Greetings to all you Power Entertainers.
Are you buying your wine online? I do!
Just back from China where I conducted a dozen programs in five different cities—fascinating! I met so many new, “under 40” millionaires who want to display their wealth by entertaining with wine and food. They like Bordeaux best because it is the most expensive, the color red in China is lucky and they understand it is good for one’s health. My observations of many drinking it with fish (out of shot glasses) indicated that there’s a lot of room for improvement (LOL). I will be returning to do some corporate entertainment at the 08 Olympics and I’ll see if they are chilling their reds yet.
I am often asked “where do you shop for wine?” Allow me to shed some light on this subject. You may recall that I break my wine tasting occasions into three levels.
Beverage wines are easily found at the large chain liquor stores. If you are fortunate to have a Trader Joe’s in your area you are lucky. Their buyers are very skilled and their selection and value of International wines is spot-on.
Better wines are found at your favorite wine shops. Costco has the best prices of all—they are the largest wine retailer in the US.
Best wines are the challenge. Some wines are severely allocated. Wines with high scores or those “collector items” vanish the day any press comes out. That said, you need to act fast whenever you taste or hear of something great. One of my favorite websites is Wine Searcher. Here, you simply type in the desired wine, and just like Google, it will show you where these bottles exist. It is free but I suggest you invest $60 for the pro-version and you will get a better selection from around the country. This is a “must-have” for any of you who want to get in on the wines that stun your guests.
More than 80 % of my cellared wines are from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Italy and Germany—my favorite places to buy them are the Wine Exchange, the Wine Club, and K & L Wines.
The Burgundy Wine Company – This store is operated in a similar fashion as British wine merchants and has an incredible selection from Burgundy, Rhone and Oregon. You must check them out if in New York City. Get on their email list!
Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant – Here is one of my favorite wine merchants. What’s fabulous about this store is that Kermit sources Old World wines that range from $10 – $30 that offer uniqueness (do you drink AOC Irouleguy or St. Chinian?) and superb value. Get this guy’s monthly catalog and you will always have stuff that will impress and educate your guests.
Truly Fine Wine – One of the greatest food wines in the world is Riesling from Germany. The best of these food wines are the dry style “halb trocken” and “trocken”. Truly Fine Wine company has some of the finest selections of these wines at extremely reasonable prices. Check out their website and order a sampler pack from Damon.
These wine companies supply me with most of my wines. I love shopping with Wine-searcher.com to find the most competitive prices. Don’t overlook your local wine shop owner who will call you to remind you of your favorites and when they will be released.
Remember to buy wines “in pairs” for comparison. Serve wines that most people have never had so that they learn something from your efforts. Chill your reds (65F) and make sure they taste the best foods and wines within the first 30 minutes and you’ll own them!