Sommelier Seju Yang of Brushstroke – New York, NY
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Wine Tips for the Sommelier
- Wines are like harmonies. There are no wrong harmonies. Rather, it's all about how to resolve notes. If you taste a dissonance from a wine, it is our job ask. sommeliers to guide it to a consonance.
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Multi-course meals need dynamics, as do multi-course wine pairings. Imagine if Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 was performed fortissimo throughout. We'd know it was wrong and overwhelming.
- Wine pairing is like a counterpoint. Both the wine and food should constantly animate and halt, while also interacting with each other.
- The relationship between terroir and wine-making is similar to the relationship between melody and chord. We must train our sensitivity to be able to capture when terroir (melody) is subjected to the inappropriate wine-making method (chord).
- Serving wines at the wrong temperature is like having a singer sing in the wrong key.
- Ultimately, understanding wines is to understand nature and its beauty. Sommeliers should open their minds to all kinds of formats that praise nature and beauty. Go to the museum, read books and poetry, and listen to music. We often learn a great deal about wines from something beyond wine.
