Dan Pucci
Wallabout Hospitality | Brooklyn
October 2019
Dan Pucci started learning about wine from a young age, stocking shelves at a local wine store in upstate New York and reading books by British Wine Critic Jancis Robinson. Upon graduation from the State University of New York Oswego in 2010, Pucci moved to New York City to break into the wine industry. In his first role, he helped open and manage Eataly’s wine store, immersing himself in the descriptive language and labels of Italian wine. After becoming a certified sommelier, Pucci moved to OTTO Enoteca e Pizzeria in Greenwich Village, continuing his Italian wine education.
In 2015, he joined the team at Box Kite Coffee, a coffee shop serving a small nightly chef’s counter. Looking for reasonably priced beverages to pair with the casual tasting menu, Pucci found cider to be a natural fit. Without a knowledge barrier or cost barrier, Pucci saw the immense potential of cider and devoted himself to learning everything he could about it. When he heard New York’s first cider bar and restaurant Wassail was opening on the Lower East Side, he got in touch with the owner and was hired as the cider sommelier, or “pommelier.” Since 2017, Pucci has been an independent beverage consultant through the company he founded, Wallabout Hospitality.
