Clara Klein
Sunday Vinyl | Denver
july 2022
Clara Klein may have been on a full ride scholarship to Columbia University for civil engineering, but she couldn’t for the life of her find a summer job. Back home in Denver, her mother noticed that The Little Nell in Aspen, Colorado was hiring cooks. Klein sent them a “three-page manifesto” asking for a job, and they replied, saying she’d be a better fit for front of house. She served at Element 47 every summer break, and when Master Sommelier Carlton McCoy suggested she pursue a career in wine, Klein dropped out of school and came on full time.
After five years spent working her way up to cellar sommelier, Klein moved to San Francisco, where she became a sommelier at Mourad. After two years, she returned to Colorado and landed at Frasca Food and Wine—she, like every other front of house staff who works at Frasca, started by polishing glasses for six months. With the support of her mentor, Rising Stars alum Carlin Karr, Klein was promoted to sommelier at their sister restaurant, Tavernetta. When the more funky Sunday Vinyl (Frasca Hospitality Group’s only non-Italian wine-focused concept) opened their doors, Stuckey tapped Klein to open as the lead sommelier. Klein uses relatable, unpretentious language to lower the barrier of entry for enjoying great wine, teaching a monthly wine class for FHG staff and helping guests find the perfect bottle from Sunday Vinyl’s 28-page wine list.
