Quality House Wines & Spirits is located at 2 Park Avenue, New York, NY (entrance at 33rd st). Their store has a very attractive and warm interior design.

Italian red and white varieties

I was greeted by Michelle, who was kind enough to show me around and answer my questions. She gave me background information of their company.They have been around since 1934 and currently have third generation owners. I asked about the demographics of their customer base. They sell to the businesses in the area, corporate events and hotels. They take orders over the phone and on the internet. They have many regular customers but they also have walk-ins and tourists provided by nearby hotels.

French and American varieties

When I asked about how many varieties they have, Michelle smiled and told me, “Hundreds of thousands, too many to count”. They carry old vintages. They also have chilled wines, sparkling wines and hard liquor in the store.

Kosher wine

Their most popular wine are French wines, followed by Italian and American. Those were the only regions I saw in the store. They also have wines from many different regions that are not on display such as Greek wine.

One thing I really liked was to hear about their public events. They offer tasting events and wine classes to the public. It’s a fun way to educate and motivate people who want to learn more about wines in a friendly setting. The staff is knowledgeable and very friendly to newcomers.

I ended up buying a 2014 Sonoma County Merlot. Michelle has assisted me with my taste preferences and I was very happy with my purchase.

     Jean’s Fine Wines & Spirits located at 642 Forest Ave, Staten Island, NY, offers an extensive variety of wines. I asked the owner, Jean, what differentiates her from local liquor and wine stores, she explained that she offers customers unique choices rather than “the same 300 wines.” Jean and her employees also offer one on one assistance, and are very knowledgeable about the wines they sell. According to Jean, they have someone on sight who has a culinary degree and can perfectly pair wine with food.

      The winesare separated by region with shelf talkers and have a map located next to them with the regions.  They make sure the customer gets the proper wine they need,  as well as provide  recommendations if you are having a special occasion or 

Shelf Talker

are not sure what is appropriate. When asked about why she got into the wine business, she answered “well, it’s a funny story actually because I never would of thought I’d be selling wine like this.”  Jean said that while on a picnic with her husband, she was really enjoying the wine that was given to them by a friend. She decided to buy more and when she arrived to the shop, it was called “Gene’s Wine Shop.” She found it quite funny that they had the same name however different spelling. She soon found out that the actual store was up for sale. Jean bought the store and took it as a sign of fate and had the chance to settle after being between jobs.

Wine from France

Sparkling Wine

      The last question I asked was their oldest wine by vintage in store and it was a Dalla  Valle Cabernet Sauvignon, California 2000. Jean’s Fine Wines & Spirits have many benefits, from offering their opinions, hosting wine tastings on Fridays, the free 5 minute wine chilling service, to having free quarters for customers who park nearby so they avoid a ticket. It is the tiny things that matter and you can very much notice how much Jean cares about her customers. The only drawbacks I can think of from the experience was that the actual store had tight spaces and corners, and I was not asked for an I.D when purchasing a bottle of Bordeaux.

A region not yet studied.

Retail Beverage Shop Analysis

The Heights Chateau is located on Atlantic Ave., in (Brooklyn Heights) Brooklyn, easily accessible to public transportation. I first contacted Amanda, a pleasant woman who claims the title of Graphic Designer/Sales person. I asked her if I can come by and get some information from her about the business. She said “sure,“ so I traveled straight to her. I wasn’t sure of my directions, so I consulted Google Maps and traveled there in about 25 minutes. The walk through the Downtown Brooklyn area allows me to see how other people live and and their shoping. Without a strong knowledge background in wines it would have bee useless trying to navigate through the well stocked Chateau.

The store is in an Old Style neighborhood having a nostalgic affect. The streets are clean with a moderate pedestrian flow. Inside the store there is a raised round style counter, having supplies, dimly lit and a vantage point enabling a 360° view.

It was hard to believe how the store inventories their wines so maticulously . After all many consumers frequent this establishment looking to satisfy their particular needs. no sense in wasting time when you can go directly to your items.

The store is well stocked from floor to ceiling, mostly with wines from around the world.

. The top sellers are a toss-up between French and Italian brands. The price ranges are from less than $10, to a number I have yet to establish. The owner has been there for over 30 Years and has seen a rise in sales over the years.Amanda couldn’t exactly pinpoint the reasons why their customers drink, for stress, money problems, family issues, outside pleasure, or just enjoyment. One aspect that was clear, it’s an expensive hobby. The French section has the wines categorized down to the appellation and Cote du Rhone is a constant top seller. In Italian wines, the stock is classified differently, and Dolcetto maintains high sales. Having a wine store is a lucrative business that has increased sales over the years. More people are finding wines incorporated in their lives for numerous reasons. It has become more socially accepted over the past years generating revenue and serving multiple purposes. While most people are responsible, social drinkers it is not for everyone. Amanda said “there are a few who visit the store down on their luck, alcoholic types,” but that’s maybe 3or 4 out 1000’s. The store serves many people from the area, who find it convenient and the prices reasonable.

