Robert is the founder of Grand Cru Wine Consulting which builds and manages restaurant and private wine collections. Previously, Robert was the wine director and partner at CRU in New York City. Robert began his restaurant and wine career working at a small family owned NJ restaurant in 1988. Ten years later, after graduation from NYU and an informal wine education at Gramercy Tavern, Robert was prepared for his first sommelier job at Babbo, the 3-star flagship restaurant of Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich. In 2001, Robert became a Sommelier at Daniel where he continued his education of the great domaines of France while perfecting his fine dining service skills. Robert’s next move was to become a retail wine buyer at Zachys where he oversaw the regions of Burgundy and Champagne. In 2004, CRU opened with Robert as the Wine Director, General Manager and Partner. CRU’s wine program featured 4,000 selections and 160,000 bottles of the world’s finest and rarest wines. For the last several years Robert has traveled extensively to France and Italy where he has forged close friendships with many of his favorite winemakers. In February 2011, he led a group of investors in purchasing Domaine Rene Manuel, a seven hectare estate in Meursault. Robert has also been featured in numerous articles in both Food and Wine Magazine and Wine Spectator.