James W. Crooker

James was born on July 17, 1963. As a boy growing up in Arlington Heights, his earliest memories are of his parents entertaining and hosting dinner parties for friends and neighbors. In what became a nightly ritual, he watched in fascination as his father would pass around a hand-made cordial list with funny sounding named drinks like Harvey Wallbanger, Rusty Nail, Grasshopper and Stinger. The sound of laughter became his security blanket. Later, when visiting California wine-county as a teenager, James saw first-hand the care and effort that went into making wine. He moved to San Francisco after graduating from the University of Iowa and began his career at the now shuttered Chateau Suzanne. By 1987, he was back in Chicago, working first as a manager of Gordon restaurant, moving up to Maitre ‘D at Les Plumes, and in November 1989 taking a position as Captain at Le Titi de Paris. In October 2003 he was appointed Sommelier and in May 2005 he was accepted into the Guild of Master Sommeliers, passing the Level II exam in June 2006. In his spare time he is a freelance writer and in August will begin teaching wine at the College of DuPage.

Marcel Flori

Marcel Flori was born April 26, 1950. He began his adult life as an engineer, moving to the restaurant business in December 1981 when he began working as a Maitre D’Hotel at Dame Tartine in Paris, France. He emigrated to the United States and landed in Chicago where he became Captain of the Waiters at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in December 1984. Marcel soon moved to the Park Hyatt Hotel and became their Sommelier in 1988. Chicago could not keep Marcel around though and he moved to Houston, Texas in early 1989 to work at the Four Seasons Hotel Restaurant and Confederate House. Marcel could not stay away from Chicago for long and moved back at the end of December 1989 to Le Titi de Paris where he settled in for 14 years as our Maitre D’Sommelier until he retired in 2003. He still joins us once a month to host his infamous wine dinners.

Personal Awards and Recognitions:

• 3rd Best Sommelier of America – 1986
• Best Sommelier of the Midwest – 1986
• Master Knight in the order of the Knights of the Vine
• Knight in the Association Internationale des Maitres Conseils en Gastronomie Francaise.

2004 Pascal Rollet Mâcon Solutré Pouilly, Burgundy

At the base of the Roche de Solutre rests the tiny hamlet of Solutre. Here Pascal Rollet works a very small parcel of 80 year old vines that we seek out for value and typicity. All of these wines are hand-harvested (a rarity these days) and are made with great care in one of the smallest cellars the world has ever seen. On a side note, Ernest Hemingway brought it to life in “A Movable Feast” when he stated” “Macon is a good white wine, moderately full-bodied but with a low alcohol content.” 13.5%, by the way, is hardly low, although spoken from a man who drank as hard as he wrote, I’ll take his word for it.

2004 Ramey Claret, Napa Valley

Deep red ruby in color with black fruits and menthol on the nose. This is a sweet, lush and oaky wine with very broad flavors of blueberry, violet and tar. The finish is long in the tooth and pairs beautifully with our New Zealand venison loin, grilled tenderloin of beef and oven-roasted Australian rack of lamb. It would also be a great sidekick for Chef Michael’s rich and fanciful Canadian foie gras with perigord black truffles.