Tell us about yourself…. I’ve worked all my life in restaurants, in particular at “Le Louis XV”, Alain Ducasse in Monaco and “Le Meurice” in Paris (both 3-star Michelin restaurants) where I was Chef Sommelier. I also had the chance to work with Chef Bernard Loiseau. In 2010, I decided to launch my wine consultancy to help companies and people selecting wines. I spend most of my time meeting winemakers and tasting their wines. It is a chance to discover talented producers and promote their wines. When did you first decide to become a sommelier? As my grandfather was a winemaker, I knew the world of wine quite well already. But I had initially planned to become a Chef ! My passion for wines really started during my studies at Tain L’Hermitage. Joining some of the world’s best restaurants was a dream which become true. What skills are required to be a successful sommelier? Passion is probably the most critical skill, as we spend a lot of time in the vineyards, with winemakers, and a lot of time with our customers. Curiosity is also important, being always looking for new talents, rigor, precision, the ability to transmit knowledge… and a very good memory! How do you select the wines for “Le Meurice” and “Louis XV”? I have worked hand in hand with Chefs in all the restaurants where I worked. The selection really depends on each location, the environment, the Chef’s cooking style and the will to let customers discover new talented winemakers. What’s your favourite bottle of wine? My best memory is a bottle of Chateau Cheval Blanc 1961. I was a very young sommelier then, and I will never forget that day. This was more than 10 years ago, can you imagine the pressure and emotion I felt at this moment? Of course, I could find dozens of other examples. I am very happy we could offer one of my favorite wine: The Vosne-Romanee ‘Les Genaivrieres’ from Domain Leroy on The French Cellar website in November. I had several fabulous moments tasting this wine, with new surprises each time as the wines were aging. New world or old world wines? I have tasted a lot of wines from France and the world. There are wonderful estates in the world, but I still have a preference for French wines. France is a fabulous country with an old history, in particular for wine making. Our terroir is unique in the world. I also have a strong interest for Italian and Spanish wines, which have a lot of common points with French wines. What French wines would you recommend for matching with Asian foods? There is a lot of variety in Asian dishes and lots of pairing with wines are possible. In all of our selections, we mention Western and Asian pairings: Peking duck with Chateau Las Cases 1995 (Saint-Julien), Shaoxing braised beef with Pommard Demougeot 2009, beef mechado with Cairanne Richaud 2011, or suckling pig with Vosne-Romanee Leroy 2009. French wines are very diverse as well, and have already proven to be an excellent match for Asian dishes. I have been lucky to work with more and more Asian Chefs and this has helped me to discover their country’s cuisine and define new beautiful pairings. Every month, we will travel to a new French region in each of our offers, many opportunities of pairing ahead… What would you suggest for people that want to learn more about wines? I think there are 2 aspects: learning and pleasure. Wine tasting is a pleasure to be shared with friends. What is important is to discover different regions of France, their appellations, identify what are your favorite wines. Each time you discover a wine, try to memorize what are the grapes, the typical aromas. It’s important to educate your palate. We really tried to help people discover wine tasting or expand their knowledge with The French Cellar. Every month I write a guide for each wine, which is sent to all customers in their wine box, with details on the vineyard and winemaker as well as tasting notes about the eye, the palate, the nose and advice on wine service.