IT'S STILL THE HOLIDAYS THAT STARTED BACK ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2ND, 2010 AND WE ARE STILL GOING STRONG!
IT'S BEEN A GREAT TURBULENT YEAR FILLED WITH INCREDULOUSNESS AND NUMBNESS AND JOY...
NOW
WE NEED some humbleness, equality for women, respect for women, equal
pay for women, all lives matter, all equal here, celebrate much of what
we have and need to share more in common, live and let live, provide for
everyone, have the rich give back what they do not need that will help
others have an existence worth living and filled with enough hope for
all that depression and suicide is not the answer!
WE
just sent from you all our second money order from the post office
across the street for $155 to planned parenthood, Washington DC, NE -
the first monet order we sent in march and so the total for both comes
to $345!!! Thank you for your generosity in giving, makes me feel very
proud and pleased, and brings a smile to my face, too! Mailed today. We
will keep our tin bucket here into next year, it is above our computer
bu out tasting table.
the
part two big theme bubbly tasting last night was a huge success once
again, as we had six fabulous people pouring 25 or more sparkling wines
including fine french champagnes, too for you all to taste. we continued
our them of supporting women and were thrilled to have christina
caswell , tatiana gladny and diana richer pouring their fine selections
of various bubblies here for you all to enjoy, as well as klaus
wittauer, andrew stover, francois hurtel and craig maura pouring as
well! thank you six, you did a great job and helped to make our
celebration and holiday cheer so exciting, memorable and cherished.
happy new year to everyone.
you
are the very best, we are here for you, always let us know what we may
do better for you to help you with your needs, wants, and help with any
events you are hosting and need our guidance.
this is just a short email to thank you all!
to
let you know we are here with many choices? in all the spirits,
liqueurs, liquors, wines, ciders, beers, non-alcoholic wines and beers,
too -
choices galore!
we
can better assist you now with your sparkling wine needs, too, as
yesterday 25 were tasted here and so they all are fresh on our minds!
Al
Volo Trattoria opened and that is great news, i did a seafood take-out
that was so tasty! my whole family enjoyed it the other night, Matteo
recommended it to me, and Danielli and Matteo were on hand to get it to
me all ready to rush home to the family. I had a chance to introduce
again a number of our fine customers to both of them, something I did on
the previous Friday their first night open.
the
Uptown Art DC House across the street ( in the old Four Provinces Irish
Pub location will be open through April 2018! If you have not been
there yet go by and introduce yourselves to the fine artists there (
always say to them that - Tony sent you! ) : Marc, Maps, Parker, Maya,
Jamal, Sebi, ... they are all instrumental in making this an alive,
active, happening space for movies, art shows, fashion shoots, fashion
clothing for sale, art classes, drawing classes, wine-tastings by me,
Dan, Nik, Manuel Rojas, Narayan Campbell, Robert Kennedy, Craid Maura,
Reid Harper - and more. And the work is all for sale, so if you need
some local art please inquire and support the local arts. My work is now
on display there, too as I am an artist as well.
try and buy what you need for New Year's eve early so that you have more choices. We have fresh stocks of -
- sparkling wines , champagnes, proseccos -
- pinot noirs from around the world
- malbecs from Argentina and France
- pinot grigios from Italy
-
cans of sparkling and non-sparkling wines from Westminster Winery, - a
sparkling Chardonnay, a dry red Cabernet Franc that pops and sizzles,
and a dry and complex Pinot Grigio, too : a can that is a half-bottle in
quantity + 375ml - all at $10.99 - limited quantities, tasty,
flavorful, cute, fun, exciting, great gifts still - limited quantities!
- 187ml bottles -splits of many sparkling wines from -
1) Prosecco 3-packs of VILLA JOLANDA to
2) French MOET rose Brut Imperial French champagne, and
3) French sparkling rose from JP Chenet, and
4) HILLINGER Pinot Noir Austrian dry rose, and
5) Le Grand COURTAGE French Brut sparkling, too
AND in 375ml bottle size ( half bottles ) :
1)
ADAMI Prosecco SuperioreValdobbiadene Bosco di Gica , Veneto Italy -
the best growing region for grapes to make the finest Proseccos!
