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Ken Wagstaff (above) is wine buyer and manager at Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco, where dishes such as Loch Duart Salmon with Potato Salad and Sea Beans are served (right). Karr singles out the winery's gamay noir, off ered by the bottle for $33 and by the glass for $9, as the sweet spot for California value on her list. "Edmunds St. John is producing low-alcohol, higher-acid wines that are bright and lively with fl oral under tones." Karr lists 100 labels and 20 wines by the glass with wine pairings making up half of her sales. From Spain, Karr features a De Ventura Mencia from the Ribeira Sacra region by the glass for $11 and at $45 a bottle. Ken Wagstaff , wine buyer and manager at Wayfare Tavern, a 100–seat restaurant launched by Chef Tyler Florence in San Francisco, points to Paso Robles producer Foxglove whose value-oriented chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon he believes are ideal for his program. Wagstaff , who lists Foxglove's cabernet sauvignon by the glass for $10 and by the bottle for $40, says that, "Th eir cabernet sauvignon is the perfect barbeque wine, it's all about fruit without lavish oak or being highly extracted." Foxglove represents value for Wagstaff who intentionally crafted a wine list that would leverage what his clientele already knows, in this case, California cabernet sauvignon, and requires less hand selling. "Our approach requires a list that has some familiarity," he said "we want customers to feel at home and we're not trying to teach; the list is designed to sell itself." WASHINGTON STATE'S BARGAINS At Elliott's Oyster House, a 250-seat restaurant on Seattle's waterfront that balloons to 400 seats during peak season, general manager Tom Arthur manages a list of 250 wines and off ers 35 by the glass, priced from $6 to $13. With the restaurant's emphasis on seafood, sixty percent of Arthur's wine sales are www.cheersonline.com devoted to white wines and forty to reds. He lists Yakima Valley producer Hogue Cellars Chardonnay and Pinot Gris by the six- ounce glass for $6."Hogue defi nitely over delivers for the price," says Arthur, "I routinely blind taste to edit our by-the-glass list and Hogue Chardonnay is a benchmark." Two thirds of wine sales at Elliott's are derived from the by-the-glass program and Arthur markets wines that win big at the local Pacifi c Coast Oyster Competition, including Hogue's Pinot Gris above the oyster selection on his menu. "I look for wines that are clean and bone dry so they don't overwhelm the oysters." Wayfare Tavern's Wagstaff sources merlot grown in Yakima Valley from Charles Smith, a former rock band manager turned winemaker, whose tongue-in-cheek second label Th e Velvet Devil he lists by the fi ve-ounce glass for $9 and at $36 by the bottle. "Th e Velvet Devil Merlot is a soft, spicy wine that's not too tannic; it's ideal fried chicken and burger wine and works well with our braised pork dish. It's a versatile wine that over delivers for the price." He fi rst became of aware of Smith's portfolio of value wines like Th e Velvet Devil and Kung Fu Girl Riesling through the winery's fl agship K Vintners wines. When asked where they will look for value going forward, operators like Karr are keeping a close eye on California's Amador and Lake Counties, "Th ere are talented winemakers working in these regions and I anticipate that we'll see many more artisanal value wines from them in the near future." Deborah Parker Wong, AIWS writes about wine and spirits as Northern California editor for Th e Tasting Panel magazine. SEPTEMBER 2011 | 43 JOHN LEE