Reader Vince, on last week's Question Of The Week :
Which Is Your Favorite Wine Store In The Neighborhood? And Do You Have Any Wine Recommendations?
I like wine and wine stores and spend a fair amount of time browsing in them as opposed to the maddening experience in most other retail stores. When I first came to the neighborhood I bought a lot of wine from the store across the street from Sam’s Restaurant. I lived across the street from there. Have you been in the store? Coming from upstate farm country it was a very different experience. The customers came in the door and into a small chamber surrounded by very thick plexi glass. It was a security device, it limited your movements, a kind of cage keeping the public out and therefore the clerk safe on the other side. It was run by a family all very friendly as long as you stayed on your side of the barrier. It struck me as having a bit of the aquarium or peep show about it. Money passed through a series of sliding doors into a tin pan with a bigger but discreet opening for the bottles. I actually got comfortable with it and would scream out to the clerk needing vintage information and tasting notes. It was big help though to know exactly what you wanted, to get in and get out as being in that space with some of the other local clientele back then was not cool.
When it was time to splurge I would make a trip up to the north heights to Marcolini Wines a wonderful store. That store front is now a restaurant and the son of the owner merged the business with the shop at the St George hotel. The father and original owner bought into a vineyard in Virginia and retired. He was a Greek man whose name was Armand He was a true connoisseur, new his burgundy’s and Barolo’s and was extremely welcoming and ready to let you taste many expensive wines that he often had open. They also had a regular Monday night unadvertised tasting in a back storage room. People actually brought wines into the store to share with him and others. It was not just about making a sale. This was in the late 70’s early 80’s and great wines although expensive, because the dollar was strong was nothing like now.
However, I have found another good place to browse wines is in peoples garbage bins on recycling day. I love looking through garbage anyway and this way I can to see what’s hot and what’s not. To my surprise down on Union St below Columbia an apartment, above what looks like an abandoned garage put its bottles out on Saturdays and wow do those guys live high. I’m always shocked to see their empties, Vosne Romanee, Mongeard-Mungneret Beaune , Chateau Margaux as all these go for near $100 a bottle easy . I really want to get invited to one of their parties and find out what they do for a living. The recycling bin is not at all a bad idea for wine recommendations, you can take my word for that.
One place I would caution you about the wine tasting notes though is Smith and Vine. You know the kind of notes I mean, the bunk generated by the store or critics that talk of apples, lavender and chocolate and crispness and honey on the tongue. Yes, these are generally total bunk but using some counter intuition I find they can tell me a lot. Wine style has gotten to be a bit too fruity for me, no structure and way to high in alcohol, just plain fat and frumpy, no real style. So it’s easy if the notes are too florid and sound more like a McDonalds happy meal I know to stay away from that one. I’ve learned that what sounds good does not always taste good. Smith and Vine, in their cool, hip irony though have really stray off the path to a place where I do not think we need to go. I swear the last time I was there they had tasting notes that used analogies about dog shit. Or maybe it was “shit eatin” and wet dogs, regardless I do not think this is the right train of thought for encouraging wine consumption. I know… irony, I understand but?? I guarantee you take a trip over there start reading their notes you will find references to all types of things you really do not need to know about before you uncork the bottle. Basically I shop all the stores think the whole culture of wine is fun or fun to make fun of depending on how I’m feeling and regardless of how I feel I love to drink it.
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1 comment:
Everyone seems to forget about a 'real' wine shop - Vintage Cellars. Long before a certain new shop bragged about having a $10.00 table, Vintage Cellars was offering great selections in every price range. The shop opened more than 12 years ago and is run by the same family Carroll Gardens Family that brought you The Red Rose almost 30 years ago.
Again, another overlooked gem that was on Smith Street long before it was called Brooklyn's Restaurant Row.
Both places are located on Smith Street between President & Union across from Rite Aid; right next to the Carroll Street "F" Train Station.
I know it's great that deep pocketed people from Manhattan open places (that generally quickly close after picking our pockets) in Carroll Gardens, but let's not forget the shop keepers who truly stuck by this neighborhood. These are the people who kept thier buildings in their family and continued to make thier businesses avaiable to all of their neighbors. While many owners 'sold out' during the Real Estate boom of the '90's & '00's, lets remember those businesses who didn't 'sell-out' to box stores and restaurant chains. Remember, it's these people who have been able to keep rents affordable for their tenants, since they're not trying to pay-off Double Jumbo Loans. Neighbors, please remember: Sal the Barber, Vinny's Pizza, The Red Rose, Sam's, Scotto's, Vintage Cellars and especailly Marrietta's (the mom & pop shop on Court Street next to the Chase Bank at Carroll) in the same spot & owned by the same family since LaGauardia was mayor of NY.
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