Tastings, News, and Events

I Have NEWS!!

The Holidays have arrived at Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits in Duanesburg, NY!

It’s Thanksgiving week! Around here that means we are gearing up for the holiday season, so I’d like to take a minute to share what’s going on in our neck of the woods:

We are OPEN Thanksgiving Day from 10AM- 1PM.

So if you have any last minute items you need to make your holiday special (or even just bearable), we’ve got you covered. Every other day from now until Christmas Eve we will be open regular hours. I’ll keep you posted on hours for that week as soon as I can– one step at a time, friends!

This Week’s Tasting

ecco-domani-pinot

Because Thanksgiving happens on Thursday, and because Black Friday is traditionally nothing special at liquor stores (everyone is too busy trying not to get trampled at Best Buy, I suppose), we’ll be hosting our weekly FREE tasting on Wednesday, and it will feature Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio (a classic pairing for a turkey dinner) and Pail Shop Vineyards Portrait of a Cooper Red Blend. Pail Shop is a local winery, and this is definitely my favorite wine in their portfolio.

We Now Have Gift Cards!

Welcome to the future. Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits now offers gift cards, in any denomination. They are reuseable, too. Pretty cool. Ask us for more details. If you have received a gift certificate prior to this that you haven’t redeemed yet, no worries; we still accept those too. 🙂

Last But Not Least

private-collection-vintage-20

We’re adding some great new products just in time for the holidays. Gift sets, hard-to-find items, free promotional ware, complimentary gift wrap, stocking stuffers, and custom gift baskets are available. You can also shop our private collection for some of our favorite special wines and spirits.

From all of us, have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

 

Helderberg Meadworks Tasting at Vintage 20!

Join us for a free tasting, featuring the best mead available anywhere, made right here in Duanesburg!

We’re happy to welcome Helderberg Meadworks back from 4PM to 7PM, 11/16/18.

Ah, mead season. AKA late fall, when it’s not quite winter and I haven’t committed to having my heat on full blast yet and I need a drink made of sturdier stuff. I’m not even a little bit exaggerating when I tell you that their mead is one of my favorite things in my entire store. It’s local (sourced, crafted, and aged right here), traditionally made, DELICIOUS, and the artwork is pretty cool too. Did I mention it’s delicious?

If you’re already familiar with Helderberg Meadworks, you’ll be happy to know that we’ve got their NEW Apple Mead in stock!

If you’re new to mead, well, get down here and check it out! Friday 11/16 from 4PM to 7PM. We’ll see you there 🙂

Short and sweet (just like me) this week, because I’m on my way out the door! Errands beckon. Cheers!

Pristine Vodka Tasting at Vintage 20!

Vintage 20 welcomes Pristine Vodka for a free tasting on Friday 11/2/18 4 to 7 pm.

Guess who’s back? Back again? Pristine’s Back. Tell a friend!

^^Tell me you also sang that. Or maybe it was just me, summoning Slim Shady (but why, even?).

Pristine Vodka - Liquor Stores

We’re happy to have Pristine Vodka back in the house this Friday, November 2nd for a free tasting event from 4 PM- 7 PM. Pristine is a great vodka, because it has that “Top Shelf” look and taste, but costs about the same as a middle-of-the-road vodka. Any time you get more bang for your buck, I am a fan.

I also love that Pristine is a local import. So that means you are getting high quality, authentic Ukrainian vodka, imported into beautiful Voorheesville New York, by a person who KNOWS HIS VODKA (that’s Alex, by the way. And he is a blast to talk to. I would say that he is fully 50% of the reason I am looking forward to this tasting). So come, be our guest, talk his ear off, try some Pristine Vodka. It’s bound to be a great time!

Cheers.

Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Liqueur

Vintage 20 will host a FREE tasting event featuring Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Liqueur on Friday 10/26/18, 4-7 PM.

Having a Halloween Party this weekend?

