Cultivating vine appreciation

[L-R]Eric Artiere, Julien Coron(top), Ritwik Shastri and Sebastien Duvocelle

Duvocelle: This has a lot to do with the environment where you’re working. For example, in Margaux, you would expect and hope to see a lot of French varieties on the list.

In somewhere with a different theme, such as Asado, our authentic Argentinean steakhouse, you have to specifically push products from that part of the world. And this does help in guiding the consumer, because you have an identity and a structure behind your menu, so your beverages match both the food and the experience.

Coron: At Reflets, we try to offer our guests a full experience, and that’s what they come expecting; so very often we have guests who ask our advice and want to take our recommendations about pairing wine and food; so in fact they very rarely select a bottle entirely by themselves.

What are the main challenges facing sommeliers in the Middle East today?

Artiere: The price of the product, the price of stocking and trying to find the best way to get quality and volume at the right price.

We operate with two good companies here in Dubai, both of whom offer a different range of products — but there are only these two, so we purchase what they offer and that’s that.

Duvocelle: If you want something then you simply have to buy it, regardless of price. That’s a key challenge.

Shastri: I think another factor we’re dealing with here is that you get an extremely diverse range of clients. You have to make sure you stock a wide range to appeal to all customer bases.

Duvocelle: Our sommelier has a skill to sell, so it is somewhat about consumers and trends, but I think at some point when you have very qualified people arriving in the market, then the trend will follow the sommelier themselves as they set it, rather than customers dictating them as is the case now.

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Are you finding that consumers are increasingly interested in learning about what they’re purchasing?

Shastri: It’s definitely a trend we’re seeing and that we’re catering for with our guest master-classes. And this helps a great deal in educating the customer regarding what we offer on our menu, so they do come back and order it.

Artiere: We produce a page on the menu called ‘The Sommelier’s Selection’, where we showcase the best lines on the market at the moment.

We also have other promotions planned for the future, such as inviting famous vineyard owners to come to Margaux for a few nights, along with a famous chef, then having clients from our database come along for an evening and enjoy an amazing gastronomic experience, trying really specifically-paired foods and vintages.

Since the economic downturn has impacted consumer spend, how are you balancing customer expectations with costs?

Duvocelle: We’re very lucky and haven’t been affected by the downturn, thank goodness; we are one of the very fortunate companies that is still growing.

We have not had to increase prices and we have not changed our strategy this year, nor are we planning to do so. We have simply continued doing what we do: offering guests quality and value for money.

Artiere: From an operational stand-point, we are quite a different offering: firstly we are independent, so we are not tied to a hotel, and we actually rely on The Palace for our license — of course, we have to pay for delivery with that. And this does impact how profitable an operation can be.

It’s a different challenge from working in a hotel; in an independent company you are dealing with your own strengths and weaknesses head-on, because you have nothing else to balance the F&B side out, like other outlets, or rooms, or banqueting.

We are just our own operation, we are what we are. Location-wise, we have an outstanding spot; we just need to see that pay off more now the economy is picking up.