Black-owned wine store features exotic wines from around the world
SAYVILLE, New York -- Down The Rabbit Hole Wine Boutique has been a staple in the Sayville community since 2007.
The current owner, Jessica Green, who originally went to school for nursing, soon found her passion for wine and decided to stick with it.
She grew up on the east end of Long Island and eventually worked her way up from the tasting room to assisting in the vineyard, and then eventually purchased Down The Rabbit Hole in 2017.
Green is the boutiques third shop owner and enjoys selecting each bottle she displays in her shop. She wants to make the wine buying experience as comfortable as she can for customers wanting to broaden their palates with a wine they have never tried before.
The storefront is the size of an actual alleyway totaling to only 100 square feet, but this does not stop Green from highlighting the handpicked wines from vineyards all across the globe.
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Even though wine and liquor stores were listed as an essential business during the pandemic, since Green's shop is so small she decided to wait and only offer curbside pick-up.
However, now that Long Island is currently in phase three of reopening; Green has reopened the shop for wine enthusiasts to finally come through her doors again and see what bottles she has on display.
"Not only getting the message that these wines are good for the community or the environment," said Green. "It's also important with biodynamic wines it's more of a culture, a community of working with different races and having different races really on your team."
Green does not know many Black wine shop owners like herself, but she is looking forward to connecting with more wineries on Long Island and beyond after the coronavirus pandemic has long passed.
Even though the last couple of months have been tough, Green is excited to offer more unique tastings and guide each customer to find the perfect wine to take home.
"I think quarantine gave a lot of people the opportunity to try something different with wine and be able to experiment," said Green. "My goal is to have everyone and anyone walking out feeling confident about their selection and confident about reordering that certain grape at a restaurant or at a vineyard."
My typical wine palate tends to be on the sweeter side and I rarely ever change brands once I found one I like. However, Green brought me out of my comfort zone by offering me a Moscato called "Sweet Justice" by Shinas Estate in Australia.
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Interestingly enough, she even gave me the back-story behind the wine explaining to me that a standard night court judge owns this winery hence the name of the wine. The Moscato was exactly up my alley when it comes to white; it tasted of sweet melon fruit and dried apricots and could not get enough of it.
I cannot wait for my next visit to Green's shop to find out what other wines from around the world I can try and what stories are waiting to be shared.
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