Brian Boitano introduces his wine bar at Starbucks Winter House
Former figure skater and wine enthusiast Brian Boitano and sommelier Filippo Bartolotta, Feb. 7, 2026 in Milan.
MILAN — An ostrich, a figure skater and a sommelier walked into a Starbucks and held an Olympic wine game.
It’s an event that could only happen in Italy, during the Winter Games. They were all there (one of them stuffed, one of them demonstrating how not to get drunk, the third showing off his creativity) on Saturday, Feb. 7, to help launch the Starbucks Winter House, a swanky parlor for U.S. figure skaters, hockey players, speed skaters and their families open through the Olympics. Set in a restaurant, the lounge offers low-lit luxury, a chance to relax amid antiques and busts and, well, tons of wine.
While a gelato bar offering affogato, a classic Italian dessert made by pouring hot, fresh espresso over a scoop of cold gelato, was popular, former figure skater Brian Boitano and sommelier Filippo Bartolotta were scene stealers.
“We thought you might enjoy an early morning crash course in wine tasting,” Boitano told a collection of athletes, journalists, sponsors and more. “I have here my good friend, Filippo Bartolotta. He’s a wine journalist, he’s a wine teacher, and he travels the world teaching people about wines and telling stories through his wine.
“He’s assembled a great collection of wines for Boitano’s Lounge here. We’re so appreciative. Sparkling wines, reds, whites.”
Ah yes, Boitano’s Lounge. Lined up with wines and wine glasses, it was a centerpiece of the temporary attraction.
“We’ve got a full bar,” said Annie White of U.S. Figure Skating. “He is a mixologist now and we do Boitano’s Lounge at our U.S. Championships, and we’ve now brought that to Italy. He has had a lot of fun. We’ve got him on the bar there, full open bar.”
Boitano and Bartolotta met in at a wine event in California and hit it off.
“When I had Boitano’s Lounge in the Winter House, I thought, what a perfect addition to Boitano’s Lounge in asking Filippo to come along and provide the wines,” Boitano said.
Bartolotta demonstrated that one of the keys to achieving sommelier status is to swirl the wine in one’s mouth, then spit it out. (“My liver couldn’t handle it otherwise,” he said.)
He and Boitano also had fun with pointing to a wine game, with questions including “When did man start cultivating vines” (Iron Age, Paleolithic or Neolithic) and “The pressure inside a bottle of sparkling wine is smilar to that of: A double-decker bus tire, or a car tire, or a mountain bike tire.” At stake was a ski helmet and a magnum of wine.
The lounge featured vintage hockey sticks and other older Winter Games gear. The stuffed ostrich wore a U.S. Olympic scarf.
