Friday, June 10, 2011

Something New: A Few of My Favorite Places: Cork & Cracker

I have decided to start something new here on the blog and introduce you to some of my favorite local places that are food and drink-related, but aren’t restaurants.  Locally owned places you would actually find me in on a regular basis. These aren’t reviews—these are places I really like.  But I want to try and support other local places here on the blog by giving them a little love and also get suggestions for some of your favorite places or products that are Indy specialties. (Don’t worry; these features will be in addition to all the regular restaurant reviews).  Feel free to let me know what you think of the idea too!
My first featured place is my all time favorite wine shop, Cork and Cracker.  This place has a lot of things going for it---first, it is pretty close to my house (it’s in Broad Ripple), second, they mainly stock wines that are under $15 a bottle, and finally, the people who own it are really nice.  They have become good friends of ours actually, but we got to know them solely because of shopping in the store.  It isn’t some massive chain; it is literally a “mom and pop” operation. 
They pride themselves on carrying “non-grocery store” wines, and do a great job carrying lots of interesting things from all over the world.  Honestly, most of my favorite wines come from Europe, and they have a nice wide variety of European choices.  They have the wines divided up by different taste profiles (I find myself in the “citrus” section repeatedly) and often have special close outs that are less than $10.  Plus, if you buy 6 bottles, you get 5% off, and if you buy a case (I always do—you can never have too much wine, right?), you get 10% off.  They do also carry more expensive wines (they’re on the walls) if you are looking for a treat too.
I was actually just in there yesterday buying a case of wine and noticed they are celebrating their 5th anniversary this weekend and are having a party next door at Bark Tutor—free wine tasting of lots of things they carry in the shop (that’s right people, free wine!) and I was inspired to do this post. 
Don't forget to tell me what you think of this idea or recommend other local favorites of your own.

Here are the details on the tasting:
Saturday June 11th
@Bark Tutor (which is right next door to the shop)
2122 East 62nd Street
2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Cork and Cracker
2126 East 62nd Street
Indy   46220
317-722-WINE (9463)

4 comments:

  1. When my wife and I lived in Broad Ripple, this was our favorite place to buy wine. I loved going in there and just saying "So what are you guys really excited about right now?" They never steered me wrong. They knew my price range and my general taste preferences, so I always walked out with something perfect. It's also one of the few wine shops I know that arranges by flavor profile as opposed to region/country of origin. I loved that! If you can't tell, I really miss this place... Great idea for a post, and I'm glad that Cork & Cracker was your test subject.

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  2. Great idea! I've still never been in to Cork & Cracker - sad considering we drive by almost every day.

    And thanks for the add to your local blogroll :)

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  3. I love Cork & Cracker! Great wine knowledge!

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  4. I have never been there but can't wait to try it. Thanks for bringing it to my attention! I also perfer shops that organize wine based on type rather than region. I look forward to reading about your favorite Indy gems.

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