I saw the funniest thing the other day. I went to the courthouse in town to get new tabs for my truck. They had a board near the door that declared. “Essential business only.” Now, I was under the assumption that almost anything conducted in a courthouse is essential. Am I wrong? So, I walk in and find the corridor to the licensing department is cordoned off. One of the employees told me to go online to get my tabs and if I wanted something at the courthouse I needed to make an appointment. She was a bit abrupt, but I could handle it. I walked away laughing, because a couple of days earlier I saw her in the store I work at shopping for her groceries. Point of this story? I guess we at the grocery store (deemed essential) and other businesses that are now open around town that are not essential, are not as special as the folks at the courthouse who by the way, get their paychecks from our tax dollars. There are more customers in line at any given time in the grocery store than there will be all day at the courthouse (sans the courtroom). Open your doors, please!
I have been getting my hands on some wines for the store that normally do not come my way. Turley, Quilceda Creek, Kosta Browne etc. Because restaurants have been closed for so long, which is another story and somewhat sad, wine distributors are looking to move product that is normally deemed “restaurant only.” It would be nice if wine distributors held some wines for retail shops like mine so we can get them every year. Sadly that is not how things work in the wine world and for now, I am going to take advantage of this opportunity to get some gems in the store for our customers.
There are two wines that I am particularly stoked about this year. One is a Frappato/Nerello Mascalese blend from Sicily. The other is a Grenache/Syrah blend from southern France. Both are outstanding in totally different ways. If you want to find out more about them, check out my latest YouTube episode where I feature both of them. There is another red that is on my radar that will most likely be featured on my YouTube channel made from an obscure grape called Susumaniello, only grown in the Salento region of Italy. Stay tuned for that.
From now until the end of the year is when I start focusing on wines for my “Top Forty Wines Under Twenty Bucks” list I put out every December. The three aforementioned wines are on the top of the list for now. If the vintage changes, I will have to re-taste them to see if they still qualify. As most of you know, I hate putting wines on a list and the consumer can’t go out and buy a bottle because that vintage is sold out. It makes my job a bit tougher, but I feel it necessary to only put wines on the Top Forty list that are available for purchase. Especially in the top ten.
Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man
