Master Sommelier Study Buddies Raise Southern Bar for Wine

by Hanna Raskin, Posted Aug 18th 2009 @ 11:00AM

Southern wine. Photo: Amy C. Evans, flickr

Even in Louisville, Ky., a betting town where success is measured in wins, places and shows, few gamblers would have bet that master sommelier study partners Brett Davis and Scott Harper would pass their diploma exam on the same day.

The local boys defied the odds by becoming the only two test-takers out of 38 to pass the prestigious test last month, making them the first master sommeliers in the state of Kentucky. Harper's workplace, the Bristol Bar and Grille, will fete their achievement at a wine dinner next week.

With fewer than 200 wine professionals worldwide having earned the master sommelier title since it was established 30 years ago, two friends holding matching diplomas counts as a curiosity. Earning those diplomas at the same time is considered extraordinary.

"It's very unusual, very rare," confirms Davis, who's in the wine import business.

The fluke may harbor real significance in the South, where wine service has traditionally lagged a step behind the kitchen arts. While Southern chefs long ago established themselves as among the leaders of the nation's culinary scene, Davis and Harper are the first Southern sommeliers outside of Florida and Atlanta to earn their industry's highest honor.

"The South is not well-represented," Davis says, referring to the global roster of master sommeliers. "For both of us to pass -- it had to raise some eyebrows about the Louisville restaurant scene."

Davis insists the relative scarcity of world-class cellars below the Mason-Dixon line doesn't reflect a deep-seeded provincialism, as some supercilious Yankees might suspect, but speaks to the region's affection for spirits.

"You're battling a liquor mentality here," Davis says. "We like our cocktails."

Indeed, it's almost certain that at the Bristol Bar dinner – for which Harper has selected a 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape and a 2001 Barolo, among other pairings – at some point, someone will toast the state's first master sommeliers with a glass of Kentucky bourbon.

Filed Under: Drink Recipes, Chefs & Restaurants, Restaurants
Tags: brett davis, BrettDavis, bristol bar and grille, BristolBarAndGrille, master sommelier, MasterSommelier, news, scott harper, ScottHarper, sommelier, south, southern states, southern wine, SouthernStates, SouthernWine, wine