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André Terrail is the owner and operator of Tour d’Argent, Paris' oldest restaurant. He took over the prestigious eatery in his twenties and opened the company's boulangerie and épicerie, both next door to the Michelin-starred restaurant. André and Chris talk about balancing history with innovation, numbering each bird utilized for the signature pressed duck dish, winning the œuf mayonnaise competition, embracing his Finnish heritage, prepping for the Paris Olympics, getting an MBA at INSEAD, finding his own voice at work, bringing formal dining and kitchen culture into the 21st century, visiting Argentina, and tweaking the wine selections for the restaurant's Tokyo outpost. 

Felipe Monteiro teaches Global Strategy at INSEAD, Europe’s top MBA program. Professor Monteiro also serves as both Academic Director of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index and Director of the Programa de Gestao Avancada, which advises Brazilian CEOs, business owners, and top executives.    Professor Monteiro is an avid wine collector and has researched globalization in the wine industry. In 2020, he wrote a case study about Quinta do Vallado and the international market for Douro Valley wines. For this episode, Chris and Felipe chat about the research that goes into writing a good case study for business school, the difference and convergence of new world and old world wine, the formation of the “Douro Boys” consortium, innovations in brand strategy, Brazil’s emerging sparkling wine production, the preponderance of unicorn tech startups in Brazil, as well as the intrinsic relationship between wine and travel.

David Neilson runs the popular Back In Alsace website and Instagram page. When David moved from Edinburgh to Strasbourg, he fell in love with the natural wines of Alsace. In addition to wine writing, David helps manage Raisin, the preeminent natural wine app. In today's episode, David and Chris open a bottle of Eric Kamm's 2020 Fusion Riesling to discuss the most exciting parts of Alsatian wine culture. They also talk about the restaurant scene in Biarritz, Copenhagen siphoning the rest of the world's Jura allocations, the popularity of skin-fermented white wines, the dichotomy between cremant d'Alsace and pet-nat, the recent rollout of the "vin méthode nature" designation, generational shifts at heritage wineries, and the role of wine fairs in a pandemic.  

Chefs Robert Compagnon and Jessica Yang met while working at Guy Savoy in Paris. Together, they moved to New York and eventually back to Paris to open Le Rigmarole, a binchotan-fired restaurant inspired by Robert's time living in Japan, Jessica's Taiwanese heritage, and their shared expertise in French cooking. Later, they opened Folderol, an ice cream parlor that also happens to have an amazing wine list.    In the last BTG ep of 2021, Chris chats with Robert and Jessica about the difference between fresh produce in NYC and Paris, the elusive texture of melon sorbet, the sustainable and democratic sourcing of seafood, the balance between omakase and a la carte menus, and the French name for the oyster of the chicken.   Follow Folderol at https://www.instagram.com/f.o.l.d.e.r.o.l/  Follow Le Rigmarole at https://www.instagram.com/lerigmarole/   

David Lebovitz worked as a pastry chef and line cook before becoming one of the world’s most celebrated cookbook authors and food bloggers. His most recent book, Drinking French, was released in March of 2020 and covers the culture surrounding France’s most iconic beverages. David and Chris discuss adapting a book tour in the midst of the pandemic, researching vintage chartreuse bottles, recipe-testing cocktails before noon, launching a Substack newsletter, getting lit at the James Beard awards, working at Chez Panisse, and navigating the changing world of food writing.   https://www.instagram.com/davidlebovitz/  https://www.instagram.com/braisedthoughts/     

Levi Lemaster is an architectural designer for hospitality clients in Houston. He has helped design beloved spaces like Nancy's Hustle, Better Luck Tomorrow, and Penny Quarter (now Tongue-Cut Sparrow). Levi and Chris contextualize the Houston dining experience through history, architecture, and aesthetics. Levi talks about the changing scene in Montrose, the rare occasion for instant coffee, the perfect road-trip aperitivo, the pitfalls of the East River development, his top five destinations in Houston, and the How Long Gone tour.     

Patrick Olds is the wine director for McGuire Moorman Lambert Hospitality, the group behind some of Austin’s best restaurants — Jeffrey’s, June’s All Day, Clark’s, Perlas, Josephine House, and more.    In this episode, Patrick discusses opening Hotel Saint Vincent, MMHL’s first foray into New Orleans. He and Chris discuss favorite Pinot Noir bottlings from Sonoma, St Vincent's concert at Hotel Saint Vincent, Italian-focused wine lists, the parallels between Austin and NOLA, the best brands of vegan cheese, and Patrick’s wine aspirations for his hometown: St. Louis.

