Passionate oenophile finds niche(2)
His clients now include many of the trendy, hip (read expensive) eateries that offer innovative menus; Le Pied de Cochon, La Queue de Cheval, Joe Beef and Liverpool House are among his customers.
Imad Nabwani, in charge of La Queue de Cheval's noted wine cellar, said, "I knew Dominic when he worked at the (Liquor Corp.), and I started working with him because his choices of wines were unique. They add great value." Other agents also have excellent wines, he added, "but we need wines customers can't and don't find elsewhere." And that's where all those courtships on dusty French countryside roads pay off.
"He has great, great selections in his portfolio," Mr. Nabwani said.
Mr. Allnutt is particularly anxious to get his hands on a premier cru Chambolle Musigny this year, a prize vintage he's been after for some time at considerable expense.
David McMillan is also a fan. "The trick Dominic has succeeded at is landing all these winemakers who make great wines you don't see anywhere else. Wine is passion, first and foremost, and he has the passion," said the chef and owner of dining hot spots Joe Beef and Liverpool House.
It also would make no sense for his restaurants, small and innovative, to order from the usual large importers that serve everyone else, Mr. McMillan said.
"We're trying to do something out of the ordinary. So we're interested only in wines made by winemakers who own their wineries. And Dominic knows them."
All that wine adds up to about $1.2-million for Vinnovation in a year. With Mr. Allnutt's -- and the industry's -- margin of 15%, one might conclude that the business is a licence to print money. Perish the thought. The earnings -- it would be $180,000 on $1.2-million -- are nearly all swallowed up by expenses.
Asked if there was anything left over, he thinks a while before finally replying: "It's a good thing my wife has a good job" -- even if she's on maternity leave to care for the couple's second child.
The economic crisis has yet to be felt, he said, but some winemakers who had little time for him are now hedging.
"There are signs of pressure, little things. I see the market tightening up, Before, you couldn't get some of them to ship hundreds of cases here, but all of a sudden, a 50-case order in Quebec is a big deal, an important order." His main goal for the next few years? Simple. "To be alive in three or four years."
