Despite a regional history of viniculture that reaches back more than 5,000 years, wines that come from Eastern Mediterranean countries like Lebanon, Palestine, and Turkey don’t carry the same cache on the U.S. market as their mainstream European counterparts. In D.C., a hit new wood-burning Middle Eastern restaurant is on a mission to improve their reputation among American drinkers. At Albi, some of the city’s most accomplished sommeliers pitch customers bottles that are often difficult to find stateside. By working with small importers and distributors — and sometimes even sliding into vintners’ Instagram DMs to request tasting samples — Albi’s wine experts are steadily expanding an inventory from the Levant region that represents exciting developments over the past three decades. The overarching goal, according to co-owner and high-profile D.C. sommelier Brent Kroll, is to prove there’s demand for Middle Eastern wines in the world of American fine dining. Kroll and other experts think if a nationally recognized restaurant like Albi can move lesser-known bottles from the region, maybe more wholesalers, importers, and restaurants will follow suit.