Over the course of my career, I have curated, directed, and executed well over 100 world-class public wine dinners, retrospective library tastings, and multi-course pairing menus, maintaining a 5-Star Critic Rating at both Stephan Pyles and FT-33 before retiring from restaurants.
🇫🇷 Bordeaux & Burgundy Master Retrospectives
Château Margaux – Directed an exclusive dinner featuring 10 total wines sourced directly from the estate, highlighting 5 pristine vintages of the Grand Vin.
Château Lafite Rothschild – Hosted a benchmark 9-wine retrospective dinner at Park House spanning the 1995–2018 vintages.
Cheval Blanc & Château Mouton Rothschild – Curated multiple premier 4- and 5-course pairings alongside the estates’ General Managers, showcasing multi-decade vertical library collections.
Domaines Clarence Dillon – Directed an elite multi-vintage dinner focusing on the 2005 and 2015 vintages of Château Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion.
The DRC & Domaine Leflaive Gala – Orchestrated an ultra-rare 18-wine event featuring 5 benchmark vintages of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and 5 from Domaine Leflaive.
La Paulée Burgundy Master Tastings – Attended extensive multi-vintage retrospective master classess (4 flagship events in 2022; 2 events in 2020) to further master Burgundy.
Dujac & De Montille “The Malconsorts” Tasting – Attened an elite 18-vintage vertical retrospective tracing this iconic vineyard from 2005–2022 to further master Burgundy.
Domaine des Lambrays Deep Dive – Hosted a 9-wine retrospective alongside the head winemaker at Balthazar, anchored by a historic, pristine 1938 Clos des Lambrays.
On-Site Sourcing Campaigns – Evaluated top estates on-site during the Bordeaux En Primeur Campaign (2018 Vintage), toured Burgundy with legendary exporter Becky Wasserman (2017), and completed a deep-dive Bordeaux campaign (2023). Toured, tasted and established relationships in Champagne over the last several summers.
The Annual Xmas Champagne Master Classes – Orchestrated legendary holiday retrospective tastings featuring massive collections of up to 75 rare Champagnes curated for collectors.
🇮🇹 Italian, Global, & Cult Domestic Icons
GAJA Master Classes & Dinners – Partnered on multi-vintage portfolio deep dives and custom 5-course pairing dinners alongside visionary culinarians like Chef Misti Norris.
Sandrone, Aldo Conterno, & Paolo Scavino Verticals – Directed multi-vintage Piedmont master classes directly alongside the owners and winemakers.
Harlan Estate 10-Year Vertical – Directed an exclusive library tasting tracking the 1990–1999 vintages of Napa’s premier cult icon, captured by a dedicated documentary film crew.
Colgin Cellars “Herb Lamb” Vertical – Curated a historic 18-vintage retrospective evaluating every single consecutive year of production ever made of this legendary bottling.
Opus One & Vérité Multi-Decade Showdowns – Hosted library pairing dinners and blind collector showdowns pitting top Sonoma and Napa icons against Bordeaux First Growths (including a 20-year Seavey vertical from 1991–2010).
Domestic Terroir Studies – Completed Oregon Pinot Noir Camp (2010) and conducted over 10 educational sourcing trips across Napa and Sonoma (leveraging my wife’s 9-year tenure as an elite, Napa-only cult wine distributor).
🍽️ Award-Winning Restaurant & Concept Programs
GRACE Fort Worth (2008–2011) – Created and executed the legendary Wine Me Dine Me series—100 consecutive weeks of 4-course menus with zero repeats, delivering 400 custom plates and over 700 custom wine and beer pairings.
FT-33 (2011-2012) – Served as GM & Wine Director alongside Chef Matt McCallister. The progressive beverage program earned a Top 100 Wine Restaurants in America nod from Wine Enthusiast and Restaurant of the Year honors.
Stephan Pyles (2007–2008) – Curated beverage architecture for iconic 6- and 10-course tasting menus, directed 7 public wine-pairing cooking classes, and hosted an exclusive collaborative wine dinner alongside culinary legend Chef Paul Prudhomme.
Chefs for Farmers – Founding member of the premier DFW food festival, including executing the marquee 120-person farm-to-table wine dinner in the field.