Christopher 'Chris' Gaither, MS | Source | Master Sommelier, Service Director, Partner at ungrafted
Christopher 'Chris' Gaither, MS
Chris’s first restaurant job was a means to an end—a way to pay his bills while attending Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. He immediately loved the challenge of serving tables—the fast pace, the attention to detail, and the demand to continue to learn about food and wine. His passion and curiosity for wine led him to apply for—and receive—a coveted wine internship at The French Laundry. Here, Chris went from having a mere interest in wine to being devoted to wine. He moved to San Francisco to work as a Sommelier at Spruce and from there went on to be the Wine Director at Restaurant Gary Danko. After stints at Sociale, Michael Mina and Octavia, Chris got the opportunity to open Ungrafted with his wife, Master Sommelier Rebecca Fineman.
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ungrafted
Master Sommelier, Service Director, Partner
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SF man says perseverance, tenacity pushed him to become 1 of just 4 Black sommeliers in the world
This man is 1 of only 4 Black master sommeliers in the world. Perseverance and tenacity pushed him after 10 years of failed attempts.
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It's something that came with a lot of perseverance and a lot of tenacity.
Eventually, I became one of the people at the restaurant that knew about all the producers. I would have my coworkers asking me, 'Hey, what does this one taste like? What does that one taste like? Can you talk to my table over here about this one coming from Campania? What is that Taurasi?'
