Our Warehouse Sale is coming up this week: Friday and Saturday ONLY, July 20 and 21. We've wrapped up our tastings and we're excited about the lineup! Don't forget that the sale starts early on Friday morning and only lasts until Saturday at 5 PM. Today's the day to start making room in the basement, the closets and the wine cellar for the cases you'll be bringing home.

 

As always, if you are going to be out of town, or just can't stand the thought of crowds in summertime, we can do the shopping for you. Just call our Wine Department and ask for someone to be your Surrogate Shopper. Here's how it works: tell them the types of wines you like, how much you'd like to pay, and how many bottles or cases you'd like. We'll do the rest. We'll bill the order to you and have it ready the following week for you to pick up. While you won't get a chance to personally taste the wines before buying, you will not miss out, and you may still alter your purchase after the sale (just in case we liked something but you don't!). We need to get all orders in by the end of the day this Wednesday, July 18th. That'll give us plenty of time to make sure you get what you want. We look forward to hearing from you or seeing you in person at the Warehouse Sale!

The aroma reminds me of hibiscus and papaya fruit. Tasted straight, One Barrel is quite smooth without a "bite" to it. The memory of the molasses in the background makes the rum mix well with juices and colas, which are the most common mixers for rum drinks. The hint of molasses seems to "complete" the flavor of the mixers, actually improving the taste when compared to the mixer alone. The entry is silky smooth and sweet butterscotch with a roasted coconut and viscous oily body followed by apple cinnamon spice in the finish. Toffee and toasted cashew flavors in the One Barrel profile enhances the already delightful taste. People who try One Barrel rum usually end up being One Barrel drinkers, no matter how they felt about rum before. This is a truly magical spirit. $19.95 [Mui Baltrunas]

Stretching from the Caspian Sea in the West to the Himalayas and China in the East, the plentiful organic wheat grown in the region, coupled with spring water from the Himalayan foothills, apparently make Kazakhstan an ideal location for vodka production. Snow Queen is uniquely clean and possessed of a freshness that is usually descibed only with a smile. Distilling the vodka five times helps to make Snow Queen Vodka one of the smoothest vodkas around and a favorite of England's Royal Family. $35.97 [Mui Baltrunas]

Instead of going with Corona, Landshark Lager is the new top brew of Jimmy Buffett. It's not hard to see why. The bottle is emblazoned with shark fins and bears a casual-looking font that it is easy to associate with the beach and Buffett's "laid-back vibe." The self-described "original island lager" looks to be a microbrew, and because the bottles declare that the beer was made by the Margaritaville Brewing Co., consumers have little reason to doubt their microbrew assumption. The beer, however, is made by Anheuser-Busch.

 

Light, crisp and refreshing, the golden beer in the clear glass bottle is a delightful summertime drink. Landshark first invites the drinker in with a fruity nose of apples or pear in hay. The body is light and slender but the taste is surprisingly full. This beer will cut through the driest mouth in summer. $9.79 [Mui Baltrunas]

New Belgium Founder Jeff Lebesch, an avid tri-athlete and outdoorsman inspired Skinny Dip. His quest: to create a thirst-quenching beer to be enjoyed after athletic activities (or sweltering summer days) that could boast a refreshing experience without the typical uninspired taste of "light" beers. Brewmaster Peter Bouckaert responded with a beer where cascade hops frolic with kaffir lime and ample malt to create a bright, citrusy nose that's as crisp as chilling in a mountain pond. Skinny Dip is gathering acclaim for achieving maximum taste with minimum guilt. Men's Health magazine placed it in the winner's circle for "The Most Satisfying Beers for Under 140 Calories," saying, "A good beer for kicking back after a long day of hard work."

 

New Belgium's Skinny Dip is a full-bodied, figure-friendly beer perfect for the lightly attired summer months. As a unique addition to New Belgium's seasonal lineup, Skinny Dip will only be available through August and it can be found at Schaefer's. $8.97 (Mui Baltrunas)

New Belgium Brewery produces a Belgium wit that is outstanding. Belgian wits are originally from Belgium, of course, and Hoegaarden is the beer that invented the style but now in America, there are breweries that have developed a style of wit which rivals and even surpasses the Belgium natives. Such a one is Mothership Wit that elevates the zesty Wit or White beers of Belgium with wheat malt, coriander and orange peel spicing - all of which are organically grown. The alluring taste is the result of gravitational balance of citrus and sour flavors held in suspension by a bright burst of carbonation. "Mothership", long the nickname of New Belgium's brewing facility in Fort Collins, Colorado, has grown to encompass the brewery's sustainable approach to doing business. $8.97 [Mui Baltrunas]

That's all for this week. If we may be of any further service, please stop by our store at 9965 Gross Point Road in Skokie (for directions, click here), visit our website at http://www.schaefers.com, give us a call at 847-677-WINE (9463), 800-833-WINE (9463), or click here to contact us.