A Wine Blog from the Files of Christy Frank
Originally published on January 13, 2010.
Meanwhile, over at the Wall Street Journal, Lettie Teague was extolling “The Lure of the Unpronounceable.” Specifically, wines from Croatia, Hungary, and Slovenia. Even more specifically, she mentions the Pannonhalmi Tricollis and the Monarchia Israi Oliver, two unpronounceable wines that sit side by side on the Frankly Wines shelf. I also have my eye on a Plavic Mali from Croatia and a couple whites from Slovenia.
Maybe I am still ahead of the curve!
Originally published on January 12, 2010.
Before the holiday craziness set in, I set down a list of “guys you need to know” in order to successful open and run a wine store. I’ve decided to make this a recurring feature for two reasons.
So, on to the recurring feature….
You might consider a photographer a nice-to-have guy, but if you’re at all concerned about the look and feel of your communication pieces, a good photographer is a very important guy to know. And yes, I said “look and feel.” Remember, prior to living the dream, I spent 7 years at a luxury goods company so obsessing over looks and feels was a big part of the job.
So for the images I used in my holiday newsletter and the website, I called in my photographer – a colleague from my corporate days who. in addition to his official web-related duties, had been adopted by the wines team. His tiny wine blog chronicles his wine tasting adventures which usually involve a one month focus on a particular region or grape. This is a great way to learn about a wine and I highly recommend it because 1) it really is a great way to learn about wine and 2) I usually have something cool to sell that fits into whatever the immersion topic is – no matter how obscure.
Anyway, on to the pictures. I’ve seen so many web sites with not-so-attractive bottle shots. Given the space limitations, it’s difficult to get a picture that clearly shows the label. But given that the wine info is usually right next to picture, why bother? My philosophy is that it’s best to have something visually interesting that gives the general idea of the label. And that’s where Rich does really good work. His bottle shots are cool and clean and make me want to go out and drink more wine. Flick through his flickr pool, and tell me you didn’t think more than once about how to get inside those pictures.
And that’s what you want in your photographer – someone who’s images can insight the view to run off and join the circus….I mean the wine world. Which is not a circus…unless you’re at a trade tasting. Then it’s a circus.
All photos in the post courtesy of Rich Buchanan.
Originally published on January 10, 2010.
Over the holidays we did a good business in grab-and-go gift box sets, especially our Old World/New World sets. For the Chardonnay pack, I paired a classic rich, buttery California version of the grape with a more minerally, subtle example from the Macon region of Burgundy. The Malbec set paired a juicy, fruity Argentine version with an earthy, structured version from Cahor, the grape’s original home in France.
Now there’s a certain part of the wine world that would say this is ridiculous – that it’s not about the grapes. It’s about the place. Chardonnay grown in Burgundy isn’t “Chardonnay” – it’s Burgundy. And yeah, yeah, yeah, I get it.
But I’m not in the business of defending any particular philosophy of place or grape type or winemaking method. I’m in the business of selling people good wine that they’ll enjoy, helping them understand why they enjoy it (and why it’s good), and hopefully convincing them to explore a bit beyond what they already know.
And pointing out that California Chardonnay and a Macon are both made from the same grape (even if the bottle doesn’t say this) is a good way to start that process. Even better – getting them to taste both side by side, which is the main point of these packs.
So….if you’ve already burned through your first set of New Year’s Resolutions (like exercise every day. Or give up carbs….or Facebook and blogs) why not make a resolution to learn more about wine? I would be happy to help.
Originally published on January 9, 2010.
A NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: Yup, we were making a Negroni. Sbagliato. And were probably going to put prosecco in it since we were going to be featuring it during a prosecco tasting. That all may sound very familiar read from the vantage point of 2024. But look at the date this was originally published. 2011. Yeah, we were just that ahead of our time.
This is an attempt at uploading to my blog directly from email. Does
it work. And if it does, do I have a use for it? Is there really
anything so important in the world of Frankly Wines that it can’t wait
until I get back to my desktop?
Probably not, but I’ll probably do it anyway.
And the picture….obviously has nothing to do with this post. Or with wine. I just wanted to test the photo function. And really, why have a blog if you can’t occasionally force your readers to look at cute pictures of your kids?
Originally published on January 9, 2010.
