102 FEBRUARY 2020
I WAS WORKING at The French Laundry with
Thomas Keller and Laura Cunningham—really
supportive bosses. I had flown to London to take
my Master Sommelier exam, and I had failed tasting for I
think the fourth time. I was having a big struggle getting
to the diploma, and I came back and so many of my peers
were like, “Oh, you don’t need the MS; you’re working for
Thomas Keller; you’re the wine director for The French
Laundry. You’ve got all these great accolades already.”
It was at The French Laundry where I realized, well, no,
I’m not doing the MS diploma for the pin. I was doing it
for my own self journey, and it was my wife, Danette, and
people around me who said, ‘Hey, just keep plugging
away at it.’”
BOBBY STUCKEY
OWNER AND MASTER SOMMELIER AT FRASCA
FOOD AND WINE GROUP, BOULDER, COLORADO
“
MY MOTHER WAS DIAGNOSED with leukemia
and then suffered a massive stroke. Like
everybody in this industry, I worked from
morning till night, wrapped up in my own little world,
and suddenly it came to a screeching halt. You have
only one set of parents; you gotta do what you have to
do. I did, and it was a really difficult time because I
was used to being so hands-on and being the owner-
operator. It really changed my entire gestalt.
Today, she’s still hanging in there, but she’s paralyzed
on her entire right side and can’t speak, though she
understands. Your mother is your mother, and no
matter whether she can speak or not, you just know.
There’s this intuition.
As a hospitality person, you have to have some
intuition; you don’t approach every guest the same way.
You have to look at them. Do they look like they’re
celebrating? Do they look like they’re pissed and don’t
wanna talk? The same with your team. Every person
needs to be nurtured in a different way. We try our best
to figure out what that is early on so we can continue
supporting them, giving them the longevity we want.”
ELLEN YIN
FOUNDER AND CO-OWNER OF HIGH STREET
HOSPITALITY GROUP, PHILADELPHIA
“
Interviews were conducted at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen,
one of the premier culinary events in America. We hope you’ll
join us this year at the 38th annual Food & Wine Classic, taking
place June 19–21, 2020, for three incredible days filled with
cooking demonstrations, wine tastings, and panel discussions
led by world-class chefs and wine experts. Tickets are on sale at
foodandwine.com/classic.
