CleverRoot

8 2 | t h e c l e v e r r o o t This section is the brainchild of wine retail veteran Phil Markert, Sales Manager for Liquor for the Southern California division of Albert- sons, Vons and Pavilions—all part of the Boise, Idaho-based Albertsons Companