As I planned to pay a visit at a wine retail shop that was listed on the suggested page on Monday night, I did not expect the snowstorm would alter my decision. Unfortunately, I was left with no choice but to change my plan and visited a wine retail shop in my neighborhood. I visited Union St. Wine & and Spirits located on 38-19 Union St. Flushing, NY 11354 and called ahead to make sure that I could speak to a representative of the shop to ask about several questions based upon wines.

Storefront

When I arrived to the store, I was really surprised that how come I have never realized this shop takes just about a minute walk from my workplace. I live at a neighborhood where a majority of people are Asian, so it was not strange to see this wine store not only carries different varieties of wine but also Asian liquors such as soju, rice wine, and Japanese sake. Therefore, the first thing I learned from what I observed was the location and the community of where a wine & liquor shop is opened at can have a direct influence on the selections and sales of alcohol that are provided.

Foreign Liquors and Wines

I was honored that the manager of the store was so kind to use his lunch break to take my questions and to explore the shop with me. Michael, who is the most experienced wine retailer at this shop, answered several of my questions while explaining to me what their customers loved the most from their suggestions. As I asked Michael about my previous observation he agreed with me. “Most of our customers are either Korean or Chinese, and sometimes they come in to ask if we carry soju or sake.” Michael said. Then I asked which selection is the most popular, red/white wine, or other foreign liquors. Michael thought about it for a second and told me that there’s no answer to that, because out of 100%, 50% of their customers come in for soju and sake, and the other 50% have more interests on wine and champagne.

SIMI, Merlot, 2014

As I walked down the aisle, I found out that they categorize the wines by popularity, grape variety, company and country. For example, as I asked which wine would you suggest to your customers when they tell you it’s for a gift, or it’s for themselves he answered that if it’s for drinking at home, he’d recommend Simi, Merlot, 2014, or Robert Mondavi, Merlot, 2013. And if it is for a gift, he’d recommend Cabernet Sauvignon, 2013, also by Robert Mondavi. These choices were all on the same shelf, and it is at the very front of the store, so once a customer comes in, he or she could easily see what selection is trending.

Robert Mondavi, Merlot, 2013

Robert Mondavi, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2013

As I listened to Michael’s explanation, I got curious with his recommendations. I don’t visit a wine shop unless there is an occasion, and I always stick to Simi, Merlot, 2013. So I asked him “Why Simi? Why Merlot, because when I first encountered wine I was introduced to Simi, Merlot as well. Is there a reason why Simi, Merlot is one of your top recommendations?” Michael replied to me that Merlot has less tannin and a smoother finish on the tongue, so for most people it is much more accepted compare to Cabernet Sauvignon.” Furthermore, Michael also states “if customers are willing to pay at a much higher price, such at 20$-40$, I would recommend Robert Mondavi, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2015, from Napa Valley.” Michael mentioned that Napa Valley produces some of the finest wines in the country.

After our discussion with wine, Michael had to get back to work, so I thanked him for take the time to give the opportunity to learn about wine with him. It was unfortunate that I also have to leave for work, so I asked for his permission to take some pictures of the store for presentation. Red and white wines were differentiated by storing red to the left and white to the right. Other categories of wines were put together, too.

Red and White

Red wines

In conclusion, I did not get a chance to choose a wine for myself, but I’ll definitely go back to Union St. Wine &Spirits to purchase a wine. This wine shop may not have the most complete wine varieties but definitely a place I’d recommend to my friends that live within our neighborhood or even friends that live in Queens. It has been a great experience for me because I’ve never gone so deep into wine industry and the knowledge behind the science of making wine until this point of life.  I guess after today’s visit, I’ll never stop studying wine.

I thought the banner was creative and eye catching.

This being my first visit to a retail wine shop I wasn’t sure what to expect! I called Chamber Street Wines and Heights Chateau. I decided on Chamber Street Wines as Amanda who assisted me on the phone seemed very willing and accommodating. She informed me that she would try her best to answer all my questions and if not she would ask her colleagues to assist. Chamber Street Wines is located at 148 Chamber Street, NY 10007. Upon arriving I noticed the store by this banner they had hanging. Once I entered the shop seemed lively as there were wine salespeople introducing their latest wines to the shopkeepers. They were having a tasting session and seemed comfortable and engaged.

I met with Amanda who greeted my friends and I warmly and we went right into the questions.

-What is your best selling wine? Sparkling Prosecco

-What is something you would like to improve about the shop? In store customer service can always be improved.

-What regions of wine do you offer? France, Italy, Spain, US-Georgia, Austria, Germany

-What clientele do you target? We are a neighborhood shop so definitely those who live and work around here.

– Best recommended white/red? Elizabeth Spencer- Chardonnay & California Pinot Noir.

How did you learn about wine & what does it take to work in this particular shop? By working retail and having a strong education in wine, grapes, and regions. Particularly for this store we also focus on understanding natural wines.

Next, I took a walk around to identify the different types of displays the shop offered.

There was an assortment of shelves like above with wines standing up. There were also cardboard boxes containing what Amanda explained to be everyday sellers. The wines in this store are sorted by region with maps of the region posted above the shelves.

This is a photo of the sparkling wine section. I was a little confused as to how I could identify the sparkling wines and champagnes. An employee approached us and explained that the caps on these bottles are crown caps which is how they are identified. He then went down the line of bottles mentioning that they were sorted by sparkling champagne, and sparkling wine and according to region. He named the regions as he went down the line and explained that some of the spirits are from right here in Brooklyn, NY. being a neighborhood shop this was clear proof.

This is a refrigerator which contained more sparkling wine selections.

White Wine Display

Red Wine Display

This is what a display would look like in this shop. They are laid down and posted above is a map of the region. It felt relieving to see the Pinot Noir from Oregon as we’ve studied this region and also to see the Russian River Valley Selby Chardonnay which I remembered is an AVA in California!

I visited Henry Harde’s Wines and Liquors store established in 1933. It is new my job in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Everyone in this neighborhood knows of this store especially that it is local and on the expensive side. It is in the middle of a busy neighborhood full of restaurants and bars that will always need their last minute bottles of anything and this is always open. It had a nice feel with books and toys around the shelves, it made it feel homey.

I spoke to a semi nice gentleman that I asked if I could take pictures and he told me to take some and go because its a illegal so that was a nice talk but I took some before he noticed. This place had sections for each country as in Italy, France, California, New World and even a section for Sparkling which is my favorite type of wines so that makes it easier for people to find what they want and where they want it from. there was also little facts next to wines and what not.

I asked the gentle man what was his best selling wine he just said red so asked what kind and what company was the most sold so he showed me a black and red bottle called Apothic Red vintage is 2014 which is from California. This wine is a full bodied, bold blend of Zinfandel, Syrah, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The price was 11.99 with 13.5% alcohol which is not bad for a nice, tasty wine like this because I indeed bought it to enjoy it myself. There was a history fact explaining what Syrah is and where it came from which was interesting because we haven’t learned about it yet.

It was my first time visiting a retail beverage shop. From the given suggested list of stores, I had chosen Ambassador Wine and Spirits located at 1020 2^nd Ave. However, when I called them in advance asking if I could arrange a meeting with a manager or any other store employee, the store informed me that they will not be able to assist me during my visit due to the blizzard warning for the city coming on Tuesday, all their employees will be on a very demanding schedule. Even though, I have encountered the same situations with a few other retail shops I decided to visit a store that is not too far away from my house. As a beginner who does not have much experience visiting a liquor store, with my father’s assistance I could visit Slope Cellars which was a family owned retail shop, located at 436 7^th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215.

Stephen Moses, one of the knowledgeable staff members in Slope Cellars (his permission was granted to post the picture).

Upon entering the store, we were welcomed with its friendly staff and welcoming atmosphere. As I kindly explained the reason for me visiting the store, one of the owners who is Stephen Moses was happy to show me around and answer all my questions.

Display of wines from Old World.

The store was not that huge, the front room was spacious filled with well-stocked shelves of wines from Old World, and a large selection of spirits on the left side of the room. The back room was stacked with boxes marked “cheap & tasty,” with a great selection of wines for under $10 per bottle. All the New World wines was also stacked in the back of the room, in addition to the small section for the kosher wines.

Display of a large selection of spirits.

On the right side is the display of wines from the New World, and in the back is the corner for Kosher wines.

Looking at the shelves, I could tell that Slope Cellars offered more of Old World wines than New World. However, all the wines in the shelves were properly organized by its region and grape variety (red and white).

Red wine display of Galicia, from northwestern region of Spain

White wine display of Chablis, region in the northwest corner of Burgundy, France

According to Mr. Stephen Moses, when it comes to the prices, the Slope Cellars carried a wide-range of wines from popular to rare, affordable to wildly expensive. For example, he simple stated that dry red wines, and Prosecco among the sparkling wines are sold fast because they taste good and affordable to everyone. Furthermore, after the section of “cheap and tasty” the store also had a small section of “boxed wines” to those people who are buying for celebrations, party or any other events.

In addition, Mr. Stephen Moses also informed me that the temperature at the store was about 50°- 55°F to keep all the wines in its good quality. When I asked about their best variety of each red and white wines, he kindly explained that it depends on the climate which is not constant and different every season. For instance, summer in each region might be dry, hot, cool or wet and there might also be a frost which will affect the grapes quality. Interesting thing that I heard from Mr. Stephen Moses was that while frost is a disaster for many, sometimes it can be a good thing to produce an ice wine, where it is pressed from grapes that are frozen while still on the vine.

COUNTRY: Italy
REGION: Sicily
APPELLATION: Vittoria Frappato DOC
VINTAGE: 2015
GRAPE(S): 100% Frappato
TYPE: Wine – Red

Upon leaving, my father was interested in buying one of their bestselling medium bodied red wines. As the store was getting busy at the time, Mr. Moses introduced me to one of their staffs Winston Caesar, who graduated from CIA, and earned his master at NYU. He was also very knowledgeable and suggested couple of medium bodied red wines from different regions. Among the ones that he listed, my father ended up choosing an Italian red wine Valle dell’Acate 2015, “Il Frappato” for $19.99 with 10% discount.

In conclusion, my experiences visiting a retail beverage shop for the first time was fun, exciting, and very informative. As a student who is studying wine, I am glad to be able to use the knowledge I have gained in the class; as well as being able to recognize, identify and to discuss the selection of wines that they offered in the store by using a proper wine terminology words.

Overall, I am happy with my decision choosing the Slope Cellars and would recommend the store to anyone who are interested in stopping by.

The following Retail Beverage Shop I visited was called Heights Chateau. It is located in Brooklyn on 123 Atlantic Ave.

This is a visual of the the outside of WIne Shop. “Heights Chateau”. Taken on Atlantic Avenue.

They had this post-stand outside of the store on a Friday, that stated there were those drinks during those hours that they were promoting.

Another way this wine shop promotes their beverages is by holding tasting events. Which I witnessed that day of, there was an employee advertising to customers about Gin.(even me, but I kindly said no.

At first, this project made me quite nervous because I have never been to a Wine Shop before. Afterwards, I found that it was not as bad, because we have discussed over the questions that could be asked at the Wine Shop. Other than that, I found that the process was not very difficult at all. The first reason is because the employees are very customer friendly. A couple employees came over and asked if I needed any assistance a couples times. Another reason was that I found the store very cozy and calming. The interior design of the store appearance kind of stunned me because instead of aisles of groceries, they were many many different types of wine.  I was very fascinated about how organized and how each category of wines were placed. Correct me if I’m wrong, I think the store placed their wines very distinctively according to the locations, in a specific order.

I was very excited, when I noticed the wines of the countries our class has spoken about such as New Zealand wines, South Africa, Europe, places in the U.S.A., or even the wine variety names such as Sauvignon Blanc, Sparkling Wines, Zinfandel, and numerous more. I did acknowledge that within a country, there are different variety of grapes produced, therefore there were different wines coming from that specific location.

Heres an example of how they label the type of wine or origin of the wine. They also show a sample of how to distinguish whether the wine is Biodynamic, Organic, from Washington/ Oregon, or from New York

There was an employee who kindly answered my questions. With no hesitation she answered my questions without even having to think. She appeared to explain with very understanding way, so I understood her.

The first question asked was,

• Which wine is most popular and why? The employee explained to me Italian wines because the owner of the shop is Italian and also because of the local customers. She also, stated that the shop was family owned.

Another question asked was

• How much is a customer paying for a bottle of wine everyday? She stated around $15-$20. I thought to myself, “Wow, this industry must make a lot of income.” There are also, weekly specialized deals as low as $12.99.

When I asked,

• What temperature do you store/ serve a certain wine? She said our store does not serve wine and they mention because we are “off-premise” which triggered my wine vocabulary. It is a regulation that they are not supposed to serve wine. However, they hold events where you can taste beverages.
• As for the temperature, they have a cellar underground which they keep at 55 degrees Fahrenheit. However, the temperature of the store is around 68 degrees.

As for, How do you choose the wine you sell?

• She stated, “We taste them first.” I believe that would be firsthand knowledge to know your stores beverages in order to sell them to customers. To precisely make decisions in promoting your wines especially during on-premise locations or special events.

I kind of regretted that I forgot to ask for the employees name and a little about her for me to share. With her experience, she knew what I came here for, she also asked what college I was from. I thank her very much for answering my questions.

I would definitely introduce the shop Heights Chateau to my classmates and maybe to others who are interested in wine to go there.

For my Retail Beverage Shop Analysis, I decided to go to a wine store I had never visited before but had heard a lot about from some of my fellow wine-loving friends: Union Square Wines and Spirits.

Union Square Wines and Spirits is located just a block from Union Square at 140 4^th Ave. (bet you didn’t know there was a 4^th Ave. in NYC!).

Here is what the entrance looked like as I walked towards it:

The store has been around since 1995 and one can tell just how much those working there appreciate what they do just by speaking with them about their offerings.

The space is quite large, with wine selections from all around the world:

They often host a variety of events including free wine tastings on Saturdays, which I thought was a great supplement to their retail offerings. Not only that, but they even have Enomatic wine machines, which allow them to offer patrons a taste of expensive wines without having to finish the bottle for fear of spoilage.

One of the store’s Enomatic wine machines.

Speaking of expensive, the wines at Union Square Wines and Spirits have surprisingly high price tags compared to those I’ve seen in other wine stores. The lady I spoke to said that this was because they offered only the highest quality wines, but that they also had cheaper selections for those on a budget (the cheapest one I saw was about $10). In fact, there was a sales bin at the entrance offering discounted options for less selective customers. They also offer a section of featured wines to incite their customers to try something new.

A selection of wines from Germany with their (steep) prices.

One thing I particularly liked was that not only did they organize their wines by region, but also by grape variety. You will see an example of both in the photo below, with Sauvignon Blancs, Merlots, Cabernets, Syrahs, and Zinfandels in the background, as well as Australia, Southern France, Rhone and Bordeaux wines in the foreground:

Along with regular wines, this store also offers a great selection of spirits, as well as a wide variety of kosher wines for its Jewish clientele. In fact, they have a kosher wine specialist who researches, buys and helps customers choose their kosher wine in-house.

The kosher wine selection (left) along with some of the spirits on offer (right).

In conclusion, my visit to Union Square Wines and Spirits was a very productive one. I finally got to visit the store that all my oenophile friends had been raving about and see what all the fuss was: this store offers a truly fantastic, well-organized selection of wines, allowing you to browse, taste and explore the wonderful world of wine with the help of their knowledgeable staff for hours on end. Albeit at those prices, one may only want to buy for very special occasions.

Ryoko Yamaguchi

HMGT 2402 / Professor Goodlad

Retail Analysis

DESPANA VINOS Y MAS

I went to a wine store, DESPANA VINOS Y MAS, located on 410 Broome St, New York, NY 10013 and I was able to talk to an assistant manager, Joseph Delgado, who has 10 years’ experience in wine stores and studied wines at international wine center. Mr. Delgado found himself in the wine world after studying urban farming across the United States, and traveling through Europe and Scandinavia as well as being The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) certified.  The store is offering their customers the best selection of wines and in 2011 they decided to take another step forward and open Despaña Vinos y Más store set right next to Despaña Fine Foods & Tapas Café on Broome St. The store, they only sell for Spanish wines but they successfully provide an opportunity to pair all customers’ Spanish delights together in one place. The feature of customers, people stop by from just neighborhood after their work like 6pm and their budget they ask around $30. Their budget is little bit higher than I expected but the neighborhood is in Soho, so now it does make sense. Mr. Delgado provided me his recommendation of wines and the most popular wines (red, white and sparkling) in the store, also he explained those wines taste and feature.