One of my favorite countries we did so far

House selections

Tasting table

The retail shop that I ended up going too was Heights Chateau (Fine Wines and Spirits). This shop was really convenient because its located near the school at 123 Atlantic Avenue. Upon walking up to Heights Chateau I was a bit intimidated because although it didn’t look like a huge place, it still looked really diverse and complex and I just didn’t know where to start.

The first impression i got when I walked into the shop was that it made me feel like I was not only in a place that sells wines but also a place that takes pride in what they do and they interact with their customers and try to educate them within these interactions. The decor and layout of the place was really clean and it has a rustic feel to it, I noticed that they used barrels for decoration which i thought was a nice touch. I also noticed that there were more people there than I expected and it turns out they were actually having a wine tasting which they have every Thursday-Saturday.

It did not take long for me to be greeted by one of the staff members Rebecca, a woman who has been in the wine business for twenty years. Rebecca was really willing to help me and to answer all of my questions. She has worked as a restaurant director and a sommelier and has been interested in wines since she was a kid due to her mother planting different fruits and vegetables, so I knew that i was in good hands.

I asked Rebecca how they choose the wines they sell  and she told me that Alex the manager and Omar the director have appointments with different distributors and they hold wine tastings amongst the staff that way everyone can be a part of it. When I saw that they didn’t have the wines grouped by the varietal, I asked how the wines were displayed/how they chose the set up of the store? The wines are categorized first by country, then by region and then from white to red, north to south.This way it makes it easier to understand and to find what you are looking for. I also learned that they pride themselves on having diverse wines, being open minded on the types of wines they choose and having good quality wines that are inexpensive so there really isn’t one wine that they would classify as their most popular. In fact, when i asked Rebecca if there were any trends she’s noticed, she said that lately they’ve been having a lot of customers who are going for the more non traditional wines and being more open minded. Instead of the traditional French wines, customers will buy one from China or any wine from their new world selection (Africa,Australia,etc…).

Now it was time for me to buy a bottle of my own.I asked Rebecca how much people normally paid for everyday wines and she informed me that for everyday wines people will pay from $10-$15, for celebrations $15-$25 and for gifts $25-$50. My last question to Rebecca was what red or white wines she would recommend for a beginner and she told me that she wouldn’t recommend a specific bottle but that a beginner should start with a white wine,not too acidic or dry, maybe one from italy. She walked me over to the tasting so that I could buy from there. Chris was the one doing the wine tasting and he taught me that old wines have more flavor because they use more skin and that even though all of the wines we were tasting seemed really complex that they were all unbaked but had all of that powerful flavor because of the skin. I chose a wine from Portugal which has 28 different grapes from the same vineyard which Chris thought that they just planted different grapes for job security because at least they knew that something would be sold out of the 28 grapes.

Overall my experience was really pleasant and informative. The staff were all really nice and willing to help me.

For my wine analysis I went to Heights Chateau which is wine shop in Brooklyn heights. There I met Chris who showed me around the shop and gave me some background of the wines within it. Heights Chateau has a vast variety of wines some of their most popular wines are Chateau d’Esclans Whispering Angel Rose, Kendall Jackson Chardonnay, J Lohr Chardonnay, Veuve Clicquot Brut Champagne. When I asked what made these wines so popular Chris opinion was that the people who buy these wines have no taste buds because he believes these wines are extremely basic  and average. He said “it’s like they drunk soda their whole life then decided to start drinking wine”. Also top selling regions would have to be France (Bordeaux especially), Italy, and Argentina. The most expensive wine is a DRC Burgundy White that’s about 5,000 dollars.

Veuve Clicquot Brut Champagne is not only a sparking wine but a shelf talker in the shop.

The clientele Height Chateau receive varies from the locals, which would be the judges and lawyers that live the area to tourist, that are sometimes actors, to homeless. Also not forgetting you’re local wine geeks. The age range goes from 21 to 92, the 92 year old being a woman who buys a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc everyday. The background of the customers consist 80% Caucasian with European background, 10% African American, and the remaining being other. The types of wine people buy most days he says depends on the weather, for example if it’s hot and sunny the sell more whites but, if it’s raining or cold they sell more red.

Some other questions I had were what makes people afraid to go into wine shops? Chris put it simple that “people are afraid to look stupid, they rather struggle in silence than ask for help so sometimes you have to help them in a way that seems you didn’t help the”.  How about getting people to try something different? Chris says sometimes don’t like a certain wine because of its texture or their just “palate deaf”. Chris strategy is to first give them a off brand and if they like it, start with France then slowly moving towards other region.

Alsace region of France section with wines such as Gewurztraminer, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris.

Another question is what makes Heights Chateau different from other winery in the area? Chris claims it consist of these five things 1) the owner have a retail background, since growing up his parents owned businesses, 2) the shop is theatrical, meaning the music, how lively the staff is, 3) always having new wines, giving people the opportunity to experience new things such as “Novelty wines”, 4) great service and consultations (Heights Chateau provides consultation for weddings and catering companies), 5) making customers feel comfortable(one way they do that is by allowing dogs into the shop and even having treats for them at the counter.). I had to agree with Chris on this five point recipe because in hospitality our goal is to not only satisfy the customer and make them want to come back. Next I asked Chris what made him go into the beverage industry?  Chris is actually a writer and teacher and he use to teach at the Maryland College of Arts but his contract finished so he needed to find a job. He applied to Heights Chateau because he believe he had a little more than the average knowledge of wine and he also just came back from Germany. He also claims that what makes the Height Chateau is that most of the employees come from different backgrounds such as musicians, writers, designers so it gives the shop diversity and culture.

To end our interview I asked Chris what’s the most difficult aspect working here? Chris says it has to do with reading people in the sense of who’s stealing. Their biggest culprits are actually middle aged caucasian women stealing vodka, older African American males, and college students. Also, he stresses the fact the wine should be consumed with food. So whenever someone comes in the store the first thing he ask is “what are you eating tonight”? In the end I really enjoyed my time with Chris and felt more confident to go into wine shops in the near future.

Pour Ma Gueule Chilean Wine (RED

So for my wine retail store project I chose to go to Pinnacle Wine and Liquor ware house located at 114 Ditmas Ave. Previously known as Dynasty Wine and Liquor warehouse, this place is located conveniently right of the F train line at the Ditmas Ave stop, very easy to get to on my way home from school. Upon walking into the store I automatically saw how big it was and how much of a variety they had when it came to wine. The store is divided into isles by red wines from different countries for the most part.

Some of their white wines and how they keep them.

To see their white wine selection, you can walk over to the refrigerated isle or you can also find some on the shelves as well. I noticed that even though all the wines are facing label in the front and the price tag on the shelf, that there are no “shelf talkers” no descriptions on any of the regions or wines that they have.

The Italian wine isle. Top shelves are more expensive and bottle shelves are cheaper.

They had wines varying from France, Italy, Germany, Israel and even Chile.

I spoke to the girl that works there about the various wines they have and how they keep most of them and she said that all of their wine is either kept on the shelves, the fridges or in the basement for extra storage. In my opinion, having the overstock in the basement isn’t a very smart idea because not all wines keep well for long and having too much of those wines and not selling them fast enough can cause them to lose inventory. I also asked her what the most expensive wine that they cary is and she said it is a $210 bottle of a 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Padis Vineyard in Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley.

Most expensive bottle of wine they have.: $210 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon.

To be honest, I wasn’t too impressed. I thought that with the amount of wine that they sell from various countries that they would have a an older vintage bottle from France or Italy, but the best they had was from California. Something that I did find pretty cool was that they had wines that were made out of other fruit like passionfruit from Israel and I’ve tried these before and they were delicious. 

Their selection of the Rose, not too large.

They also have a bunch of Rose on display towards the front but a small variety. Overall this place had a good amount of wine some that I even recognized from class and Was so excited to actually know some of them and be able to have a conversation about wine which up until this class I was completely clueless about. This experience was pretty cool, having some of the knowledge that I have now. 

Long’s Wines and Liquors is a wine retail store located 79^th street 5^th avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. According to my experience and the reputation of the retail store, I believe that they will be able to provide answers for my inquiries. Another reason of choosing this retail store is that they draw passenger attention with free wine tasting on Fridays and well-designed display window, which gets changed by seasons and holiday.

There were three employees working at that moment Andrew was the employee with most experience, and other two employees were fairly new. However, the 7 months and 2 months of experienced employees, Greg and Coleen, helped me answering most of my questions.

I planned out three questions before I visited the retail shop. The first question is how they suggest wine to their customers. Greg’s answer was little different from what I expected. I expected the suggestions were made based on grape varieties or regions. Their answers were more realistic. According to Greg, he asks about fruit flavor and sweetness. Depending on type of fruit, such as lemon black berries, plums, or citric, he then suggests grape variety. The range of price for these suggestions is between $12 and $25.

The second question was about the displays. I wanted to know why the structure of the display designed this way. As I was walking in, I saw American wines first then all other wines from Europe. Andrew was able to answer this question. The front half of the store was wines of new world, and the back half of the store was wines of old world. Greg told me his opinion on top of the fact that Andrew told me. Because both employees and customers can associate and read the descriptions better with the American wines and the word ‘New’ sounded it belongs in front, American wines were the first section people would walk into. Sections for some regions were interesting set up the retail store. Greek wines had its own section based on Greek population in the neighborhood. Beside from Greece, many different interesting regions such as Israel, New Zealand or Australia had smaller sections.

The last question was about the customers. I have been taking longer time choosing a wine now because I know more than before I took the class. I asked if the customers they have are educated wine consumers. Roughly about 70% of their customers appeared to be educated wine consumers according to the employees. However, they seemed to be unsure when I asked if their guests will notice the difference if they suggest same grape variety from two very different location.

The retail store visit could have been much better if there is a person who is really in charge of everything. I picked Friday to visit them since they have wine tasting. I have assumed a manager would supervise on the special day like wine tasting day. Although Long’s Wines and Liquors is doing great on training the new employees, they can definitely improve on selecting motivated swift manager. Throughout the visit, Andrew seemed the least motivated employee. Greg has less knowledge about wine because this is first job dealing with wines, he said, but he seems highly motivated and has knowledge about liquors and beers. Overall, I think the retail store keeps everything neat and on point. I would still go shop at this retail store over other wine retailing stores in the neighborhood.

I went to Astor Wines and Spirits for the retail project. Its located at, 399 Lafayette St, New York,  just around the shopping areas in SoHo. It was very easy to find the location, it was not far from the train station at all either which is always a plus, they also had a specific wine tasting at the time which was free also, it was from 5pm – 8pm i believe that day. Walking into the store i did not expect it to be so big and organized It felt good walking inside, it almost seemed like i was at a supermarket but for wines and alcohol. Most of the wines were located in sections of regions if not the countries that produces the wines. There were so many sections to look at, the French aisle had all the important regions like Rhone, Loire, Burgundy as well as other countries like Italy. It was a great experience to recognize so many regions, because i study wine. Most of the wine sections had shelf talkers hanging above the bottles, they were descriptive about the type of wine the region focuses on, for example if they are dry, red, the dominant grape variety, what to expect on your palate and a little positive line about the quality to basically sell the wine. They even include a picture and/or description of where the region is located which makes it very helpful for those like me that study wine. Doing research, on their website you can actually have a full google tour of the store as well, i strongly recommend it, if you are planning on going but want to check out the store online.

I also found myself exploring the unknown and looking at the South American wines, wines from Spain and even Sake. It was interesting because i saw countries that i wouldn’t think to produce wines like Australia. Looking at the price ranges of the store most wines were around $13 – $30, some wines from more important regions like Burgundy had wines for around $30 to $60 on the shelf. I saw wines that were new from Portugal, Chile and Spain, they did not cost much either, i wondered if they were just table wines or experimenting with new producers. While walking around I asked an employee that was very friendly and helpful some questions. I asked if they had any very luxury wines that are not available on the shelf, which he replied with a “yes” and pointed at a sealed room on the left side of the store and told me that they have very expensive bottles and high quality mixed wines there. He said they can range from $75 – $100 to thousands depending on the vintage or and producer, like wines from a well know high quality grand cru, some are not presented to the public either unless is asked for. I also ask if they make orders for customers if they want a specific wine that is not in stock, and they definitely do he said. he informed me that they do delivery and pick ups at the store as well. I had a wonderful experience coming to Astor, i even bought a Riesling wine. The only drawback was just the fact that there ware so many options and vast variety of wines and other beverages, it can be difficult to find something to buy unless is something specific that you’ll want, but the employees are very helpful and knowledgeable so they can help.

Argentinean wine from the South American Wines, Malbec and Cabernet Saugvinon dominant.

Burgundy was my favorite French Region, the shelf talker gives the a great description of the region.

French Sparkling Wines made just outside the Champagne region, referred as a “Cremant”

New Portuguese wines, Fernao Pires, Casa De Pacos and Coventual Portalegre 2014.