2) Champagne LALLIER Grand Reserve from Ay, Champagne
3)
Michel TURGY Reserve Selection from Mesnil sur Oger, Blanc de Blancs,
Grand Cru RM - the best available, all family-owned, produced, marketed,
all -
4) TWO From JEAN VESSELLE -
A) Brut Oeil de Perdrix a Bouzy, Pinot Noir, dry blush of color rose, lovely, Recoltant-Manipulant
B) Brut Reserve a Bouzy the town famous for Pinot Noir champagne, Recoltant Manipulant, dry Brut -
AND -
1) Brut Tradition a Colombe le Sec - oui oui oui oui oui!
WE ALSO HAVE astounding values in MAGNUMS - 1.5ml bottles of sparkling wine -
Veneto, Italy -
A) Lugana Italiano 100% , On Special for $54.99, 2010 - and -
B) Chardonnay 100% yeasty, bread and dough accents, 2008, On Special for $59.99!
WE HAVE in Sparkling Wines from around the world :
- Croatia,Trapan
- Georgia, Bagrationi
- New Zealand, Sophora and Elstree
- Armenia - Karas
- Austria, Steininger and LHillinger
-Argentina, Malma Pategonia, Santa Julia,organic and sustainable agriculture
- Italy,-
Vale D'Oasta Pinot Noir 100% w/ jalepeno -cilantro overtones -4478 -
Prosecco, Lambruscos of Alberto Paltrinieri Tenuta Pederzana, and Cantina della Volta ,-
Veneto - Perla Del Garda, -
Emilia Tenuta Cassali, -
Piemonte - Lemon Moscato and Mango Moscato Piemonte Brachetto, Moscato of Canelli
- Spain, Trepat dry rose Josep Foraster , Rossignol & Bohigas
- USA :
- Missouri 2013 dry rose STONE HILL
- Texas-CA McPherson Cellars
-California Etoile Brut & Brut rose CHANDON
- Virginia - Thibaut-Janisson
- New York Chateau Frank 2008 Brut
- Hawaii dry Pineapple , Hula o Maui
- Germany, Fitz Sekt, and Schloss Sarstein Riesling'Franken VAUX and Christian Stahl,
- Uruguay, Bodegas Carrau
- Greece, Matamis and Domaine Glinavos, and Karanika
YOU GET THE IDEA - we represent the world available to us - come by, experience all your choices - possibilities!
TASTINGS -
Friday - will have see if anyone is available to taste here?
Saturday - we have ...
1) Andrew Shapiro the inventor of his own Ginger Brew non-alcoholic 12 ounce bottles, $2.49 a 12 ounce bottle, 11am-3pm pouring and talking about mixed cocktails, etc ... get bottles signed as last-minute gifts !
AND -
2) Andy ( 2-6PM
) coming to pour some great wines from Australia ZONTE'S FOOTSTEP
Sauvignon Blanc, and New York - some sparkling Pinot Blanc from LIEB
CELLARS Long Island, yes! and more!
THANKS AGAIN for everything! You are the very best! Cheers, TONY 12/28/2017
COME SEE US ASAP - yes, si, oui, venga aqui, viens ici, prosit, sante, gracias, obregado, ... tim tim!
AND BITS OF SO MUCH MORE
FOR US TO deal on so many levels with as we all plod along and try and
make sense of so many conflicting events, so many emotions on our part
and in all this for me there has always been a constant thread of things
positive even though some people i know tell me this is unrealistic and
naive even ...
TO USE A POPULAR LINE : "
the Grinch puzzled until his puzzler was sore " in the great animated
movie : " The Grinch That Stole Christmas " : I think that many of our
puzzlers are sore from so much puzzling ... but that's no reason to give
up and not smile and not try and do something about it ...
My wife shared this line
with me this morning. We were all sitting at our dining room table this
morning before I headed off for a teeth-cleaning and then into work
here. Love the sparkle and shine of my teeth this morning, nice ...
