5-26 Listening to your own Advice

There's a new wine shop in my neighborhood; erase that, there has been a new wine shop in my neighborhood for probably a year (or even two) now and I haven't taken the time to pop my head in yet. This is very bad form for someone who considers herself a wine lover. I think my neglect stems from a time when I went in to one of the other wine shops within a few blocks of my house and was disturbingly offended by the owner. He made inaccurate and disparaging claims about BV, the winery I used to work for, and left me feeling like my wine knowledge had been discredited. I guess it took me awhile to face another wine shop owner within the proximity of this guy. Silly me.

Within moments of stepping into this new wine shop, I felt welcome. The owner, a cute, petite women, came from behind the counter and introduced herself to me as Katie. She asked me if she could help me find anything, and after I told her that I was just browsing, she versed me briefly on the shop, "whites here, reds there, almost everything Italian, except the last three rows over here from Austria and Hungary," and left me quietly to my search. I chose an inexpensive Italian white, and when I brought it to the counter she told me that it was a nice, light wine made from Vermentino, and also commented on the pretty label. I had liked the label (which is a perfectly good reason for choosing something to try in the inexpensive category) and thought the color looked promising (not too pale), so I was happy to hear it was one she liked. The price was also in the range I was focused on ($12), which made it a definite winner. I mentioned to her that I have a group of ladies over for wine tasting about once a month, and that we always try at least one inexpensive wine along with whatever I decide to pull out of my cellar, a.k.a., my 6ft wine fridge. This idea excited her into telling me about a red wine she had just tasted called Castello di Meleto, that was priced at about $10 retail. She had ordered the wine for the shop and said it should be on the boat headed our way as we spoke. Talking with her about my purchasing plans reminded me of the advice I've given to numerous friends, as well as advising ein this blog, that you should always feel comfortable asking the shop owner for advice on what to buy, no matter what the price range you're looking in, or how much you know about wine. Most shop owners are happy to help, so be sure not to get discouraged by one that isn't. If you happen to run into an unpleasant owner, head to the shop around the corner. If you don't live in San Francisco, the closest shop may be on the other side of town, but its worth the drive. If you happen to see a bottle of the Castello di Meleto, give it a try and let me know what you think. I'll have to wait until the ship comes in!