Whether you consider yourself a novice when it comes to wine or a veritable “cork dork,” Hillary Zio invites you to sniff, swirl, sip and savor—without intimidation—at Isola Wine and Tapas, which she opened in October in the village of Kinderhook.
“Wine terminology doesn’t have to be so technical,” she says. “Let’s just talk about what we smell and taste so that we can figure out if we like it or what food it might taste good next to.”
Zio, a passionate wine educator and consultant, and author of The Unfiltered Guide to Working in Wine, brings a refreshingly laid-back approach to wine, as she highlights low-intervention, natural wines from places like the Canary Islands, Sicily, and Cyprus. She also features sparkling Cava from Spain, fruity Friulano from northern Italy, and tingly Nerello Mascalese from Sicily—all by the glass.
In addition, Zio offers rare finds by the bottle, such as the citrusy Louireiro from Portugal and the herbaceous Debit from the coast of Croatia. And she makes it a point to feature ethical, small-scale producers, rotating 10 such wines by the glass and 10 by the bottle. “In an effort to make people feel comfortable about wine, I simply list the grape varietal on my by-the-glass list, rather than the vintage or even producer,” says Zio, who was inspired to open Isola (meaning “island” in Italian) after 15 years of European travel as a wine writer and sommelier.
She also lists her own tasting notes. “I think this encourages people to consider what they taste and smell. Maybe a florist gets daffodils and a chef gets marjoram. It’s all relative and comes from our own life experiences.”
Zio, who hails from Colorado, says she always had a passion for wine, which ignited after she moved to New York in 2003. She holds an advanced certificate in wines and spirits from The Wine and Spirit Education Trust and has taught more than 500 wine classes, with themes ranging from “The Basics” to “Burgundy Bootcamp.”
Isola is situated in a historic circa 1787 building that Zio and designer Anthony D’Argenzio took great care to restore. Zio says Isola’s interior offers a “unique sensory experience” and a trattoria-inspired setting for an “intimate evening of wine and food.”
In the kitchen, Chef Fernando Castro, an alum of The Maker in Hudson, whips up tapas reflective of Europe’s coasts, particularly Barcelona and Sicily, with each dish designed to pair with Isola’s wines. His chickpea pie with cauliflower, pistachios, and gremolata is a fan favorite, along with tuna tartare with lemon and peppercorns over seeded crackers, as well as chicken liver mousse and garlic confit with brandy-blueberry reduction. Castro makes a point to use fresh, local ingredients, sourcing sausage from the Meat Hook in Hudson, bread from Bartlett House in Ghent, and produce from Kinderhook and Stuyvesant farms.
Everything from the sips to the nibbles flows together harmoniously, Zio observes, adding that she’s proud to have created that meeting point to taste, pair, discover, and share. “Wine lovers come in and talk about the last time they went to Tuscany,” she notes. “Isola is the kind of place that inspires that. It’s just grape juice at the end of the day, so let’s all talk about it and enjoy it.”
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