Competition flies flag for indie retailers

A US retailer and writer have emerged victorious in a competition designed to support the world’s top independent wine merchants.

Chambers Street Wines in New York was judged the winning retailer after attracting no fewer than 13 different tributes from wine lovers, who were tasked by JancisRobinson.com with writing an article in praise of their favourite independent wine merchant.

Established in 2001 by David Lillie and Jamie Wolff, the retailer won plaudits for its close personal acquaintance both with producers and customers.

Of the 117 entries received from around the world, the winning writer was judged to be Marcy Waterfall for a “moving and amusing” account of Dedalus Wine, her local wine merchant in Burlington, Vermont.

Although the US dominated the prizes, the UK accounted for the largest volume of entries and English online retailer Private Cellar was named as runner up after attracting laudatory articles from 10 separate customers.

Set up in 2005 by former Corney & Barrow sales director Andrew Gordon, the Ely-based merchant sells a mixture of fine wine and “every day” offerings to its customer base, which reaches well beyond the UK as far as the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Chambers Street Wines’ sales manager Eben Lillie described the company as “honored and very proud” to win the competition. “I spent some time reading some of our customers’ writing and I have to say that I was literally moved (I might have even shed a tear)”, he remarked.

“I helped open Chambers Street with my father, David, and Jamie Wolff in 2001, and it’s been a big part of my life since then”, continued Lillie. “Meeting the growers, travelling, tasting wine and learning from my colleagues and our clientele… these have all been enriching experiences for me.”

As a result, he concluded, “Seeing that this store means so much more to our customers than just another retail shop… it’s pretty special. We have become a home for wine, and our customers have become friends. It’s a special place and I’m so glad to see that the folks who shop with us feel the way they do. It means we’re doing something right!”

The entries, which came in from countries including the US, UK, Argentina, Canada, France, Italy, Switzerland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Ireland, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia, were judged by the JancisRobinson.com team.

Commenting on the submissions, Jancis Robinson MW remarked: “All the accounts of independent wine merchants received, from whichever spot on the globe, were truly heart-warming. Clearly wine lovers have a very special relationship with their preferred retailers, and the retailers described really seemed to go the extra mile.”

The winning merchant receives two tickets to a Barolo Night hosted by JancisRobinson.com and lunch at wine-focused London restaurant The Quality Chop House.

Meanwhile the top writer receives a “personally dedicated” copy of Wine Grapes, an in-depth guide to the world’s 1,368 vine varieties, which was compiled by Jancis Robinson in tandem with fellow MW Julia Harding and grape geneticist José Vouillamoz.

To read the 38 entries which were selected for publication on JancisRobinson.com, click here.

the drinks business recently published its own focus on some of the UK’s most dynamic independent wine merchants to show what it takes to succeed in this tough but vibrant sector. Click here and here to view their profiles in our two-part online series.