Osteria Mozza - Hancock Park

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
263

I sometimes drink wine for pleasure but sometimes drink it as a hobby just to guess what it is, in which case I don’t care so much if I enjoy it, and I’d prefer it to be truly random. E.g.: at a Vino Vilo at SFO I correctly guessed The Prisoner from their blind list of wines by the glass, and I think The Prisoner is a horrible wine. It’s distinctively horrible, which is how I recognized it. I’ve thought about asking the somm to use a random number generator to decide the price (so the wine is more random instead of something high end). But it seems like too much.

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264

Generate your own random number. https://www.random.org/

265

Yeah but if we generate the number it defeats the purpose because then we know how much it costs.

266

Generate the number on your phone, don’t look at it, and show it to the somm?

Or write various numbers on ten pieces of paper and have the somm choose one

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267

Ive been to the Mozza in DC, which technically is operated by a different group. I recall it having an absolutely stacked wine list, but:

  1. The prices were absolutely bonkers sometimes. 3x for Billecart Salmon Rose NV, 4x for Conterno Monfortino latest vintage or latest vintage -1 (yes, I double checked), etc
  2. People were actually ordering it. Not sure if this is a DC specific thing but the Mozza in DC is a place to be seen, and people arent afraid to splash money there. I saw someone order the Monfortino and drink it.
  3. At least for the DC one, the Starr group is known for having an extremely rigorous wine training process. Their best soms all get poached by the importers for all those wines. All Starr Group restaurants I’ve been too also have an above average to very very good wine list, with the occasional surprise good price.

Since this is the LA thread, Ill just end by saying the DC one was completely…fine. I wouldn’t go out of my way to try the LA one based on the DC one, although the pics here look completely different from the dishes I was served in DC.

Wine List in DC, if you were curious:

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268

We probably go to Osteria Mozza LA more than any other restaurant. I think of it as high-end comfort food. I know I’m going to have a pleasant meal there; I know I’m not going to be wowed unless the wine that day really impresses.

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