The Celler's liquid chef sketches the identikit of the perfect contemporary sommelier: a mix of unostentatious knowledge and empathy, olfactory, gustatory and existential intelligence, adaptability, psychology and vision. Contemporary wine? It respects ecological consciousness and privileges elegance over power.
Cover photo: @David Borrat
The sommelier
Some swear that the real spearhead in the Celler's trimurti is him: Josep Roca, the sommelier brother, author of an encyclopedic wine list and pairing that have entered legend. On the crest of the wave of success, while business expansions are bubbling (the latest is the launch of the Esperit Roca range of spirits, but other projects are "simmering") and the three-star restaurant nonchalantly maintains itself on the Olympus, the 58-year-old talks freewheeling in an interview with Cepas y Vinos, touching on hot topics in the profession.
"We are the third generation of a family, inside a restaurant where three worlds come together: the savory cuisine of Joan, the sweet cuisine of Jordi, and the liquid, which I can develop from my point of view. Like three heads under the same hat. Three cross, fraternal looks that offer happiness in the same neighborhood where we were born and raised. I have never worked without my family. It is an opportunity to strengthen family ties and coexist with a passion for hospitality in a loving and harmonious form."
The pressure is there, but the Rocas prefer not to feel it, enjoying the opportunity to be heard and share their vision. "Being is more important than having. It must be understood that society needs summaries and when faced with an excess of information takes refuge in rankings, which are and always will be relative. It is necessary to gain distance, to relativize what is said about oneself, and to understand that the goal remains inner wholeness. Pragmatically, being born a hundred meters from the workplace, eating every day in a canteen and knowing that this is our home, makes one reconsider life in light of the supreme value of authenticity."
"Developing a wine list is a slow, tenacious and obsessive process aimed at representing different contemporary realities. I started in 1986 with 20 references and today we have more than 7250. The journey of 37 years of passion is a love letter. We sommeliers are ambassadors of the growth of Spanish wine. We are not just in restaurants; it is a role that has atomized into other fields of culture, commerce, and outreach. We communicate more and they listen to us more, because the new generations are better prepared."
And here it is, the identikit of the perfect professional: "It is important that a sommelier knows how to listen, understand, satisfy, serve, empathize in discretion, offer an image of confidence and trust, without flaunting his or her knowledge, so that the diner remains the center of attention. Olfactory intelligence, gustatory intelligence, existential intelligence. Ability to adapt to work environment, place, function, responsibility. Seduction, emotion, empathy, generosity, hospitality. Ability to listen to understand, interpret, manage information, give time to learn. Putting oneself in the other person's shoes." But the sommelier is also a bit of a psychologist, because a wine resembles the person who makes it, and also the person who orders it. The current trend? Going toward ecological consciousness and favoring elegance over power.
