Consuming Stories
Wine, chocolate and coffee are very personable experiences
Tell me a story.
To me, that’s a huge part of what makes wine special. We drink with our eyes, nose, and mouth, but many of us also drink with our minds.
I can picture the vines throughout the season as they transition from barren to burgeoning to redolent with fruit. I think of the passionate winemakers I have met, often working the family farm with the help of parents, spouses and kids. None of them have been laid-back, to say the least. The energy and focus they infuse into their wines is an important component of the complexity and depth that the best wines bring to the table.
The most effective wine salespeople from the distributers we work with are storytellers. I look forward to their visits, not just for the opportunity to taste wine, but to hear what is exciting them at the moment. What stories make their eyes light up as they pour a glass? Have they been to the region or perhaps met the winemaker?
One recent afternoon, we had three wine reps in our shop at the same time by chance and it was a blast. They know and respect each other and were having just as much fun as we were trying each other’s wines and sharing the stories. I marvel at their abilities to memorize details and knowledge.
When you fall in love with wine, it seems you fall hard.
I have had the luck of getting to work with distillers, winemakers, chocolatiers, and coffee roasters, in particular, who have the fervor of novitiates. In each case, the terroir, the climate, the varietals and the farmers all play a role in the story. Then there is the imagination of the person that takes raw material and refines it into a work of art, whether it’s a beautiful glass of wine, divine truffle, or life-affirming cup of joe.
Before opening our wine shop, I had a career first as a journalist and then in public relations and marketing. One of my favorite consulting experiences was working with an extraordinary chocolatier, Gail Ambrosius. Gail changed careers in her forties from mapmaking to crafting exquisite single-origin dark chocolate truffles.
She hired me to do public relations and write copy for her packaging and website, which led to one of the most memorable days of my life. I sat down with Gail and tasted around two dozen truffles with her one afternoon. I was writing flavor descriptions and the person who could give me the best insight was Gail herself.
Unlike me, Gail is skinny as a rail and the positive energy practically bounces off her. She would cut each truffle in half as we went through the assortment, hand me one half, and pop the other half in her mouth, eyes widening. The phrase I heard just about every time? “Ooh, this is one of my favorites …” Then she would tell me about how the flavor had come to her in a dream or some memory that sparked an idea. She would talk about where the beans came from and the farmers she had met on her travels. The tea she found to enhance the blueberry flavor. The cherries from Door County, Wisconsin. And so it went. Chocolate has never tasted as good before or since.
I will say after eating the equivalent of a dozen dark chocolate truffles in one sitting that my digestive system was less inspired. Unlike wine, tasting and spitting chocolate didn’t seem like an option. Not that I wanted to at the time, I have to admit.
About three years ago, a couple came into our shop after the downtown farmer’s market and asked about selling their coffee beans in our shop. It soon became apparent that Ryan Rouse and Sheryl Rosa of Nordskov Coffee had that fervor, too. You could taste it. In just a few years, they have grown their business and now have partnerships with restaurants, breweries, and shops around the region. They have a devoted following and when they do pop-ups at our shop in the winter the place is jammed.
Like Gail, when we first met them they brought in their products for us to taste (we taste everything we carry before it goes on the shelves). They, too, had that fire in their eyes as they talked about how they selected and roasted coffee. It was like being plugged into a light socket. It was, and is, delightful.
My digestive system, however, had a similar reaction to trying a lot of coffees.
We recently visited their new facility for making cold brew in larger batches and providing education on brewing a perfect cup at home. Like Gail, they remain committed to controlling their business growth to ensure they keep a hand in every aspect of production. They, like Gail, understand that to their customers the brand and the people behind it are intrinsically entwined.
When I go into the grocery store, I’m surrounded by big brands selling the very same things we sell at Lark Market. Most of them are serviceable to good. Too often, they’re pumped full of preservatives to extend shelf life and chemicals to stoke desire for that next bite. I’m lucky to have had the privilege of tasting the difference between the passion of small makers and grocery-store brands. I also appreciate that it’s an experience that often comes with a higher price tag. But for many who stop into our shop, price isn’t the foremost issue. It’s exposure. Many people simply don’t know what they’re missing. One of the best parts of my job is sharing a great bottle that’s a good value from a winery they’re never heard of and having them come through my door again, looking for the next discovery.
Once you get addicted to consuming stories, faceless becomes tasteless.
Great article Joan! ♥️
We loved your article and have talked about many of the things you wrote about. The passion is one of the reasons we enjoy having wine tasting at Lark Market and the wine club. We were passionate about our careers and recognize that quality in others. Thank you for all you have done to expand our knowledge and palate!