialto, in terms of helping people choose wine for their meal?
Ultimately I want the guest to have a wine that they really love and makes the meal better. I try to find wines for the list that are going to work with the food, not over shadow it. So many wines today taste like they could be from anywhere; many are made to be more of a cocktail beverage. Those wines are not what I want to show my guests. The few questions I ask at a table are very important for the guest's satisfaction. Just because I think a Fiano might be the best option, it certainly will not make a red wine drinker happy.
What programs or events have you introduced since you joined Rialto six months ago?
In January I started a monthly wine dinner series, I often refer to it as the "Affordable Wine Dinner." On the last Sunday of every month we do a three course dinner paired with wines for $60. Each month the theme is different and not so closely tied with the regional themes of the restaurant. I have a lot of fun with it and try to remind people that wine is meant to be fun. May is going to be a sparkling wine dinner.
I have also started a monthly wine class in the lounge. Dinner in the restaurant is more about food and wine, but the 90-minute class is more about wines and learning about different styles. I am thinking about other things that might work and my goal is to really give the younger people out there the opportunity to learn more about wine and enjoy doing it.
How does Chef Adams' cooking influence your purchasing decisions, when it comes to refining your wine list?
Due to the restaurant's Italian focus the wine list is over half Italian. Jody really likes to incorporate small elements of a more "rustic" nature and I love to buy and sell wines that really highlight those little whimsical flourishes. As I learn more about Jody's style I try to refine the list. Rather than twenty options for Chardonnay, for example, there are ten that are all different but will all work with the food. I am really lucky because the kitchen will work around the wine I want to showcase. We all sit down, taste the wine, and start try ideas and pairings.
What has been the reaction of guests when you approach a table to talk about their beverage selection? Have any guests ever given you a hard time about being so young?
Despite my extreme dislike of suits, I will say they have really helped with my presentation. There have been a few times where people have thought I was the host but most of the time once I start talking to them, they know I am familiar with the list in their hand. I think most people assume that since Rialto is a four star restaurant that whomever they have for a wine person knows what they are talking about. The majority of the problems I get actually come when I am outside of the restaurant. When I am out tasting or dining around town, many people write me off a some young kid and either ignore me or condescend to me.
What wine shops around Boston do you love to shop at, on your own time?
My favorite wine store in all of Boston is the Wine Bottega in the North End. The selection is so thought out and different. Because it's small the focus has always been on wines that are very much "hand sells." I will walk into any wine store I pass and look at the selections but I very rarely buy from anywhere else. Newton/Lower Falls wine company is the exception to that rule. I love the Scotch selection there as well as the people they have working for them. Julie at South End Formaggio also does a great job and she makes very bold moves in her choices.
What wine lists at other restaurants in town do you envy? Why?
Wine List Envy, a true medical disorder. I would of course say No. 9 Park and The Butcher Shop. Cat has an amazing palate and works with many of the wines I like to work with. I envy her lists because she is in the position to buy or get exclusives on many wines I love and have worked with for years. She has set the program up so that people try new and interesting wines regularly. I hope that in a few years with my help Rialto is thought of a great wine destination the same way the Butcher Shop and No. 9 are. I also greatly admire Jeannie's list at Il Capriccio in Waltham. She has set the list up to give people some really great information about the peoples behind the wines. The other list I wish I could be more like is Silvertone. I really enjoy their super small mark up on all the wines and would love to open something like that up myself one day.
You've said that you want guests to try "something other than Pinot Grigio from Italy." What grapes and wines do you find yourself recommending frequently? Why?
A few years ago I decided it was my personal mission to make sure consumers knew that there are other amazing white wines made in Italy and Pinot Grigio is not the Alpha and Omega. Lately, I have found myself recommending a lot of Grechetto and Fiano. Southern Italian whites have really stepped up in the past few years with 2006 being a uniformly great year for almost everyone. I like to show these wines more than the great whites of the North mostly because people don't know them as well and they are excellent values. Where the North can be more floral and round, the South is so much more angular and minerally and I love the way they can accentuate food.
How about cocktails and digestifs? Do you find much of a demand for them at Rialto?
We have two really great bartenders who are "bar nerds." They help me keep the cocktail list interesting, and because of it there is a good business at the bar. As for digestifs, that is a definite uphill battle. There are people who will always know that they are great but on average convincing people to try them usually fails. I created a cocktail with Fernet Branca and in the two months it was on the list sold only two. People are more open to grappa, but that seems to be the extent of it.
If you could, tell me three important lessons about service and/or hospitality that you've learned since you started at Rialto.
1. Not everybody wants your help. While many people love when the wine guy comes over and offers to help there are a few people who would rather not be spoken to about wine, no matter how friendly you are.
