Interesting article - I did not realize that private collectors routinely consign personal cellars to restaurants. I knew that was common in retail (Chambers Street does it all the time), but wasn’t aware that restaurants did the same thing.
How does this work in practice? Does the private seller avoid licensing requirements because he or she is not the one actually making the sale? In other words, the restaurant “middle man” has all the “compliance” requirements for alcohol sales?
In NY the relevant laws permit a restaurant with a license to sell wine to purchase wine from private individuals. That is how it works.
Interesting to see how many of these places are no longer open.
Is influential the right word?
Does anybody really care about an ex-sommelier tracing the lineage of New York sommeliers, and very quickly arriving at names that most of us have never heard of? I mean, it is not like tracing the Bobby Knight college basketball coaches family tree or something equally profound, like former Bill Belichick assistants who became successful head coaches without cheating. At the moment, I suspect that the world’s most famous sommelier (well, ex-sommelier) is Ron Washam, the HoseMaster of Wine, who quit and did something worthwhile with his life!
Not really sure it is worthwhile. But at least it is entertaining.
Sigh, always such derision and bitterness from a few here…
There are a lot of really excellent, talented and passionate wine folks mentioned in that article. Isn’t it nice in life sometimes to just be happy for them? So what if the NYC restaurant community is a little incestuous. It doesn’t change the fact that most of those folks have done great things for wine in their own way.
once again, projecting your own ignorance on the rest of us. Your lack of interest doesn’t translate to anyone else.
Yes, this is important. Knowing many of these folks, I happen to know that they all take it quite seriously. In the same way you can trace the lineage of chefs and what they do later in their careers, and more important, how they mentor younger generations and pay it forward. These guys have made the NYC restaurant business significantly better for wine lovers. I care about that.
Well said!
I’m sure they are all decent folk, but what’s the influence that has impact beyond the circles mentioned…
you mean the circle of the NYC restaurant scene?
NYC restaurants aren’t very important Yaacov… 
Ian Faith:
The Boston gig has been cancelled…
David St. Hubbins:
What?
Ian Faith:
Yeah. I wouldn’t worry about it though, it’s not a big college town.
Any time you can pull in a Spinal Tap reference, you know it’s a good thread!
It is worth noting that the title of the article is really quite specific: “Eight of New York’s Most Influential Wine Restaurants.” They are not promising influence beyond New York, so it’s funny to see the usual blathering from Klapp about self importance, incestuousness etc. 
I’d love to know what the outcomes were, did they lead to the natural wine movement, the popularity of the Jura, grower champagnes, previously unknown burgundy producers? I suspect they may have in part, but it’s not clear.
When Patrick C. was with Tim Kopec at Veritas, that was one of the truly greatest high level operations I have ever seen re: sommeliers. The wine selection was from Park Smith. They had everything and the brains in house to make sure you were treated well.
I have fond memories of a 1959 Beaune Enfant Jesus there in the 2008 timeframe. The meal was sublime. 1990 Montfortino. Lots of other goodies. We drank well.
Yes.
Yes to all of the above, and more.
It’s also a pretty tightly-knit and collegial group that supports each other.
I think the point of the article is to tell a little-known story of the connective tissue between all these restaurants that are well-known but to the casual observer, seemingly disparate.
In the chef world, you can look at a very similar situation where Tom Colicchio came from Gramercy Tavern and opened Craft, which at the time was a fairly radical idea for a restaurant; just great source ingredients on a plate without any real composition like a proper entree and then giving the diner the ability to mix and match a meal. Which is now commonplace.
But the really interesting thing is looking at his opening chef crew;
Jonathan Beno - went on to CdC at Per Se and now has his own place, Lincoln
David Chang - nuff said
Marco Canora - Hearth and Terroir
Ahktar Nawab - many restaurants and gigs
Damon Wise - Took over Craft, and then head chef for all of Tom’s restaurants and now doing his own as-yet-unnanounced project.
Seems unfair that they left out the various Batalli/Bastianich venues which have always had nice wine lists and great food. Their various places were some of the few where I would eschew my own stuff, and try their list. Of course very Italian centric, but as someone who had little of that region, and knew even less, their wine staff were very cheerfully educational too.
And some of the steakhouses were also blessed with deep lists, although perhaps less esoteric in their offerings, and tilted more toward what the expense account crowd would guzzle, but they usually had lots of good older stuff at non criminal prices.
So I don’t think 8 restaurants is enough for a proper list!!