THIS EMAIL WILL BE LIKE LAST
WEEK'S : I will tell stories all day long here. IT'S MY BIRTHDAY, too
so come by and help me celebrate with lots of wine, good cheer and
mirth-a-runneth-over! Like so many things I do they today will be
serendipitous and spur-of-the-moment. I expect that many of you are off
for the week and I am thrilled for you all that are. Enjoy this precious
time of yours as you never know when you might have it again : and
then, you will never have this exact moment again and so it's always
best to live it fully just in case .... I AM GLAD THAT WE WERE
SPARED THE SNOWFALL THAT HAS ENGULFED MUCH OF THE EAST COAST and other
parts of our country. We can still get out, we can still move and
navigate the day besides the intense bluster of the wind that rattles
and shakes one and one's car to it's very foundations.
I love the sunshine of this
morning's drive into work and I kept noticing the fallen leaves all
being swept-gushed in intense fits of wind and energy hither and thither
and right past my car's windshield.
AMAZING GUSTS OF seemingly
fitful raw energy and perhaps ennui and perhaps rage and perhaps
defeat?!? Hard to say, but on the backdrop of swept baby blue skies with
bands of wispy white clouds and everything drenched and flooded with a
rather intense brightness of sunshine ... it all looked so fruitful and
promising and bright and I was feeling no pain until it seemed that the
wind would ever so slightly, jerkily and unexpectedly pick the car up
and shake it just ever so noticeably to make me quiver some myself...
unsettling, really and yet it did add a true sense of adventure to my
otherwise pretty routing drive from Virginia into the inner folds of our
nation's capitol.
IT'S RATHER QUIET HERE THIS
MONDAY MORNING as we clean up from the onslaught of customers last week
ending with a strong week of sales and trying as best we can here to
meet our varied customers many needs. We never know quite what we will
encounter and hear from you all : but we do enjoy the challenge of your
demands and your desires, wants, whims, fancies and fantasies .
Sometimes we can help you to fuel those latent urges and dormant
impulses that have been silenced so often that they must be awakened,
shaken and dusted off and brought to the center of your stage right
there in the spotlight by you to catch your full attention.
WE HAVE BUBBLY, I was just
over there straightening things out and we will receive more today of
some excellent inexpensive French sparkling wine. It will be fun to have
it and I am sure that I will open at least one or more bottles today to
help celebrate the advent of the New Year and today my birthday of
course! This idea is naturally near and dear to me and never far away as
the minutes wind on. There are still all the prices, styles and colors
from the driest dries to the sweetest most sublime sweetnesses -
undescribable, you really have to be there, you really have to taste to
know the full impact, the full taste, the full range, the full story ...
WE STILL HAVE A REALLY
WIDE, BROAD SELECTION here to cheer and to toast you all with. THERE ARE
TOO MANY TO LIST HERE and that's okay : it simply means that with this
nice day and the clear streets and sidewalks that you will all be able
to venture forth and here to our store in our wonderful Cleveland Park
neighborhood. You may thus see with your own eyes and perhaps taste with
your own palates what we have to offer you all that is unique,
original, truly representative of the various parts of the world and the
indigenous grapes and what they are able to yield lovingly from those
very specific micro-climes and soils, too.
SO WHILE IT IS WINDY and
BEAUTIFUL come by the store and get whatever it is that you ran out of
over this weekend. Come check out the " new " selections here at
Cleveland Park. It's fun for me to walk the whole rows here of beers and
liquors and you will see that both Ravi and Santos are always including
" new : items for me to write about each week here. It's exciting for
me really.
WITH THE BEER THE COLORS,
the packaging is so very bright and vivid and alive : speaks to me of
celebrations, carnivals and basic colors and stark with forms, figures
and images that are exciting and taunting, a bit savage and rustic,
sometimes primordial and scary and yet they draw our eyes to them making
us have to hold the bottles, turn them around 360 degrees to read and
learn and be further stimulated and stymied by them : what are they?!?
What do they hold?!? What voodoo, charms. spells, chants, etcetera do
they hold inside? Will we live, will we survive/thrive/arrive?!? They
are so much fun to look at and simply imagine the various joys that they
hold. And now they are also organic and gluten-free, too.
