When the ever-upbeat editor and content provider Griffin Cooper asked this week if I had suggestions of wine to pair with impending doom, I wanted to laugh and cry. That’s how it feels. I know that liquor stores, like grocery stores, are doing booming business, and thank goodness, as they are small, local businesses, too. But wineries can no longer do tastings or even serve glasses of wine. We’re all doing what we can: offering to bring bottles out to people’s cars so they don’t need to come in (though they can); shipping upon request; making deliveries to the stores that carry our wines; and remaining engaged with our customers on social media.
The pairing I recommend with urgency this week, this month, and for the foreseeable future, is LOCAL WINE. The desire to stock up at just one store is strong, for sure, but local wineries, breweries, distilleries, and cideries are clean places that have had fewer visitors and will do all they can to ensure your safety and satisfaction. At the Hudson-Chatham Winery on Rte 66 in Ghent, we are staying open our usual hours – Wednesday thru Sunday, noon to 5, with pick-up til 6 pm.
We are offering 10% off any purchases through March. Email us at info@hudsonchathamwinery.com and follow us on Facebook to stay updated. Oh, and back to Griffin’s pairing question. My first instinct was quantity over quality, but I’ve since re-thought that. How about a fresh Chardonnay or light and elegant Baco Noir? Made with grapes grown right here in the Hudson Valley. Cheers to that and to good health and to safety and to small blessings each and every day.