Located in the Bronx’s “Little Italy”, at 2355 Arthur Avenue Bronx, NY 10458, La Cantina Wine and Liquor has been the been providing their excellent service and expert knowledge to the Bronx for 20 years. La Cantina provides wine, liquor and spirits from various countries and regions, prices ranging from $5.99 to $700 a bottle. They are surrounded by Italian bread shops, seafood, produce and butcher shops, which is perfect for them and the customers, everything you need for lunch or dinner in one area, if you don’t plan on going to work the next day throw in a bottle of wine. Even with the perfect setup, La Cantina also delivers from their online website for those of us who can’t make it out there and for those who are buying by the case. The shop was quiet and had dim lighting, they organized the wines by country, region, and grape variety. When I arrived, I was greeted by Anthony, who gladly answered my interview questions and surprised me with some of his answers.

 Q: What does your typical customer look like/ who shops here? What makes you different from other retailers, such as North End Wine and Liquor?

“All kinds of people, there’s no specific type, we get people from the area, and tourist whether they’re from out of state or from another country. it’s one of the perks of being in a destination part of the city. We are however community conscience we do not sell certain products, because we believe it brings around certain kinds of people, like alcoholics, people who buy wine and liquor to get drunk, which results in bad decisions and bad behavior. So, products like yellowtail and those two dollar mini bottles of liquor we do not sell here. We also pride ourselves in customer service and product knowledge, unlike a place like North End, where you walk in buy the cheapest thing you can find or the most popular brand out their today, and you’re out. Which brings out the undesirable customers I just spoke on, because they’re only interested in getting drunk. We only buy wine and liquor we like, we want to be able to recommend our product and speak on its attributes, the taste, body, and food pairings. Even after the vintage is up I won’t buy the next vintage until I’ve tasted it, all wines don’t taste the same, even if it comes in the same bottle. So, everything you see on the shelves we have tasted, unlike other retailers who put the most popular wines and liquors at the time because it makes them money. We also do wine tasting every Saturday so people, can give us their opinion.

Q: Has the recent natural disasters affected/ will it affect your business? How?

“Well, due to the hurricanes shipments have been late. The wildfires are the most pressing though, because we’ll see an increase of California wine, but quality and taste will be in question. We have those customers who love California wine, but if we don’t think it’s good, we won’t sell it.”

I love that even though the store is small and only two people work there, they knew their wines, and they wouldn’t sell you something they wouldn’t buy themselves. I of course could not leave empty handed, Anthony recommended a dry red wine Ramitello Molise Russo, for my lobster and pasta dinner.

La Cantina’s Best Seller by recommendation Vin dei Fratelli Nero d’Avola & Corvo Nero d’Avola

Wines of Argentina

Sparkling Wine

For my retail beverage shop analysis assignment, I visited Henry’s wine and spirit shop located on 69 central avenue Brooklyn, New York. It was not one of the many that were recommend on the list but I stumbled upon it walking home one day and actually decided why not visit a shop where you live so you can build a relationship with people in your neighborhood. The person I spoke to wanted to stay anonymous but was very nice and had a lively personality. I wanted to just ask normal questions such as what is the most popular wine bought in this area and etc. without saying it was for an assignment to get the real experience of buying wines. I told him about my assignment after he answered all my questions and I wanted to ask to take photos he said it was perfectly fine and actually recommended some wine bottles that he thinks would be good to talk about like a Malbec from Mendoza Argentina and Divy Rysak which I found to be interesting because it is a product from Croatia. It was my first time in a wine shop and I was very excited just to see how someone else would explain certain wines. Henrys wine and spirit is not a big shop but they really know how to make a small space look bigger than what it is. One question I askedabout was what is your most popular wine He answered with a quick response and pointed to a cabernet sauvignon made in Columbia valley Washington state. He said a lot of people love wines from Columbia valley and ask from this specific grape smith & crusher producer as well. My second question was actually one that I came up with at the spot as I wanted to know what influenced the shop to buy all the whacky wines as he explained earlier. He answered with that the owner wanted to move away from a lot of restaurant type wines and stick to what he thought would blow up which is naturalwines. It was a great shop to visit and the owner believes that he is responsible for the change happening in the neighborhood we both live in which is very diverse with many different kinds of restaurants in the surrounding area.

Divy Rysak – Wine from Croatia

[caption id="attachment_3162" align="alignnone" width="300"] Bellwether – Riesling
This wine I actually bought and found it to be very interesting that this was made in the Finger lakes just like the wine of the new world class at city tech

Grapesmith & Crusher – Cabernet sauvignon from Columbia Valley , WA