I recently had a chance to sit down with Katy Touchstone, catering director for Cadre Hospitality Group, to talk about her experience being a female sommelier in a male-dominated business.
Wine has always been a part of her life, so did wine makers like Cakebread Cellars; she grew up being taught to appreciate wine with the family dinner and cultivated a real respect and interest in the study of it. She found her opportunity to break into the wine industry when she moved back to Shreveport in her 20’s, working in the restaurant business. Katy says her desire to be an educated server encouraged her to do her own research on her favorite wines because for her being able to introduce customers to their new favorite wine was most important to her. She met several like-minded wine lovers, including Nathaniel Loggins of 2 Johns, who were all eager to study and taste wine together on a regular basis.
“It’s just a fun hobby. I never intended to take this seriously,” she told me, but once she invested some time and effort into the study of wine she decided to take the test to become a somm, because it seemed like a waste not to. After about a year of personal study she attended a two day intensive class a few days before the actual exam, where she says most people who aren’t ready get weeded out.
Today she uses her knowledge to organize all the caterings that come out of Wine Country Bistro and Zocolo.
She stops into Wine Country nearly every day to coordinate with our chef and bottle shop managers and to meet with clients to plan menus and wine pairings. I’ve never seen her walk across the dining room without an old friend shouting her name wanting to catch up. She handles being busy very well and is always available whenever needed. Her passion will always be wine, and she says her goal right now is to master Wine Country’s wine selection to better serve catering clients. She loves introducing people to new unique wines if they’re on a budget. “If they ask for Kendall Jackson or something like that, I’ll find them something that’s the same price if not cheaper that comes from a cool small production company that they’ll love more.”
To young women interested in joining the wine business she says, “taste every chance you get. There’s a huge difference in tasting and drinking. Go to Lowe’s; smell the cedar and pine. Go to Brookshire’s and smell all the different herbs and spices to help train your nose to pick out aromas in wine.”
She wants women to know they’re definitely welcome in the wine world and that wine snobs are relatively a thing of the past. Most sommeliers are great people who are enjoyable to work with. She loves Spanish Reds because “they’re the best value wines out there right now.” They are usually low in tannins so they are perfect for drinking in the Louisiana heat. And her chilled wine of choice to sip on today is the by the glass rosé at Wine Country, Lago Vinho Verde Rosé, because of its slight effervescence and solid mouth feel (meaning it has a substantial weight and leaves a pleasant aftertaste).
Becoming a sommelier has been worth it for Katy because she’s met some of her favorite people in this business who have introduced her to a bevy of cool wines.
She wants everyone to have access to everything she knows and never wants to keep her favorites to herself.
Story and photo by Jessica Coburn