I was told 95% of wholesalers in Florida descended from firms set up right
after Prohibition---the laws are stacked against small stores & wholesale
houses.
"Ric" > wrote in message
. com...
> Florida must be a tough place to find reliable supplies of good wine at
low
> cost. Everyone I know in Florida (present company excepted!) either drinks
> cheap White Zin, or Budweiser. ;-)
>
> Many of these places truly work like warehouses. and I am concerned for
the
> temperature variations (storage conditions) of the wine. So I ask -
> carefully, to probe if they even really understand the issue. IMHO, some
> places are really all about moving large quantities to a market that
intends
> to drink the product right away. Ergo, there isn't as much care for
storage
> conditions as I would prefer. Others, especially those that specialize in
> wine, seem to take more care. Again, it seems you can usually tell by
asking
> some probative questions - if they don;t even really understand why you're
> asking, it's a good sign there may be something to be concerned about.
>
> The other thing I have found when I buy from Beverages & More here in
> California, is to know what I want before I go. They have a good online
> store, so I review it - looking for deals, good wines, etc. And then I
price
> compare with other large wine merchants in Nor Cal. That way I avoid
> confusing myself at the store.
>
> As for the resident wine expert ratings - thus far, haven;t found any that
I
> can trust. Have you?
>
>
>
>
>
> "Joseph Coulter" > wrote in message
> . 97.136...
> > Since I left Minneapolis several years ago, Ihave not been able to go to
> > a wine store the size of Surdyk's where row after row of various wines
> > are on display to both amaze and baffle the consumer. That has changed
> > now that jacksonville has received Total Wine.
> >
> > I think of myself as at least a little knowledgeable but am mystified at
> > how one is to cope with the selction. Of course they want to sell a lot
> > of profit and I am sure that there are some "stars" in the portfolio.
> > and the helpful clerks who do know their merhandize, didn't have time or
> > inclination to test their real knowledge ofwine, are certainly ready to
> > push "the 2003 was rated a 90 (by whom?) the ratings aren't out yet on
> > the 04's but they should be the same" the same? year to year variation
> > is what makes this crazy obsession of ours fun and frustratingand this
> > guy is advising that past results are predictors of future results, he
> > better not go in to the brokerage business!
> >
> > So long rant short what do others think of these mega stores?
> >
> > --
> > Joseph Coulter
> > Cruises and Vacations
> > http://www.josephcoulter.com/
> >
>
>