I love this picture above of you smiling Tim with the CORONADO CA. beer in my glass just below your neck and you giving the thumb's up sign! . You gleam, you sparkle, you rock ... and look at the color of the beer - so dark and rich and thickly,lustrously burnt-golden-toasted hued ! Gotta love it, too ...
This was one of those totally unexpected pleasures that I was made a part of one afternoon at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 2010 Tel:202-363-4265 sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ) when Santos Rivera our beer-specialist called me over to our tasting table.
There was Tim that sells for Jocelyn Cambier of his own company called J.CAMBIER Imports. It's interesting to note that Jocelyn now seems to sell more beers than wines. I knew him almost ten years ago when he himself would come to our store with samples and wine-makers/ owners and taste Mike Martin and me on whatever they had to offer at the time.
Jocelyn stated bringing some excellent French beers to the Washington D.C. metropolitan area perhaps four or so years ago and they got some nice press in the Washington Post newspaper's Food Section in the weekly beer articles. That caught my immediate attention and soon we had an old sales rep friend Shannon bringing them to us to try and she later did two really excellent in-store beer-tastings with an assortment of them. She left and I heard that Jocelyn had sold his business and so imagine my surprise when I looked down on the price sheet on which the beers had been poured for me and saw the words : J. CAMBIER IMPORTS! Oh well, I asked Tim about this and he said that it was not true and that he was enjoying working with Jocelyn and selling the selection of beers which included the CORONADO San Diego, CA. beers as well as those of SIMPLE MALT ( 4 types : the Stout, Altbier, IPA and the Porter ) also pictured here in these photos ( we did not try these as Santos did not think it was the right time to buy them yet ) ; and others of course including some from Canada. I'd like to try the Canadian beers myself as they seem not to be represented well here in our area at all except for the really big names.
I liked all three beers especially the first one , the Golden. The others had too much body and kick, weight and alcohol for me. I'll just drink the first for the most part and be quite contented.
This blog entry is more about the beer and their froth and foam and their lovely colors : I celebrate all of this from an artist's perspective as with these pictures I try and draw together and connect the dots to the things that are all integral here : the beers, their colors and clarity, their froth and the labels, bottles, glasses that they are poured in along with the people that bring them to us here in Cleveland Park. All this is key : this is the story and for me for the most part the rest is hype. I like these core elements and so I spend my time trying to bring them to life for you all so that you are inspired and want to go out and try one or all three of these CORONADO San Diego, California beers.
I also like trying to come up with some interesting compositions as the one above. I think it works and makes one look harder to see what is in the photograph.
I hope that all you artists out there appreciate and enjoy some of these photos. I am having fun with it all and am adding these images to all the written reviews that already exist about these beers. Combine the two and you get a bigger picture and one that tells you more and gives you all the more reason to go in search of these beers and come to see us here in our nation's capitol.
Tim has already come and done an excellent tasting of these beers here in Cleveland Park N.W. Washington D.C. and I think that Santos has already had to reorder them three or so times? They sold well at the weekend tasting in early April or was it late March, 2010? So many questions!
Tim keeps coming to see us and so I feel sure that more in-store beer-tastings are on the calendar so stay-tuned for more information or call us ( 202-363-4265 ) and give us your email address so that we may send you weekly emails on Tuesday afternoon. You may also check our web page at : www.clevelandparkwine.com for updates.
Funny how time goes by quickly. My last contact with Jocelyn was through email when he gave me some unappreciated advice on how or how not to have purchased some of the premier cru Puligny Montrachet 1999 white burgundies that he had imported to the U.S. and sold through Franklin Selections. I thought again more about him soon afterward when I got a call from Danielle De L'Ansee ( of the DOMAINE DE L'ANSEE Touraine, Loire Valley Sauvignon Blancs and some Cot/Malbec reds ) desperate to reach him and asking me if I had any information on him or other contact info? Jocelyn brought Danielle and her husband to Mike Martin and me years ago and I am happy to say that we have still sell her wines in our store and have some now for sale at $13 or so a bottle. At the time I really felt badly that I could not help her any. I hope that she got a hold of him and got things worked out.
So, here it is now Monday, April 19th, 2010 at home in northern Virginia at 10:52 AM and I am off to the Michael Downey annual portfolio tasting to taste wines on my day-off and see my old friend Alessandro Furlan that now imports Italian wines that we sell. That will be fun.
If all works out I will also go to the Elite portfolio tasting to see some of the French wine-makers/owners that I have gotten to know over time as we sell their wines in the store really well. If I remember I will mention to owner of Elite Imports, Laurent Givry that I just posted a blog on Jocelyn Cambier and his selection of beers. Laurent and Jocelyn worked together once really well a long time ago at Franklin Selections.
Take care and cheers, and enjoy this beautiful spring day. TONY
Oh well
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