Episode 6.1 - Sommelier Matthew Conway, The Tippling House

Kicking off a new season of wine stories from the Southeast, this episode features Matthew Conway - the owner, operator, and sommelier at The Tippling House in Charleston’s Elliotborough neighborhood. The Tippling House is an intimate wine bar set in a Charleston Single house, and the wine list is printed and dated every day highlighting a global selection of bottles produced by families that respect the land they farm and the history of their domaines. We talk about the goals of his wine program, why he allows all of the wines to be available by the half bottle, and how he sources from his personal cellar to create a list called “Matthew’s Stash”. He talks about how he strives to create a wine bar that caters to all wine lovers regardless of taste or budget. We chat about making the move to Charleston, South Carolina in March of 2020 after 17 years in New York City and 14 years as partner and beverage director at Restaurant Marc Forgione. Conway, a native Californian, moved to NYC in 2004 where he worked for the late Chef Gray Kunz at Café Gray in the Time Warner center from 2004-2007. In 2010, he took a short leave to work in the world-famous cellars of Taillevent in Paris, France. After returning in the fall of 2010, Restaurant Marc Forgione received one Michelin Star and shortly thereafter, Matthew became a certified coffee sommelier, was honored as one of Zagat’s “30 Under 30” in 2012 and named one of Star Chefs “Rising Star Sommeliers” of 2015. Matthew has consistently been a featured sommelier at several of the top wine events of the year including but not limited to La Paulée and La Fête du Champagne. Matthew now holds partnership at La Tablée which focuses on the Northern Rhône Valley, so we dive into what fascinates him most about this region. Since opening The Tippling House in October 2021, his team has received glowing coverage from Wine Spectator and Charleston City Paper. The Post & Courier also just named Matthew and his fiancé Carissa Hernandez a Charleston “Food and Beverage Power Couple” in February of 2022. Add The Tippling House to your list of must-visit wine destinations for your next trip to Charleston. You can visit www.thetipplinghousechs.com for more info, and you can follow @conbeazie and @tipplinghousechs on Instagram.

Recorded March 2, 2022