I am really looking forward to the Fall and upcoming holidays. It will be interesting to see what they bring in terms of business. The islands have become a haven for people, as they come in hordes to get away from the city. It is the busiest I have seen it during this time of the year. There is a small group of people that would like to see everyone go back home. However, one must remember that visitors to the islands are very important for our economy, and some of the noisiest in this group were once tourists themselves. Thankfully, the core of our population understands this and embraces the visitors a.k.a tourists. However, it’s not just tourism that is making it busier. More people are moving here and calling it home. The Real Estate agents are selling houses at a steady clip, as more people realize what a cool spot the San Juan Islands are, not only to visit but to live.
As Fall settles in, my wine buying direction changes a bit. Whites will start to disappear off the floor and will be replaced by reds. When I say “off the floor” I mean displays of wine in my department. However, I have learned that I can’t completely stop stacking whites. Occasionally someone will ask for a case of white wine that they need for company. In the past, I have had to work hard to put a case together for them, simply because I have eliminated most stacks of white wine. I will also need to keep a Rose’ or two around as well. I love to see diversity in wine drinking habits and my group of customers has become quite diverse, which is very cool!
On a final note, can anyone predict what Halloween is going to be like with all this COVID b-s going on? I have no idea, but I am willing to guess that there will be some private parties with a limited amount of people. Remember, Halloween is before the election, so chances are none of the politicians will move forward by then out of fear for their jobs. I have talked with a lot of people and a majority feel that things will change dramatically in November, once the election is over. I hope it’s for the better and we can start moving toward some sort of normalcy. Time will tell. The kids need to go back to school, they need to be able to Trick-or-Treat, and we need to be able to start seeing people’s faces again. Of course, a vaccine will help dramatically and that is still in the future. Scientists are making some progress and we could see one in the early Spring or sooner. Just remember this… according to science, alcohol is a solution.
Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man
