This week on In the Drink, Joe Campanale is joined by wine importer/distributor Philippe Fifi Essome. French born and raised, Philippe moved to NYC on Bastille Day 2000 with 1 bad luggage, $1500 and a phone number. He came with the desire to become a mixologist, he loved to mix things up back in France and wanted to explore the cocktail world. But he worked in places that only had wine and beer licenses!!! So he discovered French wine here -- his first gig was @ Le Bateau Ivre, then @ Le Père Pinard in the Lower East Side for over 9 years along with Les Enfants Terribles on Ludlow and Canal Street. He got hooked on natural wines in 2005, and got so into it that he opened the first natural wine bar in NYC in 2008, The Ten Bells. 5 years later, he opened a natural wine shop in Brooklyn -- Passage de la Fleur, and after 1 year he got rid of the shop and launched his wine importing/distributing company in July 2014. This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley.
This week on In the Drink, Joe Campanale is joined by wine importer/distributor Philippe “Fifi” Essome. French born & raised, Philippe moved to NYC on Bastille Day 2000 with 1 bad luggage, $1500 & a phone number. He came with the desire to become a mixologist, he loved to mix things up back in France and wanted to explore the cocktail world. But he worked in places that only had wine & beer licenses!!! So he discovered French wine here — his first gig was @ Le Bateau Ivre, then @ Le Père Pinard in the Lower East Side for over 9 years along with Les Enfants Terribles on Ludlow & Canal Street.
He got hooked on natural wines in 2005, and got so into it that he opened the first natural wine bar in NYC in 2008, The Ten Bells.
5 years later, he opened a natural wine shop in Brooklyn — Passage de la Fleur, and after 1 year he got rid of the shop and launched his wine importing/distributing company in July 2014. This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley.