The house wine is not your run-of-the-mill red at Forage. Owner Stan Hilbert has collaborated with Sonoma winemaker Tony Coturri for a specialty restaurant blend, coming soon to the by-the-glass list. Coturri, a leading name in the natural wine world, has produced a limited, one-of-a-kind Californian red for the Cambridge spot. In anticipation of the exclusive bottling, Hilbert shares the details of the partnership and the Forage wine philosophy.
How did the collaboration come about?
I’ve known Tony for maybe 10 years now. I met him while working with Richard Kzirian of Violette Imports and then I took on the job at Ten Tables in JP as General Manager and wine director and I always carried his wines on the list. He offered to make a bottling for Ten Tables so I flew to California and we did a blend together. When I opened Forage last year, obviously I wanted to pour my favorite wines by the glass so I always had a wine from Tony available. We did a wine dinner with him and he said, “Hey, why don’t we do another cuvee. I’ve got some interesting things happening.” I couldn’t say no.
How would you describe the wine list at Forage?
I want it to be fun and accessible. The biggest compliment anyone could ever give me is that they can pick any wine on the list and they know it’s going to be good. It’s going to pair well with the food. I always tell people, I’d recommend this and if you don’t like it, don’t worry about it, we’ll pick something else. I’m really trying to break that barrier between the wine buyer at the restaurant and the restaurant itself. Don’t sweat it if you don’t like the wine, we’ll take it back.
How does the Coturri collaboration fit in with the list?
I’ve always been a supporter of – I hate to say natural wines, because it sounds so gimmicky – I’ve always loved wines that were made by small producers, with very little additives to them and Tony’s always been doing it that way.
How much say did you have in the final flavor profile?
We talked a little bit about what I was looking for: something easy to drink. An every day wine. He knows our food well, lighter on the sauces, fresh ingredients, farm-to-table stuff. We’re not a steakhouse. We don’t need a big, powerful wine. So we kicked some ideas around. I don’t think I’ve had any wine from Tony that I did not like.
Where did the label art come from?
I worked with Lauren Hayes, who’s the bar manager Ten Tables now. She’s an artist and a friend and I asked her if she wanted to help me out with it. I suck at art. We’re all about simplicity and I wanted the label to reflect that. You can see it as two guys, us at Forage and Tony, with the baskets of grapes and mushrooms.
When can diners expect the wine?
About a month. Tony has 200 gallons of wine, bottling it just in magnums, and it’s going to be available by the glass. Unless someone wants to buy a magnum—that’s fine, too. The beauty of having a small owner-operated business is you’re super flexible with everything you do. If you can find the time, you can make it happen.
