https://openlab.citytech.cuny.edu/gsanabria-eportfolio/

Admittedly, I originally chose this location because it was very close to the school, but I’m very glad such a large and informative shop is within walking distance. The store has a large selection of wines from various countries. Each country is labelled by either red or white, while region and grape variety are typically grouped together on the shelf.

When I got in, I spoke to Jim, who seemed very knowledgeable and happy to help. I asked him about what wines would pair best with Haitian food (which is a blend of French, African, Taino, and Spanish cuisines) and we went on a trip all over the store.

Wines from Argentine, Spain, South Africa, and New Zealand

Jim showed me a variety of affordable wines that he thought would pair well with specific dishes, as well as some of his personal favorites. He recommended a variety of reds and whites, such as Pinot Noir and Reisling, for their ability to cut through fatty meats, or for their ability to draw out latent flavors in the dish.

Unfortunately we weren’t able to get much into the Rose wines, since Jim started getting heat from his staff, but I wanted to include them into the post since they were such a pretty color.

Wall of Rose

Very pretty bottle design.

I really enjoyed my time in the shop, and definitely plan on visiting again.

Huge 3 liter bottle of wine!

Retail Beverage Shop Analysis

Wine Project

I went to the wine store, Heights Chateau, yesterday night after class. Heights Chateau is located in Brooklyn about 20 minutes walk from school. The physical location is 123 Atlantic Ave Brooklyn, NY 11201. The reason why i waited until night time to visit a wine store is because of the lights brighting out from the window. Many different wine stores have their lights brighten out the window differently. Heights Chateau is a little different than the other; they have wine bottles outside, and some displays outside to attract people’s attentions. When I walked in, the staffs in the store were extremely polite. They walked up to me and tried to explain all the information to me and asked me for the particular wines that I was looking for. I have had taken multiple pictures of the wines that I am interested into and wanted to try out some days.

Rkatsiteli 2016 from Australia, cost, $20 USD

I am not sure how to read off this bottle, but wanted to share how cute this outside is.

Chenin Blanc 2015, from California; cost, $12 UDS.

i Clivi R_B_L_, sparkling wine; cost $23 USD

The Front store of Heights Chateau

Chateau La Petre 2014 from Bordeaux, France

Camins Del Priorat 2016 from Spain, cost, $23 UDS

When I first visited Heights Chateau located on 123 Atlantic Avenue. I was a little nervous because although I study wine, I felt that maybe I would be overwhelmed by all the options. When I first walked in, the register was right in front of the door, witch was interesting only because it was so close to the door. The wine geeks/employees greeted me, and immediately I walked into the store looking for what caught my eye(which by the was everything). All of the wines where organized, where France was on the right side of the store, hard liquors/spirits where towards the back of the store, there where also, islands that included south African wines, and Italian wines. The wines where separated by regions so it was really easy to find what you where looking for. The wine store, to me resembled a bookstore. They had stairs connected to the shelves, just in case you wanted wine towards the top of the shelves. I loved the woody, dark feeling of the store and I couldn’t help but be very tempted by everything I laid my eyes on. The South African wines section was the most interesting to me, because I never thought South Africa as a winemaking country. Wine making in south Africa seems like a mystery, until now. wine making as a history back dating to the 1700’s. producing high alcohol wines because of the hot climate.

I found some of the staff to be really helpful; at least two of the staff asked me if I was okay and needed any help. I mentioned that I did have a paper to write and if it would be okay to ask a couple of questions. The woman was very open, I asked:

Can you tell me about how you got involved in the wine industry?

Shh don’t tell anyone, but I fell in love when I was younger. my parents let me drink wine with them and it opened my eyes. Then I started to work as a waitress in the restaurant industry and loved everything about wine.

Tonight I’m serving fish what would you recommend?

Well, any region that is next to water is good, with fish. A Pinot noir or a chardonnay from California would do too.

She was very helpful and recommended I try Sourgal Moscato d’ASTI 2017, because I like sweet white wines. I also brought a Willm Gewwurztraminer 2016, Alsace, I really loved both, they where light, and sweet and aromatic. They where very affordable too, which is great for a struggling college student; between 13-20 dollars. I spent about 45 minutes there just walking up and down the aisles, and not once did I feel pressured to leave.

Italy: Alta Mora etna bianco 2016 Grape: carricante Alcohol: 13%

France: Rhone ; Crozes-hermitage cuvee Papillon 2015 Grape: Syrah Pairs: lamb

A region we haven’t studied: Backsburg 2016 south Africa Grape: Chenin Blanc Origin:western cape ALC: 13% Tate: zesty, dry, fruity. Pairs: versatile

I visited La Cantina Wine & Liquor Located at 2355 Arthur Ave, Bronx, NY 10458. La Cantina sits at the Heart Of Little Italy. Little Italy is my backyard I’ve grown up there and it has changed a lot as I’ve grown up but the heart and soul of it has not changed. Which comes from its Italians who still live and run businesses in the area. Especially La Cantina which opened up about 15 years ago around the time I moved around the area. 

La Cantina

As I entered La Cantina I am greeted by staff but I also noticed that the store was narrow and had wooden columns and sections that contained wines from France, Italy, Spain, Chile, New York, and California. Anthony is the gentleman who helped me by answering the questions I had to ask for the assignment.

What’s a Shelf Talker?

A Shelf Talker is a wine that may have a description note that will indicate where it is from, grape variety, etc and what it could be paired with. Its usually used to engage potential buyers.

Anthony told me that his store did not carry any shelf talkers because to him they are useless and doesn’t fit within the ideal of the store. Being in the heart of little Italy La Cantina specializes in Italian wine and Liquor. They have Italian wines and liquors that could be hard to find in New York or anywhere else. Like Sambuca, Grappa, Amaro, and Limoncello.

