Michael Bonaccorsi, a Chicago native and the former sommelier at Wolfgang Puck’s flagship Los Angeles restaurant, Spago, has died. He was 43.
Mr. Bonaccorsi, a rising young winemaker, died Jan. 14, apparently of a heart attack, according to a spokeswoman for Puck.
His death shook Los Angeles’ close restaurant and wine community.
“Here he is, finally doing what he always wanted to do and having such success,” said Los Angeles Times restaurant critic S. Irene Virbila. “I saw him at Brothers Restaurant in Los Olivos and he was looking so happy. He was like a kid.”
She said Mr. Bonaccorsi was “very knowledgeable and very serious. He had an incredible palate, and he was very sure about what he tasted. And he brought all that to bear in making wines.”
In a statement, Puck praised Mr. Bonaccorsi.
“His talent, wit, intelligence and passion for his work made an indelible impact on all of us who knew him,” Puck said.
The winemaker, whose Bonaccorsi Wine Co. was a boutique producer of pinot noir, chardonnay and syrah wines, was accredited as a master sommelier by the Court of Master Sommeliers in London.
Mr. Bonaccorsi was born Nov. 16, 1960, in Chicago, one of 12 children, and earned his undergraduate degree in business from the University of Illinois. He became interested in wine while working for a restaurant near the university in Urbana-Champaign, according to a 2000 interview with the Los Angeles Business Journal.
“I was basically busing tables, but there were a few people there who knew about wine, and I just got interested,” he said. “There was a good wine shop across the street, and this waiter captain and I used to spend half our tip money checking out French, German and California wines.”
In his 20s, Mr. Bonaccorsi moved to San Francisco to be closer to where wine was being made, eventually becoming sommelier at Masa’s in that city in 1988. He also worked harvests at wineries in Sonoma County, Calif., and, in the late 1990s, in the Burgundy region of France for Domaine Georges Roumier.
Two years ago, Mr. Bonaccorsi married Jenne Lee, maitre d’ at Spago in Beverly Hills, in a vineyard in Burgundy.
In addition to his wife, survivors include his parents, Ralph and Lois Bonaccorsi; brothers John, Rob, Rich, Joe, Jim, Bill and Tom; sisters Mary Bonaccorsi, Jean Shelton, Patty Thompson and Cathy Layton. All reside in the Chicago area.
A memorial service will be held beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Chicago Club, 81 E. Van Buren St.
