Behind the Scenes at a Prime Cru Wine Sale
I am going on 6 years of holding Prime Cru wine sales. For those of you that don’t know what a wine sale is, it is the most awesome-est wine event in San Diego. The very first Prime Cru wine sale took place in March of 2009, during the financial downturn. One would have never known that our country was facing a financial crisis if they had walked into Island Prime that afternoon. There were people buying cases upon cases of 1997 Napa Cabs I had stored away for the past 10 years. To this day, the first wine sale was the most profitable where we sold $33,000 of wine in 2 hours. That is insane! Since the first sale, our Prime Cru members have asked for more. Being the softy that I am, I started hosting wine sales 3-4 times a year.
Since 2009, I’ve hosted wine sales at Bo Beau in Ocean Beach and Vintana in Escondido. The amount of time and work it goes into putting them together is mind-boggling. We clear out the restaurant’s dining room and load it with wines from our many properties just for a 2 hour wine sale. In the weeks ahead of time, I become a mule running cases of wine from one restaurant to another. I create spreadsheets upon spreadsheets all the time making sure pricing and inventories are correct. Each wine is inventoried, cataloged for the sale and priced below regular retail pricing. We take a loss on some wines just to clear out our excess inventory. The result is screaming deals for our members.
Today, I wanted you to see what goes on at one of our Prime Cru wine sales. It is a great way to spend the afternoon. People will stop in, taste a few wines, do some shopping and eat next door at C-Level. The smart ones will take one of their purchases to the table and open it with complimentary corkage. It makes for a great day on the bay. We also hold the wines sales at Vintana Wine+Dine in Escondido. Vintana also has an outside patio where you can enjoy lunch and your newly purchased wine while sitting in the sun.
It is easy to become a member. Simply click on the Prime Cru link and fill out the form. You will learn about my upcoming wine sales and other wine events that I host around town. The best part of Prime Cru is that there is no charge and no commitment. Enjoy the video and I will see you at the next wine sale.
