HarperCollins

Wine Girl: The Obstacles, Humiliations, and Triumphs of America's Youngest Sommelier

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9780062961679
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An affecting memoir from the country’s youngest sommelier, tracing her path through the glamorous but famously toxic restaurant world

At just twenty-one, the age when most people are starting to drink (well, legally at least), Victoria James became the country’s youngest sommelier at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Even as Victoria was selling bottles worth hundreds and thousands of dollars during the day, passing sommelier certification exams with flying colors, and receiving distinction from all kinds of press, there were still groping patrons, bosses who abused their role and status, and a trip to the hospital emergency room. It would take hitting bottom at a new restaurant and restorative trips to the vineyards where she could feel closest to the wine she loved for Victoria to re-emerge, clear-eyed and passionate, and a proud leader of her own Michelin-starred restaurant. Exhilarating and inspiring, Wine Girl is the memoir of a young woman breaking free from an abusive and traumatic childhood on her own terms; an ethnography of the glittering, high-octane, but notoriously corrosive restaurant industry; and above all, a love letter to the restorative and life-changing effects of good wine and good hospitality.

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  • 5
    Impressive life - Incredible reslience

    Posted by Serena on Oct 30th 2023

    Victoria James is a force to be reckoned with in the restaurant and world of fine wine - she was bussing tables at age 15 and took it upon herself to become the youngest sommelier - I so admire her grit and determination and the 'happy ending' is everything one roots for in a good story - reads like a novel- well written, fascinating and true. Victoria James is an icon!