I mean, I’m not. But I still really enjoy Halloween. Costumes, Jack-o-lanterns, the “candy-tax” that all parents take and never name (I skim at least 2 Reese’s PB Cups right off the top), and of course, FALL THEMED BEVERAGES!!!!

::tosses leaves into the air with joy::

I’m not just talking about PSL’s (that’s Pumpkin Spice Lattes, for the uninitiated). In my world, we have hard cider, apple brandy and pumpkin liqueur. Oh, my! So for this blustery week before Halloween, we’ll be cracking open some Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Liqueur to get in the spirit! This stuff is sooooo so so good, even just poured over some ice in a rocks glass. However, it’s also an ingredient in one of my favorite cocktails:

The Pumpkin Pie Martini!

pumpkintiniStart with a martini glass, rimmed with a mixture of sugar and pumpkin pie spice.

Then in a blender:

  1. a healthy scoop of vanilla ice cream
  2. 1 1/2 oz of Smirnoff Vanilla vodka
  3. 3 oz Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Liqueur

Blend away! Pour into your martini glass, then top with whipped cream. Add a cinnamon stick or sprinkle some additional pumpkin pie spice for garnish. And watch yourself, because these WILL creep up on you!

This Friday

10/26, we will have Fulton’s Harvest Pumpkin Pie Liqueur open for you to try from 4:00pm- 7:00pm. And probably after then, too. You are DEFINITELY going to want to take this one home with you, even if it’s just for a Halloween party of one.

Cheers!

Something Wicked This Way Comes: Bogle Phantom Red

Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits will host a FREE tasting, featuring Bogle Phantom Red on Friday 10/19/18 from 4PM to 7PM.

Autumn is a great time of year to be a liquor store owner.

For one thing: you gear up to actually make money! No more crying into your coffee because you can’t feed the kids wine for dinner– the HOLIDAYS are coming! (I’m mostly kidding about this. Mostly.)

Reason Two: Seasonal releases. The fall sees a dramatic increase in limited release items that are usually very good and highly sought after. Interesting flavors abound, and you get a surge of wine blends aged in different kinds of casks.

bogle-phantomThere are other reasons, but for now let’s focus on reason number two, because it is the entire point my post. One of my all-time favorite seasonal release wines, Bogle Phantom Red, is in stock!! It’s deep, dark, and rich, with loads of spice and fruit flavors. A PERFECT wine to sip on those chilly fall evenings we’re finally getting.

And this year, they’ve jumped on the bandwagon with an “augmented reality” label. If you’re thinking to yourself, what in the Fred Flintstone is THAT? well, you’re probably not alone.

Augmented reality, commonly referred to as “AR”, uses the existing environment to overlay digital information on an image of something being viewed through a device, such as a smartphone or an iPad.

So, Bogle has an app that you can download which will overlay movement and images over an existing item viewed through your phone’s camera, like so:

Sorry I am evidently terrible at converting videos. And does anyone else get a “Stranger Things” vibe from that vine?? Half spooky, half silly, completely entertaining and mildly creepy, this app is sure to be a crowd-pleaser at your Halloween shindig. And hey, so’s the wine!

 

Wanna try before you buy?

That’s why I post! Because we love you, we will have Bogle Phantom open this Friday, October 19th from 4PM- 7PM. After 7 I cannot promise that I won’t finish the rest. We’ll also be offering 10% off this product during our tasting event. Hope to see you there. Cheers, friends!

Bailey’s Almande Almond Milk Liqueur Tasting

What in tarnation is Bailey’s Almonde? It’s Bailey’s Irish Cream made with almond milk. So it’s dairy free. It’s gluten free. AND it’s quite delicious.

Do you ever feel like your life is a juggling act and you’re trying to keep too many plates in the air, and someone keeps removing one mid-juggle, lighting it on fire, and then handing it back to you? Just me?

Well, you know what they say, life is what happens while you’re busy making plans. So I’m just going to keep planning super awesome tasting events featuring products I love, that I can’t even attend because “something came up.” You guessed it, that’s what’s going on this week.

