PA Premium Wines -- Wine Club

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com (Ian Mundell) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Hi Ian, I saw that, but you are right, there is little information on what is being offered. Having done a casual comparison of the gift basket offerings, it sort of seems to me as though it may be no great deal. I'll try to remember next time I'm in a specialty store to find out what they might be sending out...but I hadn't even considered trying it, as the specialty stores are quite convenient to me...

Whereabouts are you? I'm in Pittsburgh... d:D

Hi, I am a wine newbie and I recently joined "International Wine Cellars" wine club. I have only received one shipment so far, but what they advertised to me is that they "shop the world" for fine wines for me to sample each month. i also received an introductory set of 2 wine glasses, bottle stopper, crackers, waiters corkscrew and they include a newsletter each month on the type of wine you have received and also other wine items that are on sale. I am also able to order more of a monthly featured wine if I like it a lot. Their staff seems very knowledgeable too. I thought this to be a good way for a wine newbie to go and i is not that expensive. There is also no time limit for joining, no obligations, etc., and you can quit whenever you want. They do have a higher priced clb also, but mine will run $26 + s&h each month. I hope this helps.

I am in California btw. I receive one red and one white each month, but you can choose 2 reds or 2 whites if you prefer.

Other side of the state, I'm afraid -- just outside of Philadelphia. I moved here just over four years ago. So, I'm fortunate in that there are several specialty stores in close proximity; but I think very few of them have temperature-controlled storage facilities, for example, and the selection can often be patchy at best.

Sounds nice. I don't know what the situation is in CA, but in Pennsylvania we have, shall I say, somewhat antiquated laws. The state's Liquor Control Board does exactly what the name suggests -- they control everything to do with liquor within the state, which also means that (with a very few exceptions) you can't bring in wine from outside of Pennsylvania, and that includes wine clubs.

(Having said that, the new head of the PA LCB has made some very encouraging moves to try and bring the LCB out of the dark ages. In fact, there were two articles in the Philadelphia Inquirer this morning, one profiling him and discussing what he's done and is doing, the other a review of the first liquor store to open within a supermarket. One of his aims, according to the article, is to get rid of the Johnstown Flood Tax, which raises liquor prices by something like 18% under the guise of paying to rebuild a town that was damaged by flooding in 1936.)

But I digress. I'd like to give the club a try as both my wife and I are keen to sample a wider range of wines (I tend to go into a wine store and immediately head for the Bordeaux), but past history of the LCB makes me dubious as to just how effective a proposition it will prove to be.

I actually sent an e-mail to the LCB asking them for some details, and was pleasantly surprised to receive a very quick response.

"For instance in November our Tier 2 customers received Neyers Napa Syrah and Chateau Souverain Winemaker's Reserve Chardonnany- Later rated in the top 20 list of Wine Spectator's top 100. We have also offered products that are only sold at the winery. Meridian Pinot Noir Reserve, Tier 1 red. along with small production wineries such as Huntington Sauvignon Blanc tier 1 white and Gary Farrell's Tina's Block Zinfandel tier 3 red. We are trying to offer a varied selection of wines to our members and wines that they might not have ever tried."

So it might just be worth a crack.

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com (Ian Mundell) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Oh, I was worried you were somewhere remote and didn't have access to one of the fancy stores ;) Yeah, I agree about the selection, I have two specialty and one super store I patronize, each for different types... I was talking to one of the managers about getting a special bottle, had to be obtained from around Harrisburg, and one of the things we discussed was shipping in the current chilly weather, and she said the warehouse here was temperature-controlled, so maybe that has changed...or perhaps varies. d:D

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com (Ian Mundell) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Ah, but we can buy wine on Sundays now! Aren;t there still severe restrictions in NY? Dale?

It's improved a lot, I can remember not too long ago (within the last 10 years) still having to go up to the counter and asking for a bottle by number...

One thing I've noticed is the SLO people are really nice and helpful...on the other hand, calling the 800 number was next to useless - "Please send an email (not to the SLO address, somewhere else), instead of calling." Then no response for 3-4 days (I tried it twice). What's the point? I wanted to know a store in which a certain wine was available, so I could buy it tonight!

Hmm. Can anyone out there fill us in on an average price for any of these wines? Looks like the Farrell goes for $30 at the winery...Tier 3 is US$50-75 for two bottles, I assume that's two different ones... Oh! I wonder if that includes the shipping! And sales tax...I doubt that! d:D

Yes, everyone made a big fuss about this. I have to confess I wasn't that impressed; yes, I could buy wine on a Sunday, but it was still the same high prices and poor selection. I'd far rather see them make a *real* shake-up, say, by licensing independent liquor store owners in the state to give a real consumer choice. Take away that 18% Johnstown Flood Tax to bring down the prices and they'd be able to sell at competitive prices to try and stem the tide across the border, and they should still be able make it viable by charging prospective liquor store owners a reasonable (for all parties) licensing fee. At least then we'd have a show of getting some decent selection; I can't believe, for example, there wouldn't be a market for a specialist wine store in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, one which had a GOOD selection of decent wines stored and transported correctly.

Looks like the Neyers Syrah is around $30, too. I can't seem to find information on the others, though.

snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com (Ian Mundell) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

Oh, I was teasing about this, since the I guess there is some goofy thing about wine sales in NYC on Sunday, which doesn't immediately leap to mind. I expect that once the Johnstown tax goes away, the prices will rise, since a lot of them seem currently to be the equivalent to what I've seen reported on line and various places (except perhaps for Bordeuax, which seems to be a might high in PA, not that *I'm* buying cases, heh. Well, maybe one...)

I would prefer to see independent wine stores (*note to Jonathan Newman - I know you're out there, darlin' - wine stores, not liquor stores*) rather than grocery store sales; with superior selections, not even huge giant stores, but then, who am I? Heh. Ms. Budding Wine Geek ;)

Oh, and while we're at it, let the store be convenient for me :D I don't have a car...

d:D (sorry, used the wrong identity last time! Got to get the usenet schizophrenia under control!)