Joe Campanale, Sommelier, Italian Wine, Dell’Anima, L’Apicio, L’Artusi, Anforna, Wine Bar, Restaurants, Where to eat, Where to drink, Where to shop, New York, NY, Manhattan, NYC, Best Bars in NYC, Italian Restaurants, Where to buy Wine, Wine Recs, Japanese, American, Brooklyn, Sake, Japanese, Drinking, Eating, Finding

After the success of dell’anima, L’Artusi and Anfora, Sommelier Joe Campanale and business partner chef Gabe Thompson are taking their growing empire east with their newest Italian restaurant, L’Apicio. Joe talks about the menu, the wine and beer list, and passes along the six spots he’s currently frequenting in New York.

Q & A with Sommelier Joe Campanale

Q. Tells us about your fourth place, L’Apicio:

A.. It’s definitely Gabe’s food without a doubt. It’s Italian-inspired and there are a lot of fresh home-made pastas, a lot of local and seasonal items, done with Gabe’s creativity and palate. He cooked at Le Bernardin and Del Posto, but he’s from Texas, so he’s good with fish and really bold flavors. We are doing this new dish, that I haven’t really seen around town, called “Polenta Alla Spianatora” which is polenta that is spread out on a flat board. Spianatora actually means to pave, so it’s spread out and served in sharing sizes.

Q. You have California wines on your list, which is a little bit of a departure from your usual Italian. How did you decide what to put on your list?

A.. When we opened up dell’anima, I never would have thought that I’d ever put California wines on the list, especially not a California Chardonnay by the glass. Sommeliers are always into what’s interesting. I’ve been drinking more American wine lately and have been really impressed with what’s going on. Mostly producers who are looking towards either the heritage of America or Europe in order to determine their style of wine making, which means that they’re making wines that are hand-made, that are natural, not manipulated, and are really balanced. They have lower alcohol levels and are often times using interesting and unique grapes.

We’re pouring a Grignolino, which is an obscure grape even within Italy. We’re pouring that by the glass from Napa Valley. Just really interesting wines and I found them to be thrilling. I do think that they pair well with Gabe’s food. When you have those wines that are from the States, they are very full flavored, but still have a lot of acidity. That’s what I think was lacking from a lot of American wines five years ago. Now there is a movement that’s moving back towards that.

Q. You’re also doing some interesting things in the beer department.

A.. Yes and I’m really excited about the beers. The wine list is style-driven, pairing the Old World and the New World. We have different styles for whites, different styles for reds, and the orange wines and rose wines. The beer list mirrors that. The beer list has four general broad categories for beer styles. Sessionable, which means you can knock it back very easily.  Hoppy, so all those IPA-style beers. High-octane, so richer, fuller higher alcohol beers. And quirky, because I think there are a lot of beer producers who are doing interesting things that are kind of quirky. Like a chestnut beer or the Allagash Curieux which is aged in Jim Beam bourbon barrels. We also have a yam beer from The Bruery, which does a lot of like Belgian-style beers.  I’ve never been a big fan of pumpkin beer, but the yam beer captures all that fall stuff and is more complex and interesting.

Sommelier’s Recs | 6 Things... New York City

Find | Wine Shops

East Village | Tinto Fino

They specialize in Spanish wines and they truly are experts in those wines. I really like their palates and they present the wines in a way that’s well-educated and informed, but also has customer service at the forefront. They come from the restaurant industry, so they really just get hospitality. I just love their selections. I think that they’re really doing a justice representing the real wines of Spain.

Tribeca | New York Vintners

They’re a solid neighborhood wine shop and carry so many different wines. They have all the wines that we have on our list at the restaurant, plus regions that we don’t cover. As a disclosure, the owner of New York Vintners is the cousin of our pastry chef.

[See details.]

Eat | Restaurants

Neta

It’s ridiculous. Oh my God, it’s the best. It’s a sushi place that was opened by the chefs de cuisine from Masa and Bar Masa. Obviously the sushi is pretty amazing, but on top of that they have this incredible bartender. The restaurant is built around the sushi bar and the cocktail bar. He creates cocktails that are specifically designed to go with the cuisine. It’s a small place with one bartender and he’s working his butt off. Everyone’s drinking cocktails. There is a cocktail there with Chinese long peppers and sake. It’s a little bit savory, a little tingly and just pairs so well with the food. The restaurant is not club-y, it’s just small and awesome.

[See details.]

Buttermilk Channel

I love Buttermilk Channel, it’s so warm and cozy there. Deliciousness and hospitality are their two primary goals. I also love their wine list, it’s awesome. It’s an All-American wine list without any easy selections - there’s not like a cheap chardonnay or cheap cabernet from a place that you’d expect. Going to Buttermilk Channel is one of my influences and inspirations for putting many American wines on my own list. My favorite meal there is brunch. I really like the fried chicken and waffles, especially if I’ve gone for a long run that day! They’re not pushing the envelope, but it’s food I want to eat.

[See details.]

Drink | Bars

Amor y Amargo

I like bitter and I love amaro. In general, I just like digestifs. I really like how they translate that into traditional drinking and use those in unique ways to make a cocktail that’s more interesting. Using bitters in cocktails is very common now, but these are the non-potable bitters, the ones you take just a few little drops of. They’re using the potable bitters, like amari and you just see some of that in the cocktails, which I think is super interesting.

Decibel

Decibel feels like they’ve created a Tokyo sake den in downtown New York.  I absolutely love sake and I always want to learn more about it.They have this incredible sake list and I always try something new and I usually end up loving it.

[See details.]

Recommendations

Details of Joe Campanale’s recommendations on where to eat, drink, and shop in New York, NY.

City Guides

- New York City | Manhattan Guide: Download

- New York City | Brooklyn Guide: Download