True wine merchants

[Craig Camp]

In these days when wine styles are getting so homogenized that it can be hard to tell an Australian from an Italian, it is particularly important to find wine merchants that seek out and promote exciting wines produced by winemakers seeking to let their grapes and vineyards speak in their wines. Two such wine merchants are Garagiste (Garagiste Wines) in Seattle and Chambers Street Wines (Chambers St. Wines) in Manhattan. Both of these merchants are obviously dedicating a lot of time to tasting and selecting wines of great character that taste of the place where they were made. It almost all cases the merchants seeking out these types of wines and to take the risk of offering unknown names are smaller and sometimes hard to find.

If you know of such merchants in your area it would be helpful if you could post their name and website so that eGullet members can discover more sources for these types of wines.

[jackal10]

Here in Cambridge UK we are blessed with several excellent merchants.

I would include with links, in no particular order:

Alex Riley Alex Riley [alex.riley.wines@dial.pipex.com]

Cambridge Wine Co

Noel Young Wines

Jenkins and Beckers (fine Clarets) Jenkins & Beckers [jb@childerley-estates.co.uk]

We are doubly blessed in that many wine merchants come to Cambridge to show their wines to the colleges. There are professional wine tastings, mainly for the Wine Stewards of the colleges, often weekly in the Michalmas and Lent terms. Entrance is by inviatation of the particular wine merachant.

More wine links

[mogsob]

NYC -- Rosenthal Wine Merchants

London -- La Vigneronne

[klinger75]

The Boulder Wine Merchant has always had excellent selections. It is owned by master sommeliers, Wayne Belding and Sally Mohr.

In New Jersey, what about the Wine Library? Not sure if this fits into the catagory of merchant.

Edited March 18, 2003 by klinger75 (log)

[cinghiale]

Philadelphia/S. Jersey/Delaware: Moore Brothers

Founded by former Le Bec Fin sommelier Greg Moore, focus here is small estates from France, Italy, and Germany (I'm currently drinking as much as I can of their significant offerings from the Pfalz). Great selection under $15. All wine is shipped climate-controlled from vineyard to store. They also produce a quarterly (sorta) newsletter/magazine and regularly host wine dinners in the Greater Phila area.

[Fat Guy]

Rare Wine Co. gets my highest recommendation.

http://rarewineco.com/home.html

[KatieLoeb]

Philadelphia/S. Jersey/Delaware:  Moore Brothers

Founded by former Le Bec Fin sommelier Greg Moore, focus here is small estates from France, Italy, and Germany (I'm currently drinking as much as I can of their significant offerings from the Pfalz).  Great selection under $15.  All wine is shipped climate-controlled from vineyard to store.  They also produce a quarterly (sorta) newsletter/magazine and regularly host wine dinners in the Greater Phila area.

I'll second and third this vote. I learned a lot of what I know about wine from Greg and the staff at Moore Brothers when I was fortunate enough to be their co-worker. The level of customer service and passion about what they do is without par.

[Ron Johnson]

How does Italian Wine Merchants in NYC stack up in this regard?

[Craig Camp]

How does Italian Wine Merchants in NYC stack up in this regard?

I have only been to this store once and would like to know - it is certainly well connected as they say. Anyone out there have any imput on this one?

[Fat Guy]

My Italian wine merchant of choice is Mount Carmel, near Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. I've never seen a better selection.

http://mountcarmelwine.ibsmall.com/index.htm

[mogsob]

How does Italian Wine Merchants in NYC stack up in this regard?

I've never been overly impressed with the selection at Italian Wine Merchants. I prefer I Trulli's wine shop (I forget the name).

I guess the Burgundy Wine Co. should be added to the NYC list as well.

[ctgm]

Here in Cambridge UK we are blessed with several excellent merchants.

I would include with links, in no particular order:

Alex Riley  Alex Riley [alex.riley.wines@dial.pipex.com]

Cambridge Wine Co

Noel Young Wines

Jenkins and Beckers (fine Clarets) Jenkins & Beckers [jb@childerley-estates.co.uk]

We are doubly blessed in that many wine merchants come to Cambridge to show their wines to the colleges. There are professional wine tastings, mainly for the Wine Stewards of the colleges, often weekly in the Michalmas and Lent terms. Entrance is by inviatation of the particular wine merachant.

More wine links

While the service that they offer may be very good, both merchants that you gave the URL of are a bit on the pricy side!

[jackal10]

While the service that they offer may be very good, both merchants that you gave the URL of are a bit on the pricy side!

