The rise of the female sommeliers continues as we move north to Vancouver. As our third and final installment of this series on young, female sommeliers in the Northwest, this British Columbia-based edition continues to show how more women are leading the wine business as sommeliers and wine directors, redefining the gender gap from the traditional stereotype.
Courtney Buryta || Sommelier || Canucks Sports and Entertainment || Downtown
Q: When was the moment you knew you wanted to pursue a career as a sommelier?
A: When I was working at Sonora Resort, a guest ordered a bottle of 1982 Chateau Haut Brion. I had started taking courses through the Wine & Spirits Education Trust (WSET) and done some research about how to care for, present and open such a special bottle. I carried it in a basket from the cellar and rocked the service of it, ultimately impressing the guests. They poured me a taste from the bottle and that was my wine “ah ha” moment. The wine was older than me and it showed beautifully; it was still fresh and super complex, and I understood the concept of wine being a living thing.
Q: Now that you have an established career as a sommelier, what are further aspirations you want to accomplish with your expertise?
A: There is a ton of potential here at the arena with Canucks Sports and Entertainment, both in growing the wine list for our guests and the knowledge base of the incredible staff. Education has always been very important for me, as a program is nothing if your staff isn’t able to relay your message and talk about the wines on the list. Breaking down wine knowledge into manageable pieces that can be consumed by my team is paramount. In my opinion, there is no point in being super passionate about something if you are unable to share that knowledge and passion with others. As for my path, I could imagine one day going on to start my MW or MS, and surely becoming a wine educator.
Q: What is one piece of advice you would want to give your younger self and other females who are working towards being a sommelier?
A: Work your tail off to get wherever it is you want to go! As an incredibly driven and hardworking individual, I often forget to take time to celebrate the wins, instead charging forward to the next challenge. In hindsight, I wish I did that more and am making a concerted effort to now!
Q: What is your favorite unconventional food and wine pairing?
A: Plain Lays potato chips with a lean blanc de blancs Champagne. No question.
Q: What’s your favorite cheap beer and when do you like to drink it?
A: After a long shift, there is nothing like a clean, refreshing beer. While affordable but not “cheap,” Red Truck lager is my choice, straight out of the frosty bottle, of course!
Lisa Haley || Wine Director and Assistant General Manager || L’Abattoir || Gastown
Q: When was the moment you knew you wanted to pursue a career as a sommelier?
A: There really wasn’t one “aha” moment for me. I went to graduate school and was working in the arts—it was fun and the work was interesting but it wasn’t financially feasible. I had worked in restaurants since high school and as a manager for years and started thinking about how I could turn restaurants (which I loved) into a sustainable career. Wine was obvious—I went to wine school and had some incredibly talented classmates and their inspiration really solidified my ambitions.
Q: Now that you have an established career as a sommelier, what are further aspirations you want to accomplish with your expertise?
A: I want to keep getting better at what I do everyday! I am challenged by my colleagues in Vancouver everyday—they are pushing the limits, cultivating great learning environments for their staff and their guests, they are changing the wine landscape here and I want to make sure I am standing with them. Beyond restaurants, my heart is in books and I want to keep writing about wine, find a voice there.
Q: What is one piece of advice you would want to give your younger self and other females who are working towards being a sommelier?
A: There are a lot of great women whose names are at the front of our field and I think a lot of barriers have been broken. I really don’t think anybody pictures somms as old men in suits anymore. That being said, we still have a lot of work to do. My advice is to make sure you get your place at the table. Ask questions—even the stupid ones, speak up, let people know you are thinking. I had the pleasure of dining with Erica Crawford of [New Zealand’s] Loveblock wines last year and she told me to “keep my elbows out.” I think about that all the time. We have to make room for ourselves, nobody is going to give it to us, we have to take it!
Q: What is your favorite unconventional food and wine pairing?
A: I drink a lot of wine with my potato chips (and I eat a lot of potato chips). But I’ve been drinking dry sherry with oysters—I think that may only be unconventional here, but I don’t see why. We’ve got some of the best oysters in the world. I grew up on East Coast oysters and they might be too briny for the sherry but the contrast of fruitier West Coast oysters and the salinity of fino sherry is really fun.
Q: What’s your favorite cheap beer and when do you like to drink it?
A: I don’t drink a ton of cheap beer but I go through a heavy rotation of Asahi, Sapporo and Tiger. After tasting wine all day, I just want something crisp and refreshing and those usually do the trick.
Emily Walker || Wine Director || YEW seafood + bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver || Downtown
Q: When was the moment you knew you wanted to pursue a career as a sommelier?
A: I was working at a winery restaurant in the Okanagan Valley for a summer and, when I was hired, we were put through some fairly basic wine training. I was only 19 at the time and knew nothing about wine but was immediately intrigued by how much there was to know. As I became able to draw more flavor characteristics and nuance out of wine, I officially got the bug.
Q: Now that you have an established career as a sommelier, what are further aspirations you want to accomplish with your expertise?
A: I would like to travel to as many of the world’s wine regions as I can over time. Textbook knowledge will always be necessary to a degree but wine is all about the place, where it comes from and the people who nurtured it along the way. There’s nothing like being able to draw on your personal experiences when describing wine to a guest.
Q: What is one piece of advice you would want to give your younger self and other females who are working towards being a sommelier?
A: Get involved in your wine community. Don’t feel threatened by others whose palates are sharper and knowledge is deeper. These are the people who will support and inspire you as you become better. The time you spend with your industry peers bonding over an incredible bottle, sharing trade secrets and learning about wine is a big part of what make the job so rewarding.
Q: What is your favorite unconventional food and wine pairing?
A: Grüner Veltliner with an authentic carbonara.
Q: What’s your favorite cheap beer and when do you like to drink it?
A: I love the Farmhand Ale from Driftwood Brewery. It’s a really refreshing way to end an evening of drinking wine.