2. In many people's minds price equals quality. Rialto is a four star restaurant and I really love to have a lot of great wines on the list that are not going to kill the budget, but to a lot of people inexpensive means cheap. I have the hardest time convincing people to spend less and they will still get a great bottle of wine.
3. This is something Jody taught me. She told me early on that less is more when talking to a table. I have the propensity to geek out when talking to people about wine, but she told me what most people want is for someone to listen to what they have to say. By saying less I was being more hospitable to the guest. When she goes up to a table, the conversation is colored by her but not about her or the food, but about the guest's life and thoughts.
If you could, tell me three important lessons about being a food service professional that you'd like your guests to know.
1. Wine people are there to help you, not humiliate you. If you are interacting with someone and they are rude or condescending, leave. All I ever ask is that some knows the last bottle of wine they enjoyed; it is my job to find the next one.
2. Restaurant week. People love Restaurant week, and in a lot of ways it is a great idea. But what many people don't know is what a huge strain it is on a restaurant. We are happy to have people come and try Rialto, but because of the parameters, it will never be the full Rialto experience that you would get during another time. We don't have bread plates, the menu is obviously more abbreviated, and the servers are used to guests who spend at least three hours dining with them. Think of it as Rialto light.
3. There is never an easy time to break into a conversation when approaching a table. Please know that if someone is standing near your table, it is most likely because they need to talk to you and are waiting for a break in the conversation to do so as unobtrusively as possible. We want everyone to have the best time they can, but in order to do that we need to take your order and talk to you about a few things. I hate when I go to a table and feel like the scratching record sound. I will do my best to not interrupt you, but please don't keep me looking for a pause for a long time.
How do you keep your wine list current? Do you travel? Attend trade tastings? Etc.?
I work pretty hard trying to make sure the wine list is not only current but interesting. I have been lucky enough to get to travel for a few things this year but in general I don't travel nearly as much as I would like. The majority of my research is in tastings, whether they're for the trade, the public, or just me. Most weeks I try anywhere from 60 to 150 wines, but most weeks only 5 to 10 are wines of real interest and complexity. I also read a lot. The thing I love about what I do is no matter how much I know I will never know a quarter of what I think I should. So I read the New York Times food section every week and almost every book I can find on wine.
Have you ever had any unusual requests for a particular wine from a guest? And were you able to find the wine (if that was the request)?
There are always requests that going to be off kilter, or for a wine that I cannot get. But in general most people just want you to find a wine similar to the one that they mentioned. The major one of late is for Veuve. I took it off the list at the start of the year, wanting even the sparkling wines to be from smaller producers.
What's on Rialto's menu that you find the most difficult to pair with wine? What item is an easy pairing? Please give examples in various price ranges if possible.
Right now the item I have the hardest time with is the lamb with grilled and raw artichokes. The pairing was limited by the fact that I needed the wine to be from Lazio and artichokes are notoriously difficult to pair wine with. I wanted to make sure the wine highlighted the juicy lamb, but it was very hard to find one that did not taste like aluminum when it was paired with the artichokes. I finally found a wine that worked perfectly with it: 2006 Sergio Mottura "Civitella Rosso" ($10 Glass or $30 for the 4 wines paired with the four courses).
The easiest pairing would be Jody's famous Duck with the 2002 Palari Faro ($142) from Sicily. The wine is stunning and it plays and interacts with the dish in such a cool way.
What's your most favorite wine on Rialto's list?
People always love asking this question, but for me it is just not fair. Would you ask a mother of ten which of her children she loved more? For me it depends on what is being eaten or what day of the week it is. If you were to ask the servers they would say it is the 2006 Gruner Veltliner Smaragd Franz Hirtzberger "Rotes Tor" Wachau, Austria, which I do love. But I also think that the 2003 Barbera d'Asti Case Corini "Bricco" is one of the sexiest beverages around.
What do you do for fun?
My job is a lot of fun, but outside of work, I am big reader. I love to cook and in my circle of friends I am the baker and party planner. I am single so lately I have been going out on a few dates, which can be really fun. I love to go dancing. I guess I am pretty simple, although my guilty pleasure is spending the day at Barnes and Noble. I also love to ride my bike. There is a Zen that you get from seeing the world from a bike seat.
Any final words of wisdom for people who are handed the wine list at Rialto?
Try something you don't know. Many of the most interesting wines on the list are going to be things that a lot of people have never heard of. Ask to see me, or ask your server what is new and interesting. Don't be afraid to set a price limit but be open to trying. My favorite tables are the ones who willingly put themselves in my hands. More than anything else I want them to love what they are having because they are trusting me.
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