Valerie Trasatti worked as a pastry chef for nearly a decade in Houston and Las Vegas at hotels and restaurants. She now works as a private chef and culinary consultant. Drew Gimma has spent his career baking bread, most notably at Per Se in New York City. After opening Common Bond, BLT, and Squable in Houston, he took on the Director of Operations Role at Breadman Baking Company, the city's top bread wholesaler. Valerie and Drew give Chris a full report on what's been going on in Houston since he moved to France. They discuss regressive politics of the Texas State Legislature, rising cases of the delta variant, vaccine-mandates in hospitality establishments, as well as the labor shortage in restaurants. If you're looking to support the fight against SB8, below are a couple of organizations worth supporting: I'll Have What She's Having Lilith Fund Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast

Stephen Bitterolf is the founder of Vom Boden, one of the top importers of German wine in the USA. The company began as a curated selection of Mosel bottlings but now is synonymous with minimal intervention wine from lesser-known regions like Baden, Franken, and the Obermosel.   Stephen talks with Chris about planning Vom Boden's summer camp, organizing Rieslingfrier, supporting the Ahr wine region after the July flooding, finding beauty in asymmetry, pairing Riesling with pizza, defining Sylvaner for American consumers, exploring Saale-Unstrut, championing varieties like Portugieser and Elbling, reevaluating the trajectory of German winemaking, and never losing sight of the big picture.   For information about Vom Boden's efforts to support the Ahr wine region, follow the link below. https://www.vomboden.com/help-the-flood-ravaged-ahr-valley/   Wines Tasted in Today's Episode: Hild Trocken Elbling   Julian Haart 1000L Riesling   Keller Limestone Kabinett Riesling  Stefan Vetter Steinterrassen 'Schale, Stiel und Stengel' Sylvaner  Enderle & Moll Liaison Spätburgunder   Today's episode was made in partnership with Wines of Germany. Learn more about German Wine by visiting their website or Instagram account.    

In the second half of this deep dive into the role of Riesling on a restaurant wine list, Chris speaks to Julie Dalton of Mastro's Steakhouse about pairing the wines of Germany with everything beefy: from dry-aged new york strips to marbled ribeyes to steak tartare. Julie also breaks down the complex concept of dry extract and recounts the time she convinced a couple of German winemakers to buy Lucchese cowboy boots.   Julie is a Master Sommelier candidate with a master's degree in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University. Before moving to Houston as the head sommelier for the crown jewel of the Landry's Restaurant Group, Julie helped Raj Parr and Michael Mina open Wit & Wisdom, the restaurant inside the Four Seasons in Baltimore. She also worked for Terry Thiese, and her time on the import side informed the way she tells the story of German wine.    Wines tasted during this episode: 2017 Josef Spreitzer Oestricher Doosberg Alte Reben Trocken 2019 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Leistenberg Kabinett 2019 J.J. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese   Thanks to our sponsor for today's episode, Wines of Germany. To learn more about German wine, visit www.germanwineusa.com.    

Sommeliers around the world love to pair food with Riesling. In this two-part episode, Chris sits down with various wine professionals in Houston to discuss different styles of Riesling. In the first half, Chris chats with Andres Blanco and Dale Ellington about their experiences serving both dry and sweet Riesling in their respective restaurants.   Andres Blanco passed the Advanced Sommelier exam in 2019 and won the TexSom competition for Best Sommelier in Texas in 2017. Born in Mexico, Andres spent years working for James Beard Award-winner Chef Hugo Ortega at the coastal Mexican restaurant Caracol. Dale Ellington has poured wine at Houston's top two Japanese restaurants -- after tending bar at Uchi, he oversaw the wine program for sushi mecca Kata Robata. Chris, Andres, and Dale discuss getting guests out of their comfort zones, upending people's expectations with dry Riesling, and pairing oysters and unagi with wine.   Wines tasted during this episode: 2017 Josef Spreitzer Oestricher Doosberg Alte Reben Trocken 2019 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Leistenberg Kabinett 2019 J.J. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese   Thanks to our sponsor for today's episode, Wines of Germany. To learn more about German wine, visit www.germanwineusa.com.      

Christopher Huang is the founder and owner of Ninja Ramen, a ramen shop that specializes in Japanese and Taiwanese whiskey. Christopher chats with Chris about late-night guests, TABC quandaries,  bathroom signs, Hanoi vs Saigon-style pho, whiskey dilution, tonkotsu broth-hacks, and the secret to a good Asian perm. Christopher also goes on the record for the first time about his new bar, which will open later this year.