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- Aldo Sohm of Thor and Blaue Gans
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107 Rivington St., 212-796-8040
139 Duane St., 212-571-8880There is no dearth of acutely talented wine wizards roaming New York’s restaurant scene, assembling rarefied cellars and compiling lists as thick as phone books. But to the average diner, what makes more of an impression than encyclopedic knowledge and a discerning nose is sheer, infectious enthusiasm and a refreshing lack of pretension. An award-winning sommelier in his native Austria, Sohm, wine director for all of Kurt Gutenbrunner’s restaurants, could parse the finer points of Grüner Veltliners and Zwiegelts all day, given the chance. But his modest, user-friendly list at Thor roams the globe, unearthing great values on food-friendly wines that match the restaurant’s youthful spirit and moderate prices. The “Sommelier Discoveries” section showcases unusual varietals and lesser-known regions, like the $40 Slovakian Riesling that Sohm had a colleague lug over to Blaue Gans, his current post, so a customer could try it.
Best Sommelier
From the 2006 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine
Our mission this year: to hunt down not just the best but the best values in the eating, shopping, drinking, and general-consuming universe of New York. It’s quite the process, this, requiring eating and shopping and drinking (all in the name of research), followed by heated but civil discussion, and heated but less-civil discussion, until a winner emerges in each category.


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