Aspen Peak - Niche Media - Aspen living at its peak
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/417540
Fletcher's mountain story dates back to 1978, when he hitchhiked from Wisconsin to Aspen and for three weeks lived in a tent in a place called Difficult Campground. More than a decade later, he took a class in something sold as an introductory-level course in the Court of Master Sommeliers. "I had no idea what that meant, but it sounded cool," says Fletcher, 57, while sitting on the patio at Element 47 during a fall afternoon. Now, Fletcher is an executive in charge of fine wines at Southern Wine & Spirits, the nation's largest liquor distributor. But long before he became a top wine expert, he was, as he describes it, a "glorified busboy" in Aspen restaurants. And it was while he was plugging along in Aspen restaurants that he took that wine class. It grabbed him. Months later, he and another Aspen restaurant guy, who took the intro class with Fletcher, tossed back a much bigger swig of wine education. They enrolled in a now-defunct operation called the Sterling Vineyards School of Service and Hospitality, in Napa Valley, which held advanced wine courses. The following summer, Fletcher took the advanced som- melier exam and passed on his first try. "That was the first time I had the thought of becoming a master som- melier," says Fletcher, a tall, fit man who is at once laid-back and tough—a fitting demeanor for someone who may be North America's most suc- cessful wine coach. If wine has a Vince Lombardi, Fletcher is it. In 1996 he f lew to London, where the Court of Master Sommeliers was based (it has since become an international examining body, with testing all over). He took the master sommelier exam in the Dorchester Hotel, passed it on his third attempt, and became America's 30th per- son to hold that title. Since then, Fletcher has toiled to help others achieve the same status. He never even worked at The Nell—when he was taking his sommelier exams and studying wine, he worked at different restaurants (some of them gone) around town—but he has taken on multiple Nell sommeliers as wine-education projects. At least 12 Nell employees have worked with Fletcher and subsequently become master sommeliers. Another 11 from Colorado and around the country have trained intensely with Fletcher (people fly to Aspen from all over to study with him) and many more working toward the master sommelier designation visit now and again for training. Currently, Fletcher is working closely with three mas- ter sommelier candidates. (In addition, he teaches people who are shooting for lower rungs in the sommelier hierarchy.) In all, thousands of ambitious wine professionals have invested their time with him. "He took me under his wing the second week I got there, and my career was forever changed—period," says Bobby Stuckey, a former Nell sommelier who now co-owns Frasca Food and Wine, a Boulder restau- rant that won the 2013 James Beard Award for Best Wine Service in the United States. When Stuckey got married, Fletcher's daughters were the flower girls. "I had a lot of growing up to do; I needed a lot of polish- ing and vision. Jay just scooped me up." The annual master sommelier exam, which has taken place at The Nell since 2013, is famously grueling, with only an 8 percent success rate; it took Stuckey, recognized as one of the country's finest somme- liers, seven attempts to pass. Becoming a master sommelier requires monklike commitment to wine theory, service, and, of course, tasting. It can take years of study—every minute of free time is invested in the grapes of Sicily or how to divide a bottle of wine into glasses for 11 guests or understanding the acids in a Napa Valley Cabernet versus a Coonawarra variety. "At some point, people began asking, 'What is going on in Colorado?'" says Fletcher. "All of these people are passing. Here's what GROWN TO THE TOP Carlton MCCoy: Domaine Guiberteau Clos des Carmes Saumur, France, 2010 "This wine is 100 percent Chenin Blanc. It's sourced from a subplot within the grand cru Brézé called the Clos des Carmes. This is a monopole of Guiberteau, meaning that they own this entire plot. This is an intensely structured wine. Super-high acid content and a very high percentage of dry extract create [its] backbone. There are the classic Chenin characteristics of honey, chestnuts, limestone, and wool, with razor-sharp precision and no residual sugar." Val de Mer Crémant de Bourgogne Non Dosé, France "This is a joint venture between Patrick Piuze and Champagne Moutard. The wine is 100 percent Chardonnay with no dosage. This creates a wine of great structure with high acidity, making it a perfect aperitif. All the grapes are sourced from Chablis, which has a similar soul to that of the great villages of the Côte des Blancs, the region famous for the best sparkling Chardonnay in the world. By far one of the best values in the sparkling wine world!" Gonon Cuvée Vielles Vignes St Joseph, France, 2006 "The term 'unicorn wine' has been coined in the last few years by sommeliers. It refers to wines that are so rare that they might as well not exist. This is one of those wines. The plot of vines used for this cuvée was formerly owned by the 'king' of the St. Joseph region in the northern Rhône Valley, Raymond Trollat. Pierre Gonon is now the mastermind behind it. The best way to describe these wines is to imagine an elephant balancing on a beach ball! There is a great depth and intensity due to the natural concentration of old-vine fruit, but the wine remains incredibly fresh and elegant. Here, we have classic Syrah characteristics of cured meat, blackberry jam, and black pepper. As the wines age, these characteristics are joined by white pepper and sun-dried tomato. A truly exciting wine." Jay FletCher: Acustic Celler, "Braó" Montsant, Spain, 2010 "'Acustic' means unamplified. 'Braó' means brave. This wine is made from 65-year-old vines of Carignan and Garnacha. The pure blueberry and wild blackberry fruits intermingled with flavors of wild herbs, wet stone, and crushed red flowers are backed up with slight vanilla and spice from French oak aging. This wine is the real deal. Delicious wild fruit, earthy, rich, with a long finish." Château Barde-Haut, Saint-Émilion Bordeaux, France, 2010 "For a mid-priced Bordeaux, this wine is a winner. The ripe 2010 vintage is hard to beat for complexity and balance. It's grown on limestone soil from 85 percent Merlot and 15 percent Cabernet Franc and aged 18 months in new French oak. On the palate there is a lot of blueberry, black cherry, and dusty, loamy soil notes as well as hints of mint, fennel, and chocolate. Full-bodied, rich, with a beautiful, thick texture." Conterno-Fantino, Barolo Sorì Ginestra, Piedmont, Italy, 2009 "This is a modern-style Barolo produced from 30-year-old vines from the historic cru Sorì Ginestra of Monforte d'Alba, grown in sand, silt, and clay, and aged in new French barriques for two years. It's a deep garnet with ruby hues; rich, fruity, and with a persistent bouquet of rose petals, brushwood, and berries; full-bodied, luscious, and austere on the palate. This wine drinks great now, but will last for 50 years." Master sommeliers Carlton McCoy and Jay Fletcher count down their threefavorite wines of the year. (Everybody take notes.) 180 aspenpeak-magazine.com