I just realized my last post was the week after Thanksgiving. While that’s bad for the blog, it’s good for the store. My lack of blogging was due to a very busy holiday season. Sure, I had plans to post gift ideas every few days through Hanukah and up to Christmas. Then I would segue way into daily bubble suggestions prior to New Year’s Eve.
Obviously, it didn’t happen.
I barely even managed to get a Christmas newsletter out before Christmas. And the New Year’s Eve newsletter went out approximately sixteen hours before the ball drop. Since most people seem to be last minute shoppers, this could be considered a strategic plan…even though it actually was just plain old last minute planning.
So no holiday gift idea posts. No end of the year wrap up posts. No posts about “that customer” or wines you never knew you needed or my latest New York Times scoop (alright, I didn’t scoop the NYTimes in the last few weeks.) No posts plugging my Sparkling Wine of the Month Club or listing my top 10, 25, or 100 wines of the year. Not even a New Year’s resolutions post.
Nope. None of that. I was too busy selling wine!
Originally published on December 2, 2009.
Sometimes it’s the little things that make us happy. Like finally replacing the crumbly, dusty nubbins with a brand new box of long, clean, fresh chalk. This probably only applies to wine retailers with chalk boards, but for those in that category, you know what I’m talking about.
Bring on the holidays! I have new chalk!
Originally published on November 24, 2010.
Since Suggestion #6 involved a wine I couldn’t even sell, these next suggestions center on wines exclusively available at Frankly Wines. OK, the wines aren’t exclusive to my store, but I dare you to find all these ones at any one place…other than Frankly Wines!
All horn tooting aside, last year, it became very clear that many customers really don’t want to think too much about what they’re serving for Thanksgiving. Sure, there are plenty of customers that do want to discuss the intricacies of their various side dishes or the specific ingredients in their stuffing, but they’ve generally not doing their shopping the day before Thanksgiving. For those last minute shoppers, I’ve put together three different 3-Packs. Each includes a red, white, and rose, all boxed up and ready to grab and go.
Here they are:
THANKSGIVING WINE 101
All three of these wines were Frankly Wines best sellers. They’re all tasty, easy-drinking crowd pleasers that won’t offend your turkey (or your crazy aunt.)
Sebastiani Chardonnay 2007 (Sonoma, California): Creamy Chardonnay goodness balanced by a crisp citrus edge. This is even a hit with those who “don’t like Chardonnay”
Mark West Pinot Noir 2008 (California): Bright, pure fruit with a hint of spice. Not too heavy, not too light – it’s the ideal accompaniment to a table full of Thanksgiving treats.
Crios Rosé of Malbec 2009 (Mendoza, Argentina): Made from the Malbec grape, this is a rose with a kick. Big fruit, big spice – it’s a red wine that just happens to be pink.
PRICING:$36.99 (regular price $40.97)
TURKEY DAY UPGRADE
Show your bird a little love and upgrade the liquid portion of your dinner These grape varieties are just one or two steps removed from the usual suspects – without being weird or wine geeky.
Markus Fries Bernkasteler Schlossberg Kabinett 2007 (Mosel, Germany): Almost-dry Riesling from a tiny producer. Despite fears to the contrary, that tiny bit of sweetness is what makes this a perfect paring for nearly anything.
Noëlla Morantin Mon Cher Gamay 2008 (Loire Valley, France): Think of Gamay as Pinot Noir’s vibrant country cousin. This one is made by a young winemaker from fruit sourced from the culty Clos Roche Blanche vineyards.
Nigl Zweigelt Rose 2008 (Kremstal, Austria): Nigl is a tip top producer in Austria. Zweigelt is a red grape rarely (ever?) seen outside of Austria. And this rosé is a smashing blend of fresh berry fruit and a white pepper kick.
PRICING:$49.99 (regular price $57.97)
THANKSGIVING ADVENTURE PACK
Face it – turkey day food can be a little boring. But you can bring an a little adventure to your table with this 3-Pack. Yes, these wines are at the bleeding edge of wine geek coolness, but they also happen to be pretty tasty. Don’t be scared….
Bornard Arbois Pupillin Melon Le Rouge Queue 2006 (Arbois, Jura, France): In the Jura region, Chardonnay is called “Melon.” But the taste is totally different. Pure, clean fruit with a slightly sherry-like tang. Weird but good.
