Natalie Sheehan, Staff Member, Pasta Cosi and Matthew Murphy, President, Murphy Distributors with Leviathan Red Blend.

Murphy Distributors’ President Matthew Murphy visited Pasta Cosi in Branford last month to introduce the Italian eatery’s clientele to Leviathan Red Blend, a Napa Valley wine. Murphy Distributors has worked closely with Pasta Cosi, like many other restaurants across the state, on curating its seasonal wine and cocktail list. In the case of Leviathan, Murphy spent the evening at Pasta Cosi pouring glasses of the Napa Valley red blend for customers looking to try something new. “I don’t want to curate a wine list with an establishment like Pasta Cosi and then walk away,” Murphy said. “It is our goal as a company to be there every step of the way, helping in any way we can. If we can provide value to a restaurant’s staff, helping them sell a premium product like Leviathan and in turn help a patron fall in love with something new—that’s a win-win for us.” Murphy spent several hours mingling with Pasta Cosi’s bar crowd and talked with staff, offering some tips on how to sell the wine. “It was pretty cool of him to do that for [us],” Pasta Cosi Assistant Manager Rob Behan said. “We have a lot of things going on on a busy night and are not always going to be able to go into the detail on a single wine offering like Matt could. I had a lot of guests come up to me when they finished saying how much they appreciated him being here and his generosity.”