TW Dallas had Spottswoode 2010 last week at $135 - all 3 locations had at least a couple of bottles each, we ended up with 9 bottles at that price.
I think most people are too hard on them…I stumble on deals like this often.
Yes you have to know what you want, and what the market for it is, but its not the devil.
I just ignore the sales people and browse.
I can say once in a while they do have someone who knows their stuff. In my local store the woman who teaches the wine classes is a decent reference. She has turned me onto more than one daily drinker that I would never have tried without her.
I don’t hate on TW. I haven’t bought wine from them in years but buy beer and spirits there regularly. They’re one of the few places that gets Pliny in regularly and I’ve purchased Pappy from them the last couple of years. No complaints here.
You have bought Champagne, and with a coupon there are often good deals to be had.
TW is awesome because:
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Cheapest prices on lower-end cellar defenders like Roederer Estate, Domain Carneros sparkling wine. I get it for about 18-19 a bottle, which is literally $10 cheaper than my grocer.
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Business model is to sell company-branded plonk at high margins and volume. High volume of high margin sales allows TW to sell good wine at lower prices. That offset is fine by me, as I’m a .001% likelihood to drop $30 on a TW branded bottle.
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Their staff is neither solicitous nor knowledgeable which means I can go about my business without interference, which I prefer. It also means that a very knowledgeable and trustworthy chap won’t convince me to buy more expensive wines I was not planning to get. I save cash that way, and would use a different retailer to explore higher-end wines.
I have bought a bunch of stuff there lately. there was a 15% mix and match deal that made most of the wines I bought there the cheapest I could find online. They also got a lot of good price on moderately priced wines (~50$). Good place for australian, Napa big sellers (Phelps, Dominus, etc) and on some bordeaux (usually off vintages).
I like the fact that when I go there nobody is trying to pressure sale me anything, unlike other stores.
Cheers,
JF
The other day I had a meeting with a client in the South Bay (In SoCal)
As I’m driving back up Hawthorne Blvd. to catch the Fwy to get home I think to myself “OH! There’s a TW&M right here… I’ll stop in and see if they have any gems on the shelf.”
I walk EVERY wine aisle up and down with my basket. Picked up a few bottles of wines I’ve been wanting to try, some that I’ve had and they have them back in stock, probably because they found some stragglers inside of mixed cases in the back (love it when this happens, by the way).
I’m approached by a clerk…
he asks, “Can I help you find anything?”
me: “Nope, I’m fine… Thanks”
Him: “We have some great gems on these shelves and some up and commers too!”
Me: “Thanks, but I’m good”
his reply: “Like this wine ‘CULT’, This is excellent!”
I cringe and pause… and say disgustingly, “Really? You’re gonna try and peddle that stack to the ceiling Total Wine Special on me? No. I said no thank you.”
He does not relent… and states: “This is a real up and comer, a terrific wine!”
I reply, “Dude, That stuff is dogsh!t… you know it is. I realize they tell you to push it, but it’s terrible and I wouldn’t pour that at my house on a Tuesday evening with wine newbies that can’t tell two buck chuck from a first growth Bordeaux. Push that dogsh!t on someone else, not me”.
he just looks at me for a bit and says quite quickly, “Oh, you really know your wine. You drink high end wines? I’m sorry. I’ll leave you to shop. Sorry I bothered you.”
I know. I’m a jerk. I tried to say no several times though before the assh0le in me just rolled out.
I rarely buy wine at brick-and-mortar stores these days. But when I do, it’s either Vin (f/k/a Wine Discount Center) or Howard’s. Binny’s feels too impersonal, which I’d accept if their prices were lower.
You should have said ‘I’m a member of Wine Berserkers! I demand respect!’
The twice-a-year 15%-off sale at Binny’s helps. Howard’s pricing on identical items is usually (always?) much higher than Binny’s or Vin’s.
Joel,
Maybe I’m getting cranky as I get older. But I think you did the right thing. You tried to be polite and then you were just direct. Not rude or an assh**e, just direct. I think we as a society have lost that to some degree…I digress LOL.
Part of customer service is knowing when to STFU.
Tip for everyone. Be a 30 year old chinese guy in at shirt and jeans. You’ll never worry about having to deal with salespeople as they just ignore you the whole time you’re there! 
Really? Even now? They don’t think you’re there to buy the whole store?
Joel W. wrote:
he asks, “Can I help you find anything?”
me: “Nope, I’m fine… Thanks”
Him: “We have some great gems on these shelves and some up and commers too!”
Me: “Thanks, but I’m good”
his reply: “Like this wine ‘CULT’, This is excellent!”
I cringe and pause… and say disgustingly, “Really? You’re gonna try and peddle that stack to the ceiling Total Wine Special on me? No. I said no thank you.”
He does not relent… and states: “This is a real up and comer, a terrific wine!”
I reply, “Dude, That stuff is dogsh!t… you know it is. I realize they tell you to push it, but it’s terrible and I wouldn’t pour that at my house on a Tuesday evening with wine newbies that can’t tell two buck chuck from a first growth Bordeaux. Push that dogsh!t on someone else, not me”.
There was just a banner ad for that stuff on this site…
Yup, is that indicative of their general taste?
Hard to argue with “Dude, That stuff is dogsh!t… you know it is. I realize they tell you to push it, but it’s terrible and I wouldn’t pour that at my house on a Tuesday evening with wine newbies that can’t tell two buck chuck from a first growth Bordeaux. Push that dogsh!t on someone else, not me”.
Arnold always buys some piece of jewelry to bring back as a present for his mom before visiting and I usually get dragged along. The salesperson always approaches me to ask “may I help you?” and ignores him. Annoys the heck out of me. He claims it doesn’t bother him it all.
see, i’m not the only one. We basically get ignored. Not a big deal, used to it by now. Go into a car dealership, ignored until we stand around waiting like we need help. Go to nordstroms ignored. Last week my wife was just walking around the shoe section with two shoes in her hand. Quite a few workers milling around. I went and grabbed someone to get a size for her.
Charlie,
All you have to do is bring me along and you’ll get lots of attention, whether you want it or not. I only charge a small fee which you can pay with wine. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}