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682: Jordan Salcito Has a Smart Mouth

Nov 5, 2025

Guest

Ari Kolender

Guest

Jordan Salcito

Join award-winning sommelier and canned spritz creator Jordan Salcito, alongside seafood maestro Ari Kolender. Jordan shares her unique journey from a kitchen to the wine world, discussing her new book Smart Mouth and how it demystifies wine for busy readers. She also talks about the joy of canned wine and her life in Paris. Meanwhile, Ari dives into the top restaurants that shaped his culinary path, reflecting on his love for seafood and the importance of sourcing fresh ingredients. Together, they explore passion, palate, and the art of dining.

01:19:08

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ANECDOTE

From Basement Wine To A Soul-Jolting Pour

Jordan Salcito traces her wine passion to childhood memories of her grandfather making basement wine and to meeting winemakers through restaurants.
A transformative moment came when chef Danielle poured a 1990 Hermitage and linked a dish to Paul Bocuse, igniting her wine career.

question_answer

ANECDOTE

Reinventing Momofuku's Wine Service

Jordan describes taking over Momofuku's beverage programs and radically rethinking service and menu architecture.
She poured all wines by the glass from magnums and rearranged the menu, which tripled wine sales.

insights

INSIGHT

Tasting As The Gateway To Wine Knowledge

Start wine education with tasting because it's the first sensory gateway that sparks curiosity and confidence.
Jordan moved tasting to the front of her book to give readers practical reference points before history or regions.

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How did you first fall in love with wine?

00:32 • 3min

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What moment made you shift from kitchens to wine?

03:46 • 6min

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What drew you to Burgundy and working harvest?

10:15 • 1min

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How did you approach leading Momofuku's beverage program?

11:29 • 5min

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Why did you write Smart Mouth and who is it for?

How should people improve tasting skills?

21:51 • 7min

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What topics are covered in Smart Mouth beyond tasting?

28:23 • 5min

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What inspired Ramona and thoughts on canned wine growth?

33:50 • 1min

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Does wine work in a can format?

35:13 • 2min

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How has living in Paris changed your perspective on wine?

37:09 • 3min

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How did the Master Sommelier exam shape your career decisions?

What five restaurants inspired your career?

51:56 • 2min

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How did Slightly North of Broad influence you?

54:10 • 4min

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What was the lobster-diving summer that shaped you?

57:49 • 4min

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What did Providence teach you as a young cook?

01:01:22 • 4min

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How did dining at Nopa illuminate California cuisine?

01:04:53 • 3min

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What Charleston spots reconnected you to roots?

01:08:16 • 2min

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Why write a seafood cookbook and whom is it for?

01:10:21 • 1min

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What are smart tips for raw and cured seafood?

01:11:30 • 1min

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How should people buy and handle seafood safely?

01:12:40 • 4min

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Rapid-fire taste check: quick culinary preferences

Discussed as a no-frills, easy way to cook seafood without getting flustered. The goal is to make seafood cooking understandable and accessible by speaking in plain language. The book avoids French cooking terms and uses ingredients easily found on Amazon. The intention is to remove the notion that seafood cooking is fussy or difficult. The co-authors wanted to ensure people understood how easy and quick it is to cook seafood.

Smart Mouth

Jordan Salcito

Jenny Bowers

Mentioned as Jordan Salcito's new book where she shares her wine wisdom. Jordan wanted the book to be useful and interesting for smart, curious, and busy people. She aimed to make a wine book that was both serious and beautiful. The goal was to provide interesting anecdotes for dinner parties and insights into navigating wine lists. Jordan wanted to add value by sharing information known within the industry but not commonly discussed outside smaller circles.

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Moonwalking with Einstein

The Art and Science of Remembering Everything

Joshua Foer

In 'Moonwalking with Einstein', Joshua Foer delves into the world of competitive memory sports and the science behind human memory. The book follows Foer's transformation from a journalist to a mental athlete as he trains for the USA Memory Championship. It explores historical and cultural aspects of memory, including ancient techniques like the 'method of loci' or 'memory palace', and discusses modern research on memory. Foer also interacts with renowned memory experts and savants, providing a comprehensive look at how anyone can improve their memory through specific techniques and practices.

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Kitchen Confidential

Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly

Anthony Bourdain

Kitchen Confidential is a memoir and industry commentary that offers a candid, often humorous look at the less glamorous aspects of high-end restaurant kitchens. Bourdain shares his personal experiences, including his struggles with drug addiction and his rise through the culinary ranks. The book is structured as a collection of anecdotes and includes practical advice on the cooking trade, as well as warnings to consumers about restaurant practices. It captures the intense, often chaotic world of professional kitchens and explains why people are drawn to this demanding profession despite its challenges.

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SIMPLE

Yotam Ottolenghi

In 'Ottolenghi Simple', Yotam Ottolenghi presents streamlined recipes that maintain his signature Middle Eastern flavors while being simple in various ways: made in 30 minutes or less, using 10 or fewer ingredients, prepared in a single pot, using pantry staples, or made ahead of time. The book includes over 130 photographs and is divided into chapters such as Brunch, Raw Veg, Cooked Veg, and Dessert. Each recipe is categorized using the 'Simple' key: S (short on time), I (ingredients: 10 or fewer), M (make ahead), P (pantry-led), L (lazy-day dishes), and E (easier than you think).

The World Atlas of Wine is a definitive reference work that explores the global wine scene. The eighth edition, co-authored by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson, includes 416 pages, 230 maps, and updated information on climate change and financial aspects of wine. It provides detailed insights into wine regions, grape varieties, and production statistics, making it an essential resource for wine enthusiasts.

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The Oxford companion to wine

Jancis Robinson

The Oxford Companion to Wine is an encyclopedic work edited by Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding, and Tara Q Thomas. The fifth edition, published in 2023, includes over 4,100 entries, with more than 300 new topics. It covers a wide range of subjects related to wine, including history, geography, science, viticulture, winemaking, and the language of wine. The book is contributed to by over 260 experts from more than 30 countries and is recognized as the most comprehensive and authoritative reference on wine.

Jordan Salcito is an award-winning sommelier turned entrepreneur based in Paris. After working as a somm at Eleven Madison Park and overseeing the beverage programs for the Momofuku group, she launched the canned spritz brand Ramona. Now, she’s sharing all her considerable wine wisdom in a new book: Smart Mouth. It’s so special to have Jordan in the studio to talk about her career and her distinct point of view on all things wine.

Also on the show we have a great conversation with Ari Kolender. Ari is a 20-year veteran of some of the top seafood restaurants in America, and opened his first restaurant, Found Oyster, in Los Angeles in 2019. Found Oyster is a Los Angeles sensation. Casual and precise, the cooking hones Ari's deep passion for serving some the finest seafood available, paired with interesting wines and service that is at the same time casual and finely pointed. He also operates Queen's Raw Bar & Grill and joins the show to talk about the Top Five restaurants that inspired his career.

The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers – not of Resy—and do not constitute professional advice.

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