Don't forget these are retail DPD prices. Alas in the UK we pay outrageous tax and VAT on wine

[britcook]

In East Kent (end of the world!) we have an excellent little wine merchant at The Bottleneck, not the world's most extensive selection but some interesting choices. They do mail order but it's not web enabled so you'll have to ring/e-mail them.

[dlc]

In NY I would second Burgundy Wine Co as a good selection and to find different and hard-to-find wines Royal Wine Merchants. In Nashville, Village Wines is another source with a knowledgeable staff esp. for Burgundy and German.

[ctgm]

While the service that they offer may be very good, both merchants that you gave the URL of are a bit on the pricy side!

Don't forget these are retail DPD prices. Alas in the UK we pay outrageous tax and VAT on wine

Yes - I noted that these were DPD prices. I am a UK based wine merchant and have come across these companies before (hence saying that they give a good service).

[joiei]

Here in Tulsa, I depend on either Parkhill where Milton and Kevin help me or Ranch Acres and Mary is my guiding light. It is illegal to ship wines into Oklahoma, these guys are the best.

[guajolote]

Craig, where do you shop in Chicago?

I like Fine Wine Brokers on Lincoln, just north of Wilson. It costs a little more than Sams and Binnies but the service is much better. They have a store in the Merchandise Mart too.

[Craig Camp]

I will confess to buying most of my wine in Italy - it is a lot cheaper.

In Chicago you have to like Sam's of course for the completeness of their selection and fine people. Todd Hess, the wine director, is not only a great palate but a wonderful person unaffected by the power he welds. Greg Smolik, the Italian wine director, is also excellent and his knowledge of southern Italian wines is among the best in the USA. Perhaps the sheer size of the store does create some service problems, but I can walk around there for hours just looking - I don't think there is a bigger selection of fine wine under one roof anywhere.

The Fine Wine Broker's are very nice shops. Philip Bernstein in the Merchandise Mart is a first class wine guy. They work hard to have good small, interesting producers.

Randolph Street Wine Cellars is an outstanding shop with some great buys. Very knowledgeable people and they also own the connecting wine bar, The Wine Room - that has a great by the glass selection. This is a great stop on Saturday as they have many bottles open for tasting in the shop.

For small interesting estates you can't beat Howard's Wine Cellar on Belmont. It is a tiny shop but is filled with jewels and the pricing is fair. Every bottle in the shop is personally selected by owner Howard Silverman who has very strong opinions on wines and is not shy in sharing those thoughts – both about wines he buys and wines he doesn’t.

[Iko]

Sam's is a lot of fun to browse, but if you want to talk with their knowledgeable staff you have to avoid peak hours like Fridays at 5:00. Chicagoans should also check out Knightsbridge in Northbrook. Sometimes pricey, but every wine is there because he wants it to be. Definitely a Burgundy fanatic, but also tons of Bordeaux, Italian, and others. Still carries quite a few 1997 California Cabs, for example. Try finding those at Sam's or Binny's.

[Craig Camp]

Sam's is a lot of fun to browse, but if you want to talk with their knowledgeable staff you have to avoid peak hours like Fridays at 5:00.  Chicagoans should also check out Knightsbridge in Northbrook.  Sometimes pricey, but every wine is there because he wants it to be.  Definitely a Burgundy fanatic, but also tons of Bordeaux, Italian, and others.  Still carries quite a few 1997 California Cabs, for example.  Try finding those at Sam's or Binny's.

Good advice Iko and Knightsbridge is an excellent shop. I forgot that one as I never get to the suburbs when I am in Chicago.

[Yaacov]

How does Italian Wine Merchants in NYC stack up in this regard?

I've never been overly impressed with the selection at Italian Wine Merchants. I prefer I Trulli's wine shop (I forget the name).

I guess the Burgundy Wine Co. should be added to the NYC list as well.

Both are nice stores with some good wines, but both are woefully overpriced. You can find anything in either store with just a little research for much less.

What I like about Vino is that you can buy what you just drank at I Trulli across the street, and vice versa.

I'll second (third?) Chambers and Garagiste in Seattle.

-yb

[carpet bagger]

There is a great wine resource Joshua Tree Imports in Los Angeles area. Michael Opdahl is the person to contact. He is knowledgeable and has access to very hard to find Australian Boutique wines at very reasonable prices. I'm not sure which is more important, availability or price, he has both.If you want something he doesn't have he will try to find it for you. His e-mail is mdo@joshuatreeimports.com .