The Red Hen’s Sebastian Zutant Striking Out On His Own

Sebastian Zutant, sommelier of The Red Hen and All Purpose is stepping back from his usual duties, reports Washington City Paper. Though he’ll remain a partner in those sibling restaurants, Zutant is striking out on his own to pursue two major goals that will help shake the boozy landscape of D.C.

To start, Zutant wants to open a wine bar with his wife, Lauren Winter, focused on natural wine — those with few alterations done to them after hitting the cellar. He’d upped the focus on such natural wines while at The Red Hen, though he told WCP he’s looking forward to formulating a wine list that goes beyond one area (i.e. Italy.)

That’s not all, though. Zutant isn’t going to be happy with just curating a killer natural wine list and serving it to patrons — he wants to make the wine that is served. He’s actually been making wine, in collaboration with Ben Jordan, of Early Mountain Vineyards in Virginia, for a couple of years now. This year he made 350 cases of wine and is working on all the necessary paperwork.