FSR August 2023

LIQUID INTELLIGENCE

bi-weekly sessions over six months with extra studying. It’s designed for staff wishing to become sommeliers, wine directors, directors of operations, gen eral managers, or owners. Ongoing conversations about wine poured over the restaurant’s culture, sta , and guest experience are key. And when COTE increased team education on speci c wine products, “We’ve seen

ence for guests, but a trustworthy expe rience when our sta knows and under stands what they’re selling.” You have to provide reasons to work at your restaurant beyond financial ones, says Van de Water. “It’s always been important to us to create a res taurant culture where people come to work because they feel energized and respected, not just because they make

tion for the server trying to add to the check; upselling is based on knowledge,” explains Thomas Price, Master Som melier at 1856 Culinary Residence and director of wine education at Auburn University in Alabama. “Knowledge drives restaurant sales, so the big bene t is knowledge and prod uct familiarity enable the sommelier to sell more,” Price says, “ at investment in team member knowledge will trans late into enhanced sales on your restau rant oor.” Pro ts and revenue bumps from in house wine education are a plus, but to see the bonus, you need to create an edu cation budget. “It doesn’t have to be a ton of money,” Van de Water explains, “It has to t into your prime cost some where, but I think the numbers can be pretty small.” Working with distributors and whole sale partners for trainings can help with cost as “they go into the storytelling com ponent of wine and how to present it,” says Price, who adds that it helps “1,000 percent” to have different educators teach, from wine directors to sommeliers and distributors to wholesale partners. “It’s incredibly rewarding to watch people grow and blossom,” says Van de Water. And education gives exceptional restaurant team members intimate knowledge on how to weave wine into the larger dining experience because they know the brand inside and out as they leveled up from server or bartender, she adds. In-house wine education “just drives revenue, and it’s a solid business invest ment,” explains Harkey. When your sta members move from selling $80 to $120 bottles of wine to being com fortable talking about $250 or $500 bottles, that’s from creating “an envi ronment where not only do guests take you seriously, but everybody around you respects and honors the craft, product, and restaurant so much more,” Harkey says. “Education develops respect, trust, and honor for what you have within your four walls, but also helps improve your business, its growth, and draws more guests in.”

THE ABILITY TO TELL WINE AND VINEYARD STORIES TO GUESTS CUTS THE BOTTOM LINE DIFFERENCE,

SAYS THOMAS PRICE OF 1856 CULINARY RESIDENCE.

MASON ERWIN

we get better wine by the glass sales,” says Van de Water. roughout Vine Hospitality’s nine restaurants, they use a similar range of knowledge. Harkey’s weekly team meeting empowers beverage managers to build wine lineups for daily sta edu cation, and a monthly 90-minute for mal presentation, tasting, and compara tive analysis allows her to infuse deeper knowledge. Vine also invests in CMS and WSET certi cations, with their three- to ve-year company plan including even more robust and interactive in-house wine education. “We want to continue investing every day in people on the oor who are talk ing to guests and building their knowl edge because it creates more con dence for sta when they’re knowledgeable and excited about our menu,” Harkey says, “Not just creating an intellectual experi

money, and it’s really valuable to work somewhere you feel is actively invested in teaching, mentoring, and coaching you to help you grow whether you grow with us or somewhere else.” Serious restaurant wine programs backed by education also draw tra c to increase revenue and pro ts, adds Har key. “I can definitely attest to invest ing in employee education having a profound impact on wine sales. When your sta drive that revenue because they’re so empowered and passionate about what they’re talking about, [the investment will] come back to you eas ily,” she says. It’s the profound wine list knowledge and ability to eloquently tell wine and vineyard stories to the customer that cuts the bottom line di erence. “Your knowledge is when you can actually upsell. Upselling is not just a sugges

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FSRMAGAZINE.COM

AUGUST 2023