| Ok, Free Rangers,
So, here’s the new scoop. As of today, Monday – Thursday, we’re offering counter service (no browsing), but your best most efficient route is still to order online for pick-up or delivery. Friday – Sunday we’re continuing with regular in-store shopping (max 4 customer/ 1 per group). New signage is posted, and this will be modus operandi at least through the month. Over a year into uncharted territory, we appreciate you hanging with us, as we all inch back toward whatever is left of normal. And yes, that is the new name of my bourgeoning Archers of Loaf cover band: The Oranges of Origin. We hope to someday open for The Sons & Hiers. We’ve spent these last 15 months doing our best to ride the line between providing some normalcy for our local friends and aiding in the curbing of the virus. Based on the level of vaccinations vs hospitalization in our fair town, we feel confident in loosening our restrictions, but some reasonable experts still warn of a possible fourth wave, which we’re seeing now in places that lifted precautions unilaterally, and/or never took them seriously to begin with. We are cautiously optimistic that these e-mails will soon announce regular in-store tastings in the coming months (June/July?). We really can’t wait. There is just no substitute for comparative tasting with producers and experts. That’s how we learn too. The no cell phone policy in the shop is forever. That one is for me. Sorry (not sorry). It is absolutely worth the occasional negative review to not have someone take a call in my face, when I’m in the middle of answering their question. On to the booze! We’ve been asked by many of you to offer a sale and/or combo pack with orange wine and/or PetNat, so let’s do that right now. First, a touch of background for neophytes: orange wine is wine made from white wine grapes in which the grapes are fermented with their skins, contrary to typical white wine vinification where the skins are removed (or the fruit is crushed out of them). These skins contain pigments, phenols, and tannins (aka components of structure and color), which will give well made orange wines their color, richness, weight, and backbone. And since we have a better array of these sorts of wines than ever before, from best in show intro level to Italian masters, why not try one of the below assortments? Orange wine starter kit (3-pack): This one starts with Gulp Hablo 2020, a full liter of quintessential orange wine from Spain; dry, light to medium bodied, just a bit of clouding to its orange color, and just a touch of earthy funk. Leptur Santcum 2019 is a Solvenian wine that we like to call orange wine with training wheels, as it’s fairly clean, kind of a salmon color, with no noticeable clouding; it’s dry and crushable. I’ve resisted Georgian for years, as many of their orange wines would be more accurately described as unstable brown chunky wine, but try marketing that as a category. This Anapea Village Rkatsiteli Rose 2018 has ‘rose’ in the name of the grape, just to confuse you, it is not a rosé (pink) wine, but a classic example of a balanced, intro level Georgian wine that is dry, and exceedingly food friendly. sale: $44 retail: $ Orange You Glad (6-pack): Starts with the 3 above, and moves onto our South African friends at Bosman who produce our current favorite orange wine per dollar spent, Bosman Fides 2017, and a delicious fresh, bright PetNat with a beautiful artist series label, Bosman PetNat 2020. Lastly, is a lighter, more floral skin-contact white by one of those aforementioned Italian masters, Paolo Bea Santa Chiara 2017. retail: $123 retail: $ Double Plus Orange (6-pack): This is the perfect 6-pack for those who know they enjoy this style of wine, and want a bit of a discount on the next level bottles, from world-class producers. This pack begins with our unpronounceable Georgian friend, Bosman Fides ’17, Bosman PetNat ’20, Bea Santa Chiara ’17 from above, plus another slightly dry, funkier, more tart Bea wine, Paolo Bea Lapideus 2017, and the flagship wine of Josko Gravner, the granddaddy of the orange wine movement, Josko Gravner Ribolla 2011. sale: $219 retail: $ (!) Click here for hidden sale page (!) ** This week only, as supplies last! ** Cheers, Jack |
718.643.2250
info@freerangebrooklyn.com