So here is this week’s tasting event, and I’m sad because I probably won’t be there.

Friday, October 12th from 4:00 pm- 7:00 pm we’ll have Bailey’s Almande available to try.

What in tarnation is Bailey’s Almonde? It’s Bailey’s Irish Cream made with almond milk. So it’s dairy free. It’s gluten free. AND it’s quite delicious.

If you’ve tried almond milk in the past and have found it lacking (I hear you), rest assured that while Bailey’s Almande does NOT taste like regular Bailey’s, it IS tasty. The almond flavor kinda steals the show, but there are also notes of caramel, and that pleasant whiskey burn. I like it on the rocks, but you could definitely make a pretty solid mixed drink with this. And with the weather being what it is, you could make either a wintery mix or a summery concoction with this and be happy. There you go, I’ve shored up your weekend plans for you.

Cheers!

Ho-Ho-Hold Your Horses!!

Evan Williams Eggnog is in stock at Vintage 20.

So yesterday I went to K-Mart

(yes, I live within driving distance of an actual, real-live K-Mart) to buy my kid diapers, and you know what I saw? Christmas. My god, it was Christmas everywhere. And not just like, cards and stuff, but full on rotating, singing, fake-snow clotted Balsam-branched nightmares.

The curse of retail: The Christmas Creep.

 

christmas-creep
You wait your turn, old man.

Even us fun-loving, inherently reasonable, liquor store folk must fall victim to the unforgiving march of the Christmas Creep. I don’t even have a Halloween costume yet. I wore shorts and sandals less than a week ago!!! And yet, I must hang my head in shame as I tell you, we set up this display yesterday:

evan williams eggnog
I still want to trick or treat, dammit.

Yep. Eggnog.

Don’t get me wrong– Evan Williams ready-to-serve Eggnog is A-MAZING. It’s probably the best eggnog out there, spiked or otherwise (Stewart’s is a close second). But come on. I haven’t even conned my children out of their Halloween Reese’s yet. Have some compassion for the fall festivities.

But also, get the Nog. Get it before it’s gone. Every liquor store I have ever worked in has run out well before Christmas, and I’ve been doing this for 15 years (holy crap!). So there’s that.

P.S. I don’t know what we’re tasting this week, but I promise it isn’t eggnog. 😉

Fall Into Some Stellar Chardonnay

Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits hosts a FREE tasting, featuring Ravanal Gran Reserva Chardonnay this Friday 9/28/18.

It’s Fall, Ya’ll!

On this damp, kinda dreary day, I’m having a hard time remembering why Fall is my favorite season. Hopefully crisp breezes, changing leaves, and the smell of wood smoke are just around the corner. While we wait, I’ll share with you a STELLAR buy:

Ravanal Gran Reserva Chardonnayravanal-gran-reserva-chardonnay

Maybe it just caught me on the right day, but holy hell! This is probably the best, uncharacteristic Chardonnay I’ve had in AGES.

What I mean by “uncharacteristic”: This is not yo’ mama’s over-oaked, fuzzy-tongued, buttery Chardonnay (by the way, I HATE those. I know they are popular and all, but BLECH). This one’s got some actual character. As in, from the grapes, and not just from the wine-making process.

goth-phase
I wonder if Chardonnay is going through it’s “emo” phase.

Here is my totally lame analogy: Chardonnay’s are like middle schoolers. In trying to figure out how who they are, they take on the characteristics of the environments they are exposed to more than they express what is naturally inside of them. So since oak-laden Chardonnay ala California sells well, a lot of wine-makers are happy to help you pour a glass of wood chips by over-oaking it.

Still with me? Good! The Ravanal Gran Reserva Chardonnay is different! A light, almost refreshing Chardonnay that’s easy to drink, with notes of coconut and tropical fruits (really!). YUM. I’d be just as likely to pair this one with dessert as I would with dinner.

