Jean-Baptiste KLEIN

Head sommelier : 1 restaurant For Jean-Baptiste Klein, Meilleur ouvrier de France, sommellerie is a challenge and a discovery. It's a way of understanding the profession that has pushed him to the highest level of excellence.

Presentation

Until his apprenticeship in the kitchen, the world of wine was totally unknown to Jean-Baptiste Klein. It was his bosses, who were passionate about the field, who introduced him to it. He then continued his training with Romain Iltis (MOF 2015) at the Hotel Verte Vallée in Munster. "At first, it was a challenge. I came from a family-run business, with little experience in the dining room. The richness of the wine list and the dynamic sommellerie have plunged me further into this fascinating world."

Direction Courchevel, at Le Chabichou. "Once the winter season was over, he joined Marc Meneau at L'Espérance, then moved on to Jacques and Régis Marcon's restaurant in Saint-Bonnet-le-Froid (Haute-Loire).

In 2011, he landed his first position as head sommelier at Moulin de Mougins. Under the guidance of Franck Thomas (MOF 2000), he overhauled the wine list. Already a regular at competitions, that year he won the Best Young Sommelier de France award at the Trophée Duval-Leroy.

"After that, I wanted something different. I was looking for a family-run establishment, with a couple of chef-owners, in a region I didn't know." He landed at Clos des Sens, in Annecy-le-Vieux, where Madame Petit gradually handed over management of the cellar to him. "I gave it my all," he recalls.

In 2016, an announcement intrigued him. A meeting with chef Olivier Nasti, and here he was, head sommelier at Le Chambard, in Kaysersberg (Haut-Rhin), a position he hasn't left since. In addition to developing the cellar and the team, Jean-Baptiste Klein received the Gault&Millau Young Sommelier of the Year award in 2017. The icing on the cake, he was crowned Meilleur ouvrier de France in 2018.

I. B.