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Wine: Morgan SladeMorgan Slade, food and wine director for La Pastaia at Hotel de Anza, talks about his favorite imports and domesticsby Stett Holbrook on Apr 13, 2010SAN JOSE’S La Pastaia restaurant is one of Silicon Valley’s premier Italian restaurants. Morgan Slade, food and wine director for the Hotel De Anza, where the restaurant is located downtown, oversees La Pastaia’s Italian-focused wine list. Slade has been in the food and hospitality business for more than 20 years, 15 of them as wine director for La Pastaia. He is also the creative director for thekitchendaily.com, a locally produced food and wine website. Why did you decide to pursue a career in wine? I fell into it 15 years ago. I took over the wine list at La Pastaia. It was kind of a special project because it was completely Italian. In this valley, everyone was looking for Californian and local wines, and I had the opportunity to do something different. With Italian wine, there is so much to learn. There are 1,000 different grape varietals. It was a challenge at first, but then it caught fire, and we became one of the only ones in this area that had an all-Italian wine list. What makes your wine list special? At La Pastaia, it’s all Italian imports. At the Hedley Club (inside the Hotel De Anza), it’s a more eclectic list. We try to get more local wineries and Napa wineries—and pick a little from France because we get a lot of travelers coming in. If you combine them both, we have almost 50 wines. People can choose from both lists, no matter where they are. It really is an international list. It’s a great place to just go wine tasting and experiment. What wines are you passionate about right now? Rome isn’t known for their wine growing. They do simple white—frascati—but there’s a new project there called Casale del Giglio, and they’re doing some interesting things. [Also] syrah has been the one grape that has really fallen off the map. The pinot craze that went on pushed syrah aside. I think for people who really want a little more depth of fruit and a little more weight, syrah should really become the next grape to stand out, especially locally. The syrahs that are made here are fantastic wines. Otherwise, I like the whites from Trentino, and I like nebbiolo from Piedmonte. What are some of the best wine values now? Sicily always has good values, and so does Puglia. Those are always good standbys. Aside from the collector’s market, which always stays kind of heavy in the high end, there’s more value in the mid-to-lower range; wines that used to be $20 a bottle are now $15 and $12. What is your go-to wine for everyday, casual drinking? I have a preference for pinot nero. It’s the same grape as pinot noir. We have one from Jermann that we pour by the glass. It’s from Friuli. I think they grow a lighter style of pinot. It’s really fragrant and perfumed, more flowery than fruit driven. And I like that just for drinking. It’s really good with food, too, with a slight earthiness. La Pastaia Hotel De Anza, 233 W. Santa Clara St, San Jose. 408.286.8686. by Stett Holbrook on Apr 13, 2010 |
 Morgan Slade |
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