A growing number of luxury apartment buildings are looking to attract residents with amenities they’d normally find in high-end restaurants alone, such as in-house sommelier consulting and other wine programs.
At 30 Warren in New York City’s Tribeca neighborhood, residents are promised an array of services, from private wine tastings to advice on wine collecting, food pairing, and auction participation. The building also has a full-time sommelier on speed dial just for residents.
Such a program offers local restaurants and wine bars looking to expand their business and clientele the opportunity to reach out to the community. At 30 Warren, for example, Tribeca Select, a program designed exclusively for residents, connects the property with beloved wine bar Terroir Tribeca as well as Chambers Street Wines, a store known for its knowledgeable staff and broad selection of rare, small-batch, and natural wines. Residents of 30 Warren can even store their collections at Chambers Street Wines—a perk offered only through Tribeca Select.
Paul Grieco, the famed sommelier behind Terroir Tribeca, recently spoke with Coins2Day in greater detail about the new program at the modern 12-story condominium and what such services could do for residents and local businesses alike.
Coins2Day: Could you explain, in detail, the services that will be exclusive to residents at 30 Warren?
Grieco: Simply put, we at Terroir have never been asked to do anything like this. And I’m flattered to be the go-to somm and beverage person for all questions about wine at 30 Warren. I’ll consult on all things related to grape juice with alcohol and will personally help residents to look like somms themselves, at least to their friends.
The residents at 30 Warren can choose from a range of services that we designed exclusively for this program. If desired, we can give advice on wine collecting, auction participation, selecting offerings for parties at their new, amazing homes or at outside events, stock their daily wine fridges with the perfect wine for that season, and absolutely guide them through matching wines and foodstuffs at their dinner parties. If they want to host a tasting or more formal wine seminar for their friends, we can oversee that too.
I’m also excited to introduce 30 Warren residents to the community we’ve built at Terroir. Of course, any wine, food, and hospitality needs that can better be satisfied within our four walls will be at their immediate disposal. We want the residents to ultimately feel that the short distance between 30 Warren and the front door of Terroir is but a hop, skip, and jump away. Just walk along that stylized Tribeca “hallway,” and you are in another section of your new home, so to speak.
As the “resident somm,” what are your day-to-day responsibilities like? What are some of the most common requests and questions from residents?
I’m preparing to get a lot of questions about seasonal wines and how to choose 45 bottles for the wine refrigerator that 30 Warren comes with. It is truly a world of wine out there, and whittling the myriad selections down will be a fun and awesome challenge, especially when tailored to the wishes and wants of each resident of 30 Warren. We love to take people on journeys at Terroir, exploring all the regions and producers and varietals the wine world has to offer. We then, hopefully, arm that guest with enough info to be their own somm, to be dangerous enough to walk into any wine shop or restaurant and navigate their way through the offerings without being intimidated. Knowledge is power, and we do our damnedest to spread the gospel of wine at every opportunity.
What inspired launching a private wine program for a luxury condo building? Was this something residents requested? Is it designed to attract new residents?
While I’d like to take credit for the program, I sadly cannot. It was the folks at 30 Warren, Cape Advisors, who came to me. But I think they’re onto something with the idea to use wine as an amenity. I’m sure it’s a great selling point for people who are apartment shopping in the neighborhood. For Terroir, it makes sense for us to get to know our clientele before they move in.
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