A Locavore Talks Locapour – Evan Faber of Salt Bistro in Boulder, CO

I’ve written about the reluctance of avowedly locavore restaurants to sell local wines, and each year at the DrinkLocalWine.com conferences I’ve moderated a panel discussion on the subject. This year’s panel was the liveliest yet, mainly because Colorado has really bought into the idea of supporting local farms and businesses.

But much of the spark was provided by Evan Faber, beverage manager at Salt Bistro in Boulder. Evan spoke with near religious fervor about how local wines – grown in the same soil and “under the same sun” as the local produce or meats – belong on the wine lists of local-centric restaurants. He described how he subtly promotes Colorado wines through his by-the-glass program, so that if a diner asks for a “glass of chardonnay” or a “glass of merlot,” the house pour is from Colorado. He had several people – especially women – in the audience tweeting their praise and admiration during the session. So I asked him outside into the bright Denver sun to repeat his message on film. Here it is.