LAST WEEK WE HAD SO MANY BEER REQUESTS : it's always a treat when
people come from small towns around the country and ask for their
hometown beers to help them feel more comfortable and at home here in a
large city where they may not yet know many people. I like this,
especially when we in fact do have their beers - and fifty percent of
the time we do have them.
THE LIQUOR and LIQUEURS ARE
NOT QUITE as vibrant in colors - those stark, primary colors : they are
more subtle and reserved and yet still quite as exciting as you cut
through to the actual product held safely, securely inside.
We get the same amount of
liquor requests as we get for the beer. There's just so much more being
produced today than ever before!!!! In every category, in every field,
there's simply so much more marketing of products than ever before, too.
It's still all really good
and exciting and we have almost as many " new " liquors and liqueurs as
we do beers. I think that Ravi simply wishes that he had more space for
them. The vodkas alone are appearing almost every single week and that
is exciting, especially when the distillers themselves come with them
from as close to us as West Virginia and as far away as Maine. It's all
good. We had the distiller Lisa here from Maine a weekend ago tasting
her vodka with our customers and we sold-out before she left! Thanks
Lisa.
THE TREND WILL CONTINUE as
more and more individuals decide to try their luck at realizing their
dreams : families come together and pool their resources and try their
luck. We are here to help support this kind of initiative as you know as
we are small enterprises and we very much exist on this level ourselves
ans we select and offer our wares much in the same way as it was done
years ago before the advent of the internet and so much became available
in the palm of one's own hand, left or right depending of course.
EXPECT TO SEE MORE VARIETY
as these enterprising individuals pick up many of the pieces that have
fallen here and there as the economy has suffered along with so many. It
will be fascinating from our point-of-view to see where things realign
themselves and resurface. We will continue to search for the small
properties and small ventures, the moms and the pops out there as well
as the grapes that are possibly going to all but disappear if someone
does not champion their cause and suggest them now and then they will
languish ans shrivel up and die a death of neglect and abject loneliness
that I would not even wish for my least of least favorite people that I
could conceivably ever hate and that's rare indeed ....
WE HAVE TASTINGS THIS WEEK ON BOTH WEDNESDAY
With sommelier of Oya restaurant Andrew Stover ( both sparkling Spanish
cava and Italian prosecco along with the Hawaiian pineapple sparkling
and still off-dry pinapple still wine, the Michigan " new " vintage
Pinot Noir blend of " Shindig " that Andrew blends himself I believe ?
It will be fun to be able to talk with Andrew that can discuss wine
enjoyment on so many levels and with so many food-wine-food-pairing
combinations as well.
WOULDN'T IT SIMPLY BE GRAND to
be around wine and food all night long as Andrew is? What a great
occasion to first-hand put so many things together and to make so many
on the spot observations. I love it and am a bit-a wee- a tad jealous of
Andrew for this. However, Andrew is nice enough to come and share some
of all of this experience with anyone able to join us this Wednesday
evening, December 29th from 5-8PM here in the store. Join us, never any charge, everyone is welcome. Bring your visiting family and friends with you.
FRIDAY, December 31st, 2010 ( 3-7PM
) : We have Chris Bartha here of Cobblestone Cellars to taste his
sparkling wines ( 4 in all ) : Chris will taste a sparkling Spanish cava
called GRAN GESTA brut ( $14.99 ) from Penedes, Spain , two sparkling
Burgundy Cremants from VITTEAUT-ALBERTI - a clear brut and a dry rose,
too ( $24.99 ) ; as well as a Sparkling German Kir Royale with cassis
already in the sparkling sekt wine : already blended for all of us to
enjoy - nothing for us to do but to open the bottle, pour it and lift it
to our awaiting lips. It will be grand, really grand.
WE HAVE THE TWO CREMANTS
OPEN HERE NOW in the store and so come by and have a taste with us while
they last. Come today and help me celebrate my birthday and then come
again on Friday to try and buy and get ready to celebrate your New Year's later with family and friends .... JOIN US, NEVER any charge.
ALL IS WELL HERE ON MONDAY.
