Tim Piwinger
OUR GOODMAN FAMILY
Meet Tim, our Sommelier
at Goodman Canary Wharf
Tim Piwinger was born in Pfalz in Germany. As a result, wine is in his blood – “you can’t escape it when you grow up there,” says Tim.
He did try – “I studied environmental science” – but, perhaps inevitably, was drawn back to the world of wine and is now sommelier at Goodman Canary Wharf.
There are two main reasons Tim Piwinger is the Canary Wharf sommelier. There’s the upbringing in Pfalz – “the whole area survives on wine tourism, there are vineyards everywhere, loads of my school friends are wine makers” – but there’s also Daniel Morgan, Goodman’s Group Head Sommelier. “Dan and I worked at The Gherkin together, but we’ve known each other through football for ten years at least. I brought him into the Gherkin… and he brought me into Goodman.”
“Even people who have very particular tastes will occasionally push the wine list away and say, ‘throw me a curve ball.’ When that happens and you introduce them to something they love, it feels amazing.”
As with all of Goodman wine lists, the Canary Wharf one reflects the sommelier-on-site’s tastes. “We have a core across all sights, the staples from California, but yes, a whole load of German wines have appeared on this list,” admits Tim. “And I’ve got ambitions for a Riesling feature page…”
Nudging guests in a new direction is though one of the things Tim enjoys most about his role. “Even people who have very particular tastes will occasionally push the wine list away and say, ‘throw me a curve ball.’ When that happens and you introduce them to something they love, it feels amazing.”
If eating at Goodman, Tim will have the prawn tempura, a bone-in rib eye (“and mac and cheese, because my wife loves the mac and cheese”) and makes a point of having three courses. “Dessert? ALWAYS.” He laughs. “Honeycomb Parfait EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.”
Credits
Interview by Neil Davey
Photography by Tom Bowles