And here’s the kicker…

I bought it on a close-out deal. So it is a FANTASTICALLY priced wine, and when it’s gone, it’s gone! In fact…it’s not even here yet. And I’m kinda flying by the seat of my pants, hoping it will arrive before this week’s tasting so I can share it with you (that’s my plan, anyway).

Stop by this Friday, September 28th, so I can put my money where my mouth is! Our tasting of Ravanal Gran Reserva Chardonnay happens from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM, is FREE to try, and as always we will offer you 10% off the featured wine if you purchase it during our tasting event.

Hope to see you there!

Saint Lawrence Spirits Tasting

Vintage 20 welcomes Saint Lawrence Spirits on Friday 9/21 from 4pm-7pm for a FREE tasting event.

We LOVE New York

I am always excited to share when we’ve picked up a great new local product. You may not think of the Saint Lawrence River as super local, but it’s New York State, and Saint Lawrence Spirits uses all that New York and the Saint Lawrence River have to offer to create their stellar spirits!

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, about this distillery has local roots. They are the first and only distillery using purified water from the Saint Lawrence River. All of the corn, grain, and botanicals come from their own family-owned properties, or other nearby areas in upstate New York.

Come taste the difference at our FREE tasting event this Friday, September 21st from 4:00pm- 7:00pm. We’ll have:

Anchored American Gin

Captain’s Flask Bourbon Whiskey

Rye Knot Rye Whiskey

and Empire Cream— a Bourbon Cream made with their Ryesing Tide Whiskey and Upstate Cream Liqueur. I assure you, this is heaven in a bottle.

More About Saint Lawrence Spirits

From their website: “Saint Lawrence Spirits is a family owned and operated farm-based distillery. We are passionate about providing quality small batch craft spirits. Craft Spirits are distilled on-site, including Vodka, Gin, Moonshine & Absinthe, along with Whiskey and Bourbon currently aging in American Oak Barrels! We are the first distillery to used purified Saint Lawrence River Water to proof down all of our spirits, providing The Spirit Of The River In Every BottleÂŽ. Spirit Tastings available in our seasonal tasting room or inside Saint Lawrence Spirits Château!”

Saint Lawrence Chateau
My. GOD.

Tasting Room. Chateau. Ahhhhh. It sounds and looks incredible. I strongly recommend visiting. But maybe don’t tell me about it if you do, because I have neither the time nor the money to go anywhere right now and it’ll just make me sad. 😉

Hope to see you Friday, though. Cheers, friends!

Cavicchioli Lambrusco. ‘Cause Mama needs a DRANK

Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits is hosting a FREE tasting on Friday 9/14/18 from 4PM-7PM featuring Cavicchioi Lambrusco.

cavicchioli-lambrusco
That’s not coffee.

Guys, it’s only Wednesday, and school has only been in session for a week. My brand new kindergartner is adjusting to real-deal public school, and so am I. It’s going pretty well really, and although she’s come home with a few choice words from the bus, I’m pretty sure she already knew them. So that’s a plus.

But for whatever reason, it’s been a rough week-or-so around these parts. So for this week’s tasting, I wanted something food-friendly, easy-drinking, and CHEAP. I think I knocked it out of the park with Cavicchioli Lambrusco. Effervescent and lightly sweet, this table wine goes great with barbeque, take out, or any quick throw-together meal you can think of. It’s great cold, so it works well on those September days that you think are going to be chilly, but then find yourself sweating through by the time you get home.

And parents, you deserve it. Not in the “My kids are driving me to drink meme” sort of way, but in the “it’s nice to relax with a glass of wine at the end of a stressful day” sort of way. Don’t let anyone take that away from you!

cavicchioli lambrusco tastingSo stop by at the same Bat time, same Bat channel: Vintage 20 Wine and Spirits, Friday 9/14/18, 4PM to 7PM. We’ll pour you a sample and if you likey, you’ll receive 10% off your purchase of Cavicchioli Lambrusco during the tasting event. If you don’t like it…have a dumdum. Free for kids of all ages. 🙂

Hope to see you Friday. Cheers!

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