Paul Einbund is known as one of the country's most exciting and approachable sommeliers. Most recently Paul consulted for the Slanted Door Restaurant Group including all of the Out The Door locations, and Heaven's Dog. He opened Frances restaurant with chef Melissa Perello, setting up all policy and procedures, staff training and hiring, and is still the beverage director there. Recent consulting jobs at Aziza, and Piccino restaurants as well.
Einbund was a partner at Coi restaurant in San Francisco and in part responsible for two Michelin stars and four stars from the San Francisco Chronicle, he has been featured in newspapers and magazines too numerous to mention over his 20-year restaurant career. Known for his passion and his ways of demystifying the often difficult world of exciting new wines and spirits, the San Francisco Chronicle made him a member of their wine panel and the SF Weekly called him the best sommelier of 2010.
The recent release of "3" wine, a joint venture, with winemaker Paul Hobbs and vineyard owner Paul Frank of Gemstone, one of America's top Cabernet vineyards, marks Paul's first foray into winemaking. The second adventure has been Paul's work with local vintners on crafting house wine served from kegs. Paul has worked at or consulted with some of the finest restaurants in California including the Water Grill, Melisse, Tartare, bacar, Blue Bottle Café and Michael's in Santa Monica.
contact paul at peinbund@gmail.com
Recent Press
Best Sommelier 2010 - SF Weekly
Everything about neighborhood restaurant darling Frances is sweet: The chef (Melissa Perello), the menu (15 dishes in total), the wedge of a space. But it’s the creative wine list assembled by celebrated beverage director Paul Einbund—who last brought his clever charm to Coi— that turns Frances into something more.
Excerpt from 7x7 Best of San Francisco 2010: East + Drink Best $1 Wine
By Sara Deseran Posted May 20, 2010
[click here to read the entire article]By Sara Deseran Posted May 20, 2010
Guests who are lucky enough to claim any of the 47 seats at Frances, Melissa Perello’s hot new restaurant in the Castro, are offered not only the wine list but also the choice of house wine, red or white. The house wine is presented in a tall glass carafe, more vase than pitcher. The instruction from the waiter is simple: “Pour your own, and we charge you at the end only for what you drink, a buck an ounce.”
Excerpt from New York Times - House Wines as Distinctive as the Address
By Jordan Mackay Published April 30, 2010
[click here to read the entire article]By Jordan Mackay Published April 30, 2010
"She's also surrounded herself with some of the best staff around, including Paul Einbund, the former wine director at Coi responsible for many brilliant matches on Daniel Patterson's four-star menus.
At Frances, Einbund's short wine list features a standout innovation: He travels to Santa Barbara to blend his own house red and white wines and then offers them for $1 an ounce; diners drink what they want and pay accordingly. The white is an easy-drinking Grenache Blanc, and the red is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon."
At Frances, Einbund's short wine list features a standout innovation: He travels to Santa Barbara to blend his own house red and white wines and then offers them for $1 an ounce; diners drink what they want and pay accordingly. The white is an easy-drinking Grenache Blanc, and the red is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon."
Excerpt from The San Francisco Chronicle - Frances: top quality in casual setting
By Michael Bauer Published January 31, 2010
[click here to read the entire article]By Michael Bauer Published January 31, 2010
"...my favourite thing about Frances? The people who work there – some of whom came from the great restaurant Coi, including sommelier Paul. He brings you a “market shot” before the first course – his own blend of wine and juice that knocks your socks off."
Excerpt from Financial Times - Restaurant review: Frances, San Francisco
By Holly Finn Published January 30 2010
[click here to read the entire article]
"...Her partner, Paul Einbund, is not only one of the best wine pickers in town, but a buoyant dining room presence. He must have channeled his own inner Melissa when choosing his bottles. Rarely have I encountered such a comfortable match of food and wine. Notable are $18 carafes of very drinkable house red and white."
Excerpt from The San Francisco Examiner - Perello hits comfort on nose at Frances
By Patricia Unterman Published January 8, 2010
[click here to read the entire article]By Patricia Unterman Published January 8, 2010
"if anyone's to blame for this new post-coffee-shop coffee arms race, it's coffee shops themselves, says Paul Einbund, co-owner of San Francisco restaurant Coi (pronounced "kwah"). "There's a whole generation that grew up on Starbucks, but now they're the ones working in restaurants," he says. "They're saying, 'I think I can do better than that. I can pay more attention to detail in the brewing, and I can get a product that's produced in a more artisanal manner.' "
Einbund says the pursuit of perfection threatens to drive his staff to distraction. First a series of taste tests led them to grind every cup of joe to order. Further experimentation required the purchase of an expensive burr grinder, which crushes the beans using a grinding wheel instead of a blade. Now Coi has conducted taste tests of coffee made from their old standard, filtered water heated to 190 degrees, vs. that made from water slightly cooled from a rolling boil. "It made a huge difference in color and flavor," Einbund says. "It's just such a better cup of coffee."
Einbund says the pursuit of perfection threatens to drive his staff to distraction. First a series of taste tests led them to grind every cup of joe to order. Further experimentation required the purchase of an expensive burr grinder, which crushes the beans using a grinding wheel instead of a blade. Now Coi has conducted taste tests of coffee made from their old standard, filtered water heated to 190 degrees, vs. that made from water slightly cooled from a rolling boil. "It made a huge difference in color and flavor," Einbund says. "It's just such a better cup of coffee."
Excerpt from USA Today - Worth its weight in inlaid gold
By Dara Moskowitz Published February 16, 2007
[click here to read the entire article]By Dara Moskowitz Published February 16, 2007
Television
[click on the article below for larger view]
San Francisco Chronicle Wine Section
San Francisco Chronicle Four Star Review
Northside Food and Wine
Tablehopper.com
Beer Pairing.com
