Don Roth is learning about wine.
The Dish barkeep has been on the job for a little over a year, after moving back to Tucson from Cleveland, where he lived for more than eight years.
Since then, his appreciation for wine has grown exponentially. But it's a lot of material to cover.
"The wine spectrum is so vast," Roth says. "I know what I like and I know how to describe what I like."
The Dish has more 130 wines on its menu — and there are lots more bottles for sale at RumRunner, the adjoining wine shop that also sells cheese, beer and other delights.
What kind of wine do you like?
"I tend to like the fruitier wines. Something with a nice nose. Something with character. I like the Bordeaux. I like Malbec. I like Spanish wines."
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Do you like to cook?
"I'm a terrible cook, but the chefs here are always coming up with a dish of the day and we'll have fun trying to find a wine to pair with that dish. Conundrum is a good wine with our steamed mussels in saffron broth.
Have you ever worked at any other bars in town?
"I used to run Speedway Schwinn for years. Now it's an import store."
Do you like to bike?
"Yeah. I have a titanium mountain bike that belonged to a pro here in town. He had six of these bikes custom-made, so there's only six of them in the world. I broke my femur a few years ago, so it's a little hard for me to do the hard stuff, but if I want to be a poser I can certainly do that with this bike."
Do you have more than one bike?
"I have two mountain bikes and two road bikes."
Do you do the maintenance on them yourself?
"I have my buddies work on them for me. They work at Fair Wheel Bikes, Pima Street Bicycle, ABE Cycling."
Where do you ride?
"I ride everywhere, as much as I can. I go mountain biking at a place called Fantasy Island. It's not quite a single track, but it's a perfect area for anyone to ride. It's out by the Air Force base."
Seen any good movies lately?
"I'm not much of a fan of movies, but I did like 'The Dark Knight.'"
What kind of music do you listen to?
"I like the Beastie Boys."
The Dish
• Where: 3200 E. Speedway.
• Hours: Tuesdays-Saturdays, seating is 5-9 p.m.
• Happy Hour: None, but Tuesdays through Thursdays you can get a bowl of mussels in saffron broth with a glass of wine for $11.50.
More online
Read more about Tucson nightlife at go.azstarnet.com/sceneatnight
We're looking for the best bartenders
So if you know one who serves a mean cocktail, tells a good joke or has an attentive ear, go to aznightbuzz.com and click on "nightlife."
