Sommelier Michael Scaffidi of Plume at The Jefferson Hotel - Biography

Michael Scaffidi might have started his career behind the bar, but the wine cellar beckoned this aspiring screenwriter, who eventually traded the pen for the corkscrew and began his studies with the Court of Master Sommeliers. Scaffidi’s decade-plus in the business includes The French Laundry, where he was a sommelier for just under three years before moving to West Virginia, where he was beverage director for a 765-room resort. And he did it all while earning his Advanced Sommelier certification. Scaffidi credits his father, “the best host I know,” for teaching him hospitality, a lesson Scaffidi brings to his current post at DC’s Plume at The Jefferson Hotel. He likes to give guests the broadest possible range of selection, whether they’re looking for a bottle from their birth year or want to sample from Scaffidi’s wine list based on Thomas Jefferson’s world travels.

Scaffidi’s perfect food and wine pairing? An 1886 Leacocks Verdelho Madeira with foie gras and apricots.