I get a lot of questions about what and where to buy wines. I quide them to Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant in Berkeley for stellar choices and great values, as well as for special wines for special occasions.

Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant is a 50-year-old wine shop that has brought many French wines, familiar and not, to the American table. For example, before Kermit brought imported the wines of Bandol, in Provençe they were mostly unknown to American wine drinkers. Domaine Tempier’s wines are in high demand nowadays thanks to Kermit and his personal connections. Their rosé is definitive.

I drink KLWM wines almost exclusively, not only because of my connection to the shop, but because it’s hard to reliably find delicious wine at reasonable prices; wine shopping is little more than a gamble. I don’t drink expensive wines myself (well, not very often, and only if someone else is buying). KLWM has so many terrifc values. Their shop is terrific and the staff is beyond knowledgeable and not condescending.

For onine shopping, KLWM’s website is exceptionally well done and easy to navigate; it’s full of interesting, detailed information about their wines, estates, and producers. KLWM has a relationship with every producer whose wine is sold in the store. It’s engaging, informative, fun-to-read monthly newsletter features stories about wines and vintners, and sometimes food. The wine notes and essays are informative, well-written wine, and for the geeks, even contain detailed technical pages. One can search categories to focus on your special taste by country of origin, wine type, price range, by vintage, by producer. I don’t spend much time shopping beyond the wines I can afford to regularly purchase and enjoy–wines under $30–though my curiosity leads me to browse further. KLWM also sell SPECTAULAR wines in higher-priced categories for more festive occasions–Burgundies, Chablis, Champagne, Barolo, many large format bottles, so don’t think shopping at KLWM is just about finding a bargain or is beyond your price range. You can choose to subscribe to one of their fantastic wine clubs, for which I wrote nearly 300 recipes over the years.

Salut!