Cos Cerasuolo Vittoria Classico 2007 (Sicily, Italy): A blend of Nero d’Avola and Frappato from Sicily. You can taste the Sicilian sunshine, but not in a cooked way. It’s all bright cherries, fresh earth and a whiff of spice.
Lopez de Heredia Todonia Rosado 1998 (Rioja, Spain): From one of the last 100% old school producers in Rioja, this is not your typical rosé. A perfect balance of sherry-like tang, exotic spices and ghosts of fruit.
PRICING:$74.99 (regular price $97.97)
Originally published on November 18, 2009.
Last Friday night, at 4.30pm, the cash register went down. No cash register on a Friday evening in November is about as close as a wine store can get to front line combat. Luckily, we have a manual credit card swipe machine, a calculator with really big buttons, and an on-line payment gateway, so the show could go on. Even more importantly, I had scheduled an emergency-next-day-Saturday appointment with my computer guy by 4.45pm.
It’s good to have a computer guy. It’s probably one of the top 5 guys you need to have if you ever plan to open a wine store. If you’re missing one of them (and obviously, it’s OK if your guys are girls), make sure you find one…
1. A Computer Guy: for when your computer dies just as you’re going into a weekend
2. A General Handy Man Guy: for when the toilet’s clogged, or you need your air conditioner filters cleaned, or you need to install light blocking blinds on the windows
3. A Graphic Designer Guy: to whip up a cool logo or put together an advertisement for your local paper (because sorry, even though they say they have an art department that can put together the ad, you really don’t want them to)
4. A Web Guy: to develop a cool web site: and tweak it when you change your mind
Those are the essential guys and I have found a great one of each.
On the non-essential front: A Photographer Guy to take pictures of your store, you in your store, and the wine in your store. Right now I’m making due with and iPhone and the Camera Bag app for wine pictures. But I’d like to find a good photographer guy, so if you know one, send him my way!
A NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: Yes, every time I see a bottle of this rosado on this blog, I will do my old person thing and scream at the clouds about how it used to be readily available… like five-cases-at-a-time available. So just deal with it!
Originally published on November 15, 2009.
This post is a re-run. But I thought it was pretty perfect when I wrote it last year. And I still think it’s pretty perfect. The wine in question is the Lopez de Heredia Rosado. Last year, the 1997 was in stock. This year, it’s the 1998, which is a touch rounder, a touch more tropical. But tropical for Lopez isn’t exactly Hawaiian tropics. I say it every time I talk about this wine – the fruit isn’t the primary note, which is unexpected for a rose. Unexpected enough that we stuck a warning label on the wine. But if you trust my pairing recommendations – and you’re up for a little adventure – a little Lopez Rosado could be just the thing to perk up your Thanksgiving spread. On to the re-run:
Lopez de Heredia Todonia Rosado 1998 (Rioja, Spain)
Imagine Thanksgiving dinner (the food, not your crazy uncle or your tispy cousin-three-times-removed.
The cranberry sauce, the turkey, the yams, the turkey, the stuffing, the turkey. It’s a wine-pairing nightmare. But this is the wine that can handle it all. Delicate enough to handle the turkey (which let’s face it, is pretty bland), a little fruit to deal with the cranberries and exotic enough to stand up to the stuffing, yams, and even pumpkin pie. It’s perfect.
But it’s not exactly your typical rosé – it has some of the tangy-ness you’ll find in a good fino sherry, only a hint of fruit, and lovely exotic spices like cardamom and ginger.
So if you’re intrigued and looking for a little adventure, track down a bottle and include it in your turkey day wine spread. You should be able to find it for under $30 which may be a lot for a typical rosé, but not this rosé.
Originally published on November 9, 2009.
Last year, in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, I realized that a lot of people don’t really like their relatives and are making their wine choices with that in mind. “Lots of wine and cheap, because I really don’t like who I’m dining with,” was not an uncommon request.
The perfect solution?
Box wine. Good box wine.
A three-liter box = 4 bottles in one container, complete with a handy tap. One for the table and one for the kitchen and you’re set to deal with even the peskiest relatives.
Last year I had one on offer, a Cote du Rhone, and it was a huge hit. This year, I’ve expanded the options to include a cru Beaujolais, a Chardonnay and a Riesling. Equivilized bottle prices range from just over $6/bottle for the whites to $14 for the cur Beaujolais (which also comes in a very cute wooden box.)
Quality and quantity. Let’s all give thanks for box wine. Good box wine.