I asked Anthony what he thinks La Cantinas advantages/disadvantages were, he told me the advantages of La Cantina are that they carry quality Items and Price. Which ranges from six dollar bottles to a thousand dollar bottles. Another advantage is specializing on Italian wine. La Cantina’s Disadvantage is not having warehouse pricing which has to do with the stores concept of choosing quality over quantity.

I looked around the shelves and saw the Italian wines which occupy the majority of the shelves in La Cantina. I was able to see some DOCG (Denominazione di Origine controllata e Garantita) wines from Italy.

DOCG Wines
on the left, Borgoni Borromeo Chianti Classico Riserva 2012. Grape Variety: Sangiovese
Region:
Chianti Classico
On the right, Vecchia Cantina Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Poggio Stella 2012
Grapes
Sangiovese
Region
Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

Cave des Vins de Sancerre Les Champs Clos Sancerre Blanc 2012
Grape Variety:
Sauvignon Blanc
Region:
Sancerre

DOC (Denominazione di Origine Contollata)
Blancos de Castilla Herederos del Marques de Riscal Rueda 2012
Winery:
Blancos de Castilla
Region:
Rueda

DOC (Denominazione di Origine Contollata)
Blancos de Castilla Herederos del Marques de Riscal Rueda 2012
Winery:
Blancos de Castilla
Region:
Rueda

Veuve du Vernay Ice Rosé
Winery
Veuve du Vernay
Region
Vin de France

I asked Anthony about Sparkling wines and their intended use. He told me that Sparkling wines are usually used in Celebrations anywhere from Weddings, Quiceneras, Graduation Parties, Toasts, etc. He also tole me he enjoys the Veuve du Vernay Ice Rosé 2012 chilled on a hot summers day. I appreciated his input because he was knowledgeable on all of his inventory. 

To be honest i did not expect the staff at La Cantina to have such knowledge. But my expectations changed once I received all of this information from them. And it made me feel good that there are knowledge people who share a passion for wine right in my backyard. I learn a lot from hands on activities and such. I asked Anthony if they had any internships sadly they didn’t but he said we could work something out. I am hoping to create one so that any of my other peers could benefit from.

Overall I enjoyed my visit To La Cantina and I learned so much. The staff is very knowledgeable of their inventory and will give you the best price possible for great quality wine whether your looking for a cheap or expensive bottle. Quality is Guaranteed at La Cantina.

Let Take A Wine Journey  

Urban Uncorked is a wine and spirits store located on 147 Flatbush Avenue extension in Brooklyn, New York. As I entered the retail store I was shocked at the huge variety of wines all around. I was welcomed by the friendliest sommeliers on duty.They had a wonderful selection of wines and liquors from many different countries which amused me because when I thought about “wine” the first thing that came to my mind was Italy, France and Germany. These are initially the only ones I’ve been knowledged on but they are so many more countries which also have great wine.

The sommelier Susan Ellis was very helpful throughout my interview for this project. I was introduced to the two most popular wines in store which were Pinot Project and Processo. Both of these wines were very popular not only for their price but also because it is very difficult for winemakers to grow the grapes involved in the processing of creating them. These two wines are typically sensitive to climate changes and vine diseases as well as sun exposure and temperatures.

How much are consumers paying for a bottle of wine for a celebration?

When consumers are paying for a bottle of wine for a celebration they pay $40 or more. They mainly buy red wine rather than white wine not only because it is the most valued but it is also they one with more alcohol provided in it.

The sommelier Susan developed her knowledge by working in wine shops and drinking wine. She said that choosing the wine they sell is one of the easiest things because of course the seller wants to hand over the wine they have so that consumers can buy it, but they decide which wine is the easiest to sell in the location they are located in. One concept that they use to decide which wine is the best to sell is by tasting the wine and than making sure it fits what they think their customers would like. Naturals wines are the trend for the people who buy in her store she says many people go for natural wine because of where they come from and also the prices they are sold for. Her store also stores the wine 50-55 degrees which make it even better for those who are going to buy immediate wine to share with their loved ones.

France

Susan explained to me that Chablis was one of the most sold wines in the France section of the wine store. It is a nothernmost wine district wine of Burgundy in France. This wine is made in a cool climate which produces wines with more acidity and flavors less fruity which makes it dry. I like how we learned about this specific wine in our class and I come to the retail store to find out its the most sold in the France district. It’s good to see that things you never knew or heard about are really out there and very popular to those who enjoy their cups of wine here and there.

Italy

For the Italy region the best seller was Chianti Classico which is produced in Tuscany. This was another region we learned about in wine class. I really like how their posters of each country mention the famous regions that the wines are from.

New Zealand

Germany

Chile

We haven’t learned about Chile wines but the best seller in this wine retail store was the Refugio which is a pinot noir which is aged and fermented completely in stainless steel and concrete egg. They do not use oak to make this kind of wine. I can’t wait to learn more about Chile wine looks like they have a good selection.

I really enjoyed my interview at the wine retail shop because not only did I get to see new countries and regions where wines are produced but I also received some knowledge on the regions we haven’t studied on as of yet. Also relearning what I already knew because #istudywine about Italy, Germany and France made me realize that I finally know something about wine and I can go to a wine store and say I know at least three wines types in each region. One thing that did catch my attention as I left the store was “Sake” which to japanese is a rice wine but in reality it’s a beer. I found it interesting because Susan told me that normally beer is fermented by converting the starches in a grain into alcohol but in this case they do the same process with rice. I would recommend this wine retail shop to anyone who would like to furthermore their understanding of wine because they also provide courses and are very welcoming and eager to help students learn more about the topic and the background. Also free wine tasting Friday’s and Saturday go tasteeee guys!!!