(The left picture) The store where wood displays and shelving for wine bottles that really organized and the wood display gives us a good atmosphere and a conformable mood. Also placement is good to grab attention because too far back and no one sees it. There is integrating bottles into their wine display that is attractive.

(red wine) The right picture what the most popular in the store.

Alejandro Fernández Tinto Pesquera Reserva  $19.99

Variety: 100% Tempranillo

Appearance: Clear, medium garnet

Nose: Clean, medium intense elegant black fruit notes; leather & toasted vanilla notes

Palate: Dry. Elegant, with good acidity, pronounced tannins & a persistent finish

Vinification: Aged 24 months in French & American oak, 12 months in bottle.

Recommended Food Pairing: Grilled red meat.

(The left picture) Displaying wine or any bottled good requires extra strong shelves that hold a variety of wines available to display.

(white wine) The right picture what the most popular in the store.

Variety: Verdejo

Appearance: Clear. Medium lemon. Nose: Clean. Medium intense citrus notes with herbaceous notes. Palate: Dry. Medium-bodied

Persistent, fresh acidity with bitter, herbal notes

Vinification: Sourced from fruit grown in three villages in the province of Valladolid

Fermented in stainless steel

Recommended Food Pairing: Grilled white fish.

(The left picture) There is ease of both visual and physical selection. Their wines rack ideally stand high enough for comfortable. When a customer has made a selection, the display of the wines is simple to see because they display wines shelves that offer individual sections for each bottle

(Campaign) The right picture what the most popular in the store

Varieties: 50% Macabeo, 30% Xarel-lo & 20% Parellada

Appearance: Clear. Medium lemon with fine bubbles

Nose: Clean. Medium intense white fruit & autolytic notes, brioche

Palate: Dry. Medium bodied with bright acidity & subtle yeasty flavors

Vinification: Organic

Hand harvested from up to 36-year-old vines

Vinified from only free-run juice with primary fermentation taking place in stainless steel over a period of 15-20 days & secondary fermentatin in-bottle over 60-70 days

Aged in bottle, on its lees 2-5 years

Recommended Food Pairing: Eggs & sausage.

The red wine Mr. Delgado recommends

Varieties: Tempranillo & Graciano

Appearance: Clear. Medium ruby, with purple tones

Nose: Clean. Medium intense

Red fruit with floral notes; strawberries, raspberries, cherries & violet scents

Palate: Dry. Medium-bodied with cherry & plum flavors with spicy hints and fresh acidity

Vinification: Organic, biodynamically farmed. Hand harvested & whole-bunch fermented

Bottled unfiltered, without added sulfur

Recommended Food Pairing: Pork.

They provide the tags with each wines which is the most amazing part for me because description tags are very important in wine display. People can see bottles and they might be very attractive, but what attracts a shopper the most is the fact that they can get a short, quick description of the wine. They are giving wines are hitting the hundreds of new wineries and vineyards every year because it’s hard to make a choice out of such vast selections to us. Description tags are the best attracting customers to their wine display. They give us short, descriptions of the wine which is very easy to see for customers.

There is the expensive look of the box and the wine itself are an easy and quick way to catch the customer’s attention. They are able to the best wine display cover a few important details: season, price range, and accessibility. Create wine displays throughout their store that reflect the current season. They offer discount wines as well as mid- to top-shelf price ranges as well in their displays.

I went to a couple stores, I could compare between those and I saw each stores had different customers, different budget also, different their focus or target. Some stores provide variety of region of wines or like DESPANA where they only provide for Spanish wines because they have confidence what they sell. Also I realized that how staffs are professional and knowledgeable about wines because they study wines so hard and I was able to see their passion about wines and how much they love wines. The experience was just amazing!