It's relatively quiet now and deceiving as it will surely start to get a
whole lot more lively and active as many of you start to plan this last
week of yours. Let us help - give us something meaningful to do and to
give us the satisfaction of assisting you all in bringing both a sense
of closure to this year and a true excitement and raw energy to be
channeled and ridden in the New Year of 2011!
THERE ARE SO MANY FUN
STORIES, so many people that have passed through our doors this year, so
many relatives that have been brought to us, so many people that we
have gotten to know better, so many people discovering us for the first
time and so many " new and exciting " connections that have been made as
a result.
I love when someone comes
and they say that they have lived here a long time and are just now
discovering us and the extensive offerings that we have here. So many of
you have inquired about the health of the store ( it's strong because
of your continued patronage ), and about whether Peter Wygandt's store a
block away has hurt us?
It's nice, there's so much
open conversation between us here and that makes everything so much more
relaxed and enjoyable. Lots of kisses and hugs, smiles, laughs and bond
after bond after bond that is established, strengthened and reaffirmed
daily as well as throughout the year.
It's also so gratifying
that many of you that used to live here still make it a pilgrimage with
us as the destination to return to, say " hello ", chat and buy whatever
it is that you may be in need or search of.
I WISH THAT I COULD
RECALL all the wonderful events that we have held here : all the
wine-makers and wine owners that have passed through our doors this year
as well as wine reps and sales managers, brew-masters, distillers,all
the great Big-Theme wine-tastings; Mike Martin's leaving at the end of
last year and the bringing of Chris Barker here from Dean & DeLuca,
the events that we have supported from the individual to the large
corporation, the local school charities, the theater fundraisers, ...
the list goes on and on and on. That's one reason that we have the web
page, calendar of events, the various blogs from chatwine.blogspot.com and chatpoetry.blogspot.com, our new Facebook page at : cleveland park wines & Spirits as well.
IN TODAY'S DAY and age we
have to be connected to one another . That link has to be made, the
memory jogged, the bond begun, strengthened, reminded ... we have to be
there for one another.
IT'S BEEN FUN and
challenging to grow with this neighborhood : to see the changes, the
empty store fronts filled and then again emptied,
the Palena expansion as well as that of the new Ripple and the consolidation of both Ardeo and Bardeo into one,
the Tackle Box that will finally go into the old MacDonald's space after eight or nine years,
the businesses here in this
two block period grouping together to make this a more vibrant and
energized, cleaner and more beautiful place to be and to both eat and
shop in,
the closing of both Yanni's and Ivy's restaurants - both are already missed by many of us...
all this transformation, all this change :
the first in years of a Cleveland Park Day and boy was it successful!
We loved it, it sure was
grand to be a part of that and we could not have any of us asked for a
more beautiful day for that to have happened!
We've seen the passing of some of our favorite customers and that's always sad for those that survive.
We've seen people get jobs in a tough economy and lose jobs, too.
We've seen so much on a
political level, home foreclosures, public officials prosecuted and
convicted of crimes and so many others get off Scott-free ...
we have done our dinners in the local restaurants around here, too.
WE HAVE BEEN THIS YEAR AS
MANY AN INTEGRAL PART OF THIS COMMUNITY and for that I am very proud. It
may be in only small ways but it does count for something and it all
does add up and make a difference for some ; better some than none at
all.
IT'S ALL SO MUCH THAT IT
MAKES MY HEAD SPIN ON THIS MY BIRTHDAY and I will now proof this and
send it along as the last email of the year. IT'S TIME TO CELEBRATE and
get all revved-up to finish this last week of 2010. Let's do it
together.
RUSH ON OVER EACH AND EVERY
DAY THIS WEEK to help us celebrate what we do have and what we are
fortunate to be a part of. It will be a bit of a dynamic party here for
the rest of this week. We can be talked into a lot of things. Come and
check us out and have a taste or two on us through Friday and New Year's Eve!
Cheers and thanks a million guys and gals, you are the best, you are the creme de la creme.
Ravi, Ved, Sofredo, Nelson, Santos, Chris and Tony ...
| 
Cleveland Park Beer, Liquor & Wine
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