Gnarly Vines vs Heights Chateau

On March 13^th, I visited two wine retail shops with a group of friends who are also studying wine. We decided to visit two different retail shops. The first retail shop is called Gnarly Vines, located at 3241, 350 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn NY 11205. Afterward, we went to Heights Chateau, located at 123 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11201. We called a few days ahead of time and asked if it was possible for their employees to take some time to answer our questions.  At the end of the day, it was needless to say which shop is better in terms of customer service, number of wine varietals, and amount of wine knowledge the employees possess.

Gnarly Vines

Upon arriving at Gnarly Wines, the employee had forgotten that we’ve called and didn’t relay the message to the manager therefore we couldn’t really ask many questions. The employee answered a few questions and briefly described the shop. According to the employee, Gnarly Wines opened approximately 10 years ago but the interiors looked old, dusty, and maybe vintage. What kind of wines do customers usually purchase? Customers usually ask for recommendations but rosè and sparkling wi nes are popular. They also prefer inexpensive wines. Any marketing strategy or up selling techniques used?  No.

Some Sake selections from Gnarly Vines (Please don’t mind Jessie)

As the very first time visiting a wine retail shop, it wasn’t a pleasant experience because one of the employees, possibly manager, seemed rude; wasn’t even looking at us when we talked and ignored us later on. Although, no customers were present at the time, the employee had to help others with managing the inventory. We didn’t ask any more questions because they looked busy and it seemed as if they didn’t want to talk with us; possibly due to us not being customers. What’s good about Gnarly Vines is that majority of the wines has an extremely descriptive label attached to the shelves.

Heights Chateau

Heights Chateau was established in 1986 and has received the Award of Distinction from Zagat Survey. The one who answered my phone call and answered our questions was Dave.

What makes this shop different from other shops?

There are 3 tasting events weekly; a time when the owner, manager, employees, and customers gather and do different tastings.

Among those that have been tasted, what do the employees and manager prefer?

Most of them, including Dave, prefer whiskey and bourbon.

2015 Crozes-Hermitage (Cotes du Rhone AOC)

Any other marketing techniques used for attracting customers?

Promotions and discounts.

Why or what makes customer wants to purchase wine here?

Frequent customers or buyers praised the store for good and fair pricing. These customers spread word to others and this attracts even more people to come.

What wines do your customers usually purchase?

Young buyers prefer American wines and spirits meanwhile the elder ones prefer French wines that are sweet and full of tannins.

Wines from a region that we haven’t learned: Portugal Wine – Vinho Verde DOC produced by Casal Garcia

Overall, I had an amazing experience visiting Heights Chateau because of the number of alcoholic beverages offered and services provided.  Additionally, this retail shop sells many wines from different countries across the world: France, Italy, Germany, USA, South Africa, Chile, Portugal, Argentina, Greece, New Zealand, and many more. Most of the employees are knowledgeable with wines and other alcoholic beverages. There are even wines from regions that we’ve studied from class. For example, there’s Alsace, Rhone Valley, Loire Valley, Bordeaux, and Mosel.

Sparkling Wine – 2013, Blanc De Noirs

The 2015er Riesling we tasted in class

A Closer Look – Descriptive labels attached to the shelves in Gnarly Vines

I have actually visited two retail wine shops with my friends. However, I will mainly focus on one, which is Heights Chateau.

This is me in front of the Heights Chateau. Don’t mind Irene’s face on the side.

Heights Chateau is located in 123 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn. It takes a couple of minutes to walk from the school to get to this retail store. It has very good reviews online and the employees spoke politely to me on the phone when I gave them a call for an interview. When I first arrived in the retail store, I was surprised by how nice the placed looked with rock music being played. The beverages are organized neatly by their country and regions. An employee named Dave greeted me and answered all of my questions that I had for him. He included interesting information about Heights Chateau. Dave told me that Heights Chateau used to be located in another place, but they moved here for more space. Currently 15 staff members are working here. Dave also mentioned that the younger crowds of their customers prefer American wines, while the older crowds prefer France wine and Scotch whiskey. The older crowd prefers their alcohol on the sweeter side. In the back of the store, there is a tasting table for customers. Dave commented that people who are planning events usually go to the back to taste wines so they can use it for those events. After interviewing Dave, he allowed us to look around the store.

This was displayed in front of the counter. The sign recommended which alcohol to try/buy.

The wines are organized by their countries and regions. Shown above is France wine.

Shown above are wines from Rhone Valley.

Here are the questions that I asked Dave:

Which wine did you sell the most? Like what is the most popular wine you are selling?

“I can’t think of the most popular wine on top the of my head, but the cheapest and most popular bottle sold is the $7 Astica Malbec wine.”

What wine is your all time favorite? Like what wine do you recommend?

“My favorite wine is from Italy.” (After saying that, Dave showed me the wine)

Dave’s favorite wine from Italy.

How would you guys compare your prices to other retail stores?

“I consider our prices to be good pricing. We have many loyal customers who help us spread our popularity by talking about our store to their friends and acquaintances.”

Does your staff taste every wine in the store?

“Our staff tried most of the wines and whiskey.”

Where do you buy your wine?

“We actually buy our wine from a lot of places. The ones that I could think off of my head are Opici, Winebow, and Wine Universe.”

These are $13 wines from Marlborough, New Zealand. The vintage year is 2017 and the grape variety of this wine is Sauvignon Blanc. The producer is the Babich.

Closer look of the New Zealand wine.

These are $14 sparkling rose wines from France. The producer is Rene Briand. The vintage was not mentioned nor was the region. This is also mentioned to be brut rose (dry).

This is the shelf for dessert wines.

This is the shelf for Sake. It is located across from the dessert wine.

This is a $67 red wine from Rhone Valley, France. The producer is Domaine Louis Clerc and the vintage year is 2010. The grape variety of this wine is 100% Syrah.

Closer look to the $67 red wine.

There are maps of regions shown next to wine bottles. The maps show regions and appellations of those regions. Doing this can teach customers where their wines come from and how the regions look like.

Overall, I had a great time and learned a lot from this store. The employees are polite and I gained connections from this place. Once I turn 21, I would definitely come back and buy alcohol from this place.

The second retail store I went to was Gnarly Wines and Spirits located in 350 Myrtle Avenue. I wasn’t too fond of this place since their customer service were not so great. My friends called and made an appointment for an interview for this place, but the employees forgot and acted as if we were a nuisance. They acted as if they wanted us to hurry up and leave. The employee didn’t really know how to answer our questions. In my opinion, the only good thing about this place are the varieties of the wine and how there are descriptions about the wines near the bottles. Those descriptions are useful and interesting. Heights Chateau didn’t have any description of their wines near their bottles so maybe they should do the same thing so people can understand their wines more.

This is a $27.50 Apricot liqueur from Austria.

This description explains information about the Apricot liqueur. This is considered a “shelf talker” that explained how treasured the fruit apricots are. It explained how Austria has an annual summer fest dedicated to the fruit.

For my retail store assignment, I had visited two of the retail wine stores with my friends at March 13th. One of the location that I have visited is a Gnarly Wine and Heights Chateau.

Gnarly Vine

A sparkling France wine called Rosa Rose Rosam, produced by Domaine La Grange Tiphaine Year 2016

I first visited Gnarly Vine which is in 350 Myrtle Ave. I picked this location because it takes twenty minutes to travel by walking from the school to my destination. I made an appointment a week before I visited on March 13th at 2:30 pm. As soon as I arrived in the store, the staffs forgot that they have an appointment with us. The manager of the store had one of the staff to answer my questions. Based from my knowledge of what I learned from the staff, the Gnarly Stores had been running the store for 10 years. The wine that the staff will recommend to the customers is based on what region that they preferred. In her opinion, she recommended to order a cheap wine that is around in the year of 2002. I took a tour around the store setup and realized the Gnarly Vine have some attributes and weaknesses. The store looks a little messy but organized because there are labels for each and every of the wine that are displayed in the shelves. They put information on the map of the region, description, producer, and the price. However, there are boxes everywhere which makes it hard to make a path for people to walk through and some of the bottles were displayed where you can’t see the labels on the vintage. The store was also not sanitized properly and it would not be good to have dust gathered to the wine bottles nor the shelves.

My next visit to Heights Chateau which is in 123 Atlantic Ave. I picked this location because of the customers’ review on Heights and a short distance to walk from the school. I made an appointment at the same date at 4:30 pm. When I arrived in the store, I spoke to a staff named Dave who answered my questions about Heights Chateau. Dave had told me that Heights Chateau had been running the business for more than 20 years. Originally their store was in Ave V but move where it is more spacious and for the 15 staffs to work. In the store, they have the owner and the manager to take charge tasting wine and writing about it in the portfolio. He gave us list of various wines that customers that often ordered based on their age. Young people would buy American wines and older people will buy American wines or Scotch because they prefer a sweet taste. Dave is knowledgeable about the marketing that they own 20% of New York State wine. Dave keep checks on the temperature to be around 55 degrees for the wines’ condition. As I toured around the store, I had found the store has many attributes. The store is spacious which many room to walk through and many of the shelves are label to be either biodynamic and organic. They applied soft rock music played and ladders for reach wines on the upper shelves. In the back of the house, they have a set of kitchen house for wine tasting. They also have another room that leads to where they kept their portfolios. It shows that the management that the store had run is very neat and organized.

Heights Chateau

A Chile wine called Tannat, produced by Vinedo de los Vientos Year 2014

Chamber Street Wines seen from outside

I visited Chamber Street Wines located at 148 Chambers Street, New York, NY 10007 between Broadway & Greenwich St
TriBeCa. Though I don’t drink wine, this is the first time I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone and actually visited a wine shop and I must say, it was quite an experience. Through the given list of choices of wine shops located across the five boroughs of New York, I chose this particular shop to visit because it had a warm ambience to it. The employees were very friendly and knowledgeble and it helped a lot especially because I was a tad bit nervous and they made me feel welcome. The price range is pretty reasonable and the employees provide customers with recommendations to fit well within their budget. The shop is known heavily for its selection of vintages, and also, has a great variety of wines that range from Piedmont reds to dry whites.

Before visiting, I took it upon myself to research the shop to know a few basic information. I researched about the founder and co-founder of Chamber Streets Wines whom are David Lillie and Jamie Wolf and what motivated them to open such an establishment. Once I arrived, I mentioned I was a student studying wine and would like to be assisted throughout my visit. First and foremost, once you enter the shop you can’t help but notice that the shop is very well organized and clean. A few of the questions I asked were, “How do you maintain inventory with such great selection of wines?”, “Can you direct me towards the wines you currently have on stock from France and inform me about each label associated with the bottle?”, “Do you have any Sparkling Wines on stock such as Moscato d’Asti?”, and “I have studied about wines throughout France, Germany, and Italy, can you mention another region popular for winemaking?” I felt very comfortable asking such questions because well, “I study wine.”

Overall, I was surprised with the outcome of my experience. I had a wonderful time and it was a great opportunity for me to visit a retail beverage shop because now I have a better outlook on how I will be perceiving wine from now on hereafter.

Variety of wines displayed for customers to view.

Wine from France (The Dupasquier vineyards located near Rhône Valley)

Sparkling Wine (Champagne)

Wine from Spain (Sade Rubor 2014)

For the retail shop analysis, I went to Grand wine liquor store which is located in Astoria on 31^{st Street}. the store is easily accessible as it is located right off the 30^th avenue station on the N and W train. I had the opportunity to speak to Richard who manages the store. he told me that his great grandfather opened the store in 1933, and it had been passed down to him. Having been born into the business it’s no surprise that Richard has great knowledge of wine. The family business is also proud of their Greek heritage, which one could notice from the large Greek flag hanging from the window and their assortment of Greek wines. Upon entering the store, the first thing I noticed was large banner that said “75 years of proudly serving Astoria”. I also noticed that the wines were arranged by country by large signs hanging from the ceiling, except for sparkling and sweet & fortified which had their own separate area. Richard further explained to me that they then sort the wines by type and grape variety.

One of the things I found interesting was that next to each section there is a wine map of that country. These maps are the same ones that can be found on Wine Folly, which we use to study. Their best-selling wine is Mionetto Prosecco Brut that comes from Italy. Italy also happens to be their best-selling country along with the USA. However, their most expensive wine is a red wine from Burgundy which is priced at $1300 for a 750ml bottle.  Although this wine is incredibly expensive the store does offer a vast amount of affordable wines with some even under $10.  One thing I liked about the store was their method of recommending wine to someone who is new it. Richard said that he would ask the person what they like to eat and then recommend a wine that pairs well with it. I thought this was a clever method and extremely helpful for someone like me who doesn’t know how to pair wine. The store also has great discounts such as 15% off on 3 bottles of wine or 20% off on 12 bottles or more. They even have a 15% senior citizen discount. Besides the grand variety and great discounts this store has to offer, they also hold wine tastings on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Unfortunately, I am unable to attend because I am underage but once I turn 21 I will return for the wine tastings and discounts.

“Shelf Talker”
A few of the wines had descriptive labels such as this one. It provides the customer which information regarding the viticulture and the taste.

Map of Australia from Wine Folly

“Wine from Chile”
The producer is Frontera, and the vineyards where this wine produced is Concha y Toro in Chile. The grape variety is Merlot. The label on the back of the bottle describes its taste and offers food pairing suggestions.

“Wine from France’
This is a french wine which is 100% made from the grape variety Grenache. Although the label does not say it infront it is indicated on the back. It is a Rose and on the back it says to best enjoy it between 8 and 10 degrees.

“Sparkling Wine”
This wine is from California and is a Brut Rose or a Rose Champagne. However, because the wine is not produced in the champagne region of France it is labeled as Methode Champenoise. It’s alcohol content is 12% and the producer is Korbel.

For my retail store assignment I chose to visit Oak & Barrel at 235 East 57th Street, between 2nd and 3rd avenue. I chose this store after tasting Muscat de Beaumes de Venise in class one day. I enjoyed this wine so much after our tasting, I decided to find it in store here in NYC. Oak & Barrel seemed to be the only store in the city that sold this particular dessert wine in a half-size bottle for $11.99. As soon as I walked into Oak & Barrel, I was very impressed by their wine setup and how many different types of wine they sold from countries all over the world. Every country had its own section and was divided by reds, whites, and rosés.

In the window of the store, they had an impressive display of rosé wines that all had different hues of bright pinks and orange. Another characteristic the store had were signs to help customers pair their wines with different types of food. This is extremely helpful for a person like myself who has never drank wine until being part of Professor Goodlad’s class, and who in all honesty isn’t sure what type of wine should be paired with different meats or cheeses. These signs, along with the knowledge I’ve acquired in class, would be more than helpful to me now if I were to buy wine regularly.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Scott, who was the Sommelier for Oak & Barrel, and was quite busy with a wine tasting with a seller. Upon speaking to him, I learned that the retail store holds wine tastings everyday from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm. I asked him what inspired him to be a Sommelier, he kindly replied working in restaurants all his life. He shared with me that he’d started as a bus boy and just developed a passion for wine and its history. I also asked what he felt were his customers’ favorite dessert wine – because Muscat de Beaumes de Venise happened to be mine, and the exact reason I chose this retail store. Coincidentally, his most popular dessert wine was Muscat de Beaumes de Venise, while their most popular wine in store were the American brands. Additionally, I asked Scott what he feels his customers prefer between French and Italian wine for dinner, he responded the sales are even between the two countries.

After our brief conversation about wine and his inspiration to be a Sommelier, I walked around the store and picked up on small details that enhanced my experience as a first time wine store walk-in. All of their most popular wines had small descriptive labels in front of them listing the fruits incorporated in the wine, and what aromas you’ll get upon tasting it. Most of the wine ranged from a $9.00 – $50.00 price point and were all full-sized bottles. Given the opportunity, I would absolutely go back to Oak & Barrel and purchase a couple of bottles of wine. But first, I’d like to learn about other countries and regions and the wonderful wine they have to offer.

These white wine signs were on the other side of the red wine signs to help customers choose their wines.

Sone other whites we haven’t studied yet that go well with seafood

Some regions we have not studied, New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina

Other regions we have not studied, South Africa and Greece

After the end of the hard study this week, I visited two wine retail stores on Friday, the Astor and the Flatiron. I did some online research about both of them, but I will focus on Astor. Astor Wine & Spirits is a great place to purchase wines and to learn about wines. Because this store has a lot of categories of wines, especially for the French Wine lover. Astor is more focused on French wines, so they have the separate shelves of different regions in France. They also have wines from different countries. Such as Italy, Germany(doesn’t have an independent self), Spain, Cava, Greece, California, New York, Canada, Pacific Northwest and Argentina. By reading these “Shelf Talkers” you will learn some interesting facts about the country.

I like the way they organized the wines and provided a lot of information on the shelf because this place is so big, which means they won’t have enough staff available for all customer. And the customers can read and desire which wine they will like to purchase.

Except for the information tag of the wine, some of them will have “staff pick” next to it. This card explains to the customer why they personally recommend this wine.

I’m glad to have a chance to talk to Ms. Laura Atbashian, she is the wine buyer assistant, very friendly and knowledgeable. She showed me the best seller shelf which they put the wines that are popular.

Best Value Red Wine

Best Value White Wine

I asked Ms. Atbashian about how they store certain wines, she said the room temperature in their store should be kept at 65°F, which was the temperature for most of the wines. And they have a row of refrigerators for Japanese Sake and others. And the temperature control room which controls the temperature at 55°F for the expansive wines and the wines need to stay at the particular temperature.                       

In this temperature control room, you can find the high-quality wines, low sulfur and no sulfur wines included. Those wines that place on the wall are the most expensive wines in the store.

She also told me how to store the opened bottles, the most important thing is to keep the oxygen out and don’t leave the opened bottles of wines for more than 3 days. And then she showed me how they store the opened bottles for the guest tasting event.

Ms. Atbashian told me she developed her wine knowledge from the WSET course, it is a 10 weeks course to study wine which she could go to different countries to taste and learn about different wines. And she also enjoys to work in Astor and keeps developing her knowledge by tasting wines in their store.

These are some wines from the countries we haven’t learned.

Overall, I enjoyed this experience to visit Astor, it expanded my vision and knowledge about wines.

Miguelina Nunez

For this retail wine assignment, I visited Wine Legend retail store. This wine store is located Downtown Brooklyn. Some of the reasons I choose this place are the cozy atmosphere, the customer service, and the varieties of wine and other spirits that they have.

Wine Legend has a type of decoration that makes you feel comfortable to buy even though you are no sure which wine or other spirit you are looking for. This is the way I felt when I came in. The Property has big crystal windows with the logo of the store and some wines perfect for winter season. In front of the main entrance door they have a water fountain and lights of different colors that makes you relax. Inside the store they have a section for each type of beverage which make the store looks beautiful and organize.

Additionally, The Wine Legend retail store has a very helpful and friendly staff. I had the opportunity to speak with the manager. Jeffrey Davis is a very kind, he answered all my question without rush although it seems as a busy morning for him when I came in. He informed me that a lot of their customer are looking wines for special occasion but are not willing to pay too much for a bottle. This is one of the reason this wine store has wine bottles from $12 to thousands. The prices vary with the quality, vintage, and production of the wine that the customer is looking for.

Moreover, the varieties of wines in this store is huge comparing the size of the place. As I mention before, Wine Legend has a section for each region or part of the world that the wines come from. For instance, in the front they have all American wines, follow for Italian, dessert wines, a big section of European wine and other spirits.

Lastly, I would like to mention that I enjoy working in this assignment because I learned about the reason the wine store has so much demand for cheaper spirits, how the organization of their products matters and so many different type of wines that a retail store has to work with.