Behind the Gold Star: “highlight of my life” say Tara Ozols of Dovetale, London
London’s Dovetale restaurant earned a Gold Star for its Californian wine selection at the Star Wine List of the Year International Final 2025 – an apt award for a restaurant on a mission “to introduce as many people as possible to Californian wines.” We speak to Wine Director Tara Ozols and sommelier Diego Flumian following our awards ceremony in Vienna.
There was a certain irony in Tara Ozols’ absence from the Star Wine List of the Year International Final in Vienna, this past June.
The Wine Director of Dovetale, at the 1 Hotel Mayfair, was due to pick up a Gold Star for the Best California Wine List and yet couldn’t – because she was busy sampling Californian wines in California itself. Happily, the time difference meant an early morning celebration in Napa.
“There's been not a few times in my life when I wanted to celebrate with 8AM Champagne, but that was definitely the moment,” she tells us. “So, yeah, it meant so much. It meant just a reflection of what I've accomplished in the program over the two years at Dovetale and 1 Hotel, their support for me, and just the growth of the program – I'm just so proud that that showed.”
Happily, Tara’s hectic schedule allowed her colleague, Diego Flumian to journey to the Austrian capital for a day of sommelier celebrations, and to accept the award on behalf of Dovetale’s four-strong wine team.
“It's validation,” Diego explained over drinks at Weingut Wieninger, once the formal ceremony had finished and our winners, finalists and partners were enjoying a well-earned drink at dusk. “It's validation for the hard work that we have been putting behind this, curating a list such as this. It is just [a feeling of] joy, because this work has been recognised. And there's also a lot of gratefulness, because I am the most junior member of my team and it's so very rewarding to be part of a team that is as talented as the team that I work with is.
“So this is really not just for me – although I am completely over the moon about it – but it's also for them and for the hard work that they do behind the scenes.”
Californian wines in London
The sustainably focused 1 Hotel Mayfair opened just off London’s Piccadailly in summer 2023 and, with it, came Dovetale. Helmed by two-Michelin-starred chef Tom Sellers (of Restaurant Story), the restaurant serves modern versions of classic European dishes that Diego describes as “elevated food without being pretentious” in a sophisticated yet calming setting crafted out of natural materials, in a neutral colour scheme.
It certainly boasts a far more West Coast vibe than its location might suggest. And the wine list follows suit, offering a comprehensive international selection that nonetheless hones in on the wines of the US, and California especially.
“American wines, still for some people, may have a little bit of a reputation,” Diego explains, “and they may be in two minds when it comes to a Californian wine. So we are out to make people know the quality – the real quality – and the real diversity of Californian wines.”
And what does that entail?
“We want people to experience the spirit of California a little bit, which is not just sunshine and L.A. There are forests in California. There are hills in California. There are mountains in California. There is fog in California. There is such a diversity of environments that, really, we want people to have a more sophisticated idea of what California is. And we think we're getting there and the message is being received more and more, but there's still work to do.”
And this all stems from Tara: “I love California wines, always have,” she says.
Dovetale’s winning wine team
Earlier this year, Dovetale’s wine list earned a Silver Star for sustainability and a Gold for Best California Wine List at Star Wine List of the Year UK, ultimately leading to another Gold in the International Final in June. Judge Stephen Wong MW lauded the way it explores the full gamut of the state’s wines, from cult producers and legendary verticals to those which will capture a younger generation.
“This list deftly manoeuvres through it all,” he said, “showcasing facets and nuance in site, variety and style across the broad spectrum of expression. From by-the-glass selections to mature bottles, there are many ways to fall in love with the Golden State here. A masterful list.”
The list was created by Connecticut-born sommelier and wine buyer Tara Ozols, winner of the Michelin Sommelier Award in 2023 and the Europe representative of Veuve Clicquot’s La Grande Dame 2015. Having moved to London a decade ago, Tara looked after the wine and beverage program at Soho’s SOLA before joining Dovetale upon opening.
The Michelin award “was a highlight,” Tara says, “but this was just an incredible, different feeling. You know, this is just a nod to all of the work that we put into the program, and all the cultivation and hard work it takes over time to build a wine program. So for me, winning that, to celebrate it – our love for California, our love for that part of the wine world – we just couldn't be prouder.
“It was just such a special award for me. I really, really tried to show the beauty of, obviously iconic wines, but also just smaller growers – you know, difference and variance in vintages and just really highlighting what the state has to show. And I'm so proud that I was recognised for that, and the team, and I worked so hard for that. I was right chuffed.
“I'm getting teary-eyed actually talking about it because I was full of tears that day, but yeah, incredibly proud – highlight of my life, for sure.”
Originally from Fiuli, Italy, it fell to sommelier Diego to accept Dovetale’s global Gold Star. As he bounded onto the stage in Vienna’s MuseumsQuartier, he was quick to praise the restaurant’s “strong team” – and Tara in particular.
“I can only say good things about Tara,” Diego told us later. “She is this wonderful and wild American woman and I just love it. She puts a lot of passion into wine, she cares a lot, and she takes care of her team really, really well. She is my mentor and has been incredibly supportive. She has my back.”
A sommelier’s story
After moving to London 20 years ago, Diego started out in hospitality but also enjoyed careers in carpentry, architecture and more before working for a natural wine shop in east London, which hooked him on wine for good.
“I started to research wine to populate their website,” he says, “and then when COVID came, as bad as it was, it also opened up doors that previously wouldn't necessarily have been opened.”
He applied to work at SOLA, where he met Tara. As the only Michelin-starred American restaurant outside of the US, it gave Diego a strong introduction to Californian wines, and inspired him to train further and take his WSET exams; he has so far achieved Level 3.
“There is the thing about this industry for me,” he says. “It's really gratifying when you do your job well and somebody leaves the table and they remember you, or they're grateful to you because you offered them a certain kind of experience, the right wine, and maybe you made them discover something that they didn't know before. So I find that incredibly gratifying. That's why I actually love this job, because there's a level of gratification that simply wasn't there in my previous jobs.”
Sommeliers at Star Wine List of the Year
The Star Wine List of the Year competition is designed to celebrate the wine lists of the world and, of course, the people who create and convey them. At 2025’s International Final, teams from 21 countries gathered to share good wine, good food, and a full day’s activities in the city of Vienna, peaking with an awards ceremony – a chance for international colleagues to meet, catch up, to honour and learn from each other’s achievements.
Diego is one such example of this: “I spoke to this couple – she's Chinese, he’s Korean, they have a wine bar in Shanghai. Then there is this Australian fellow over there that was very nice; the lovely Finnish guys. Yes, I have been speaking to a lot of people so it's great. Everybody has a different story and they’ve come to the wine world in a different way, so that is very, very interesting to me. And I'm a little bit also in awe of the quality of the talent of these people, so it's great for me to be here and meeting all these people.
“Star Wine List has got a global reach, so it's even more satisfying to have won this award. This is really incredible.”
The 2025/’26 tour is now in full swing. Take a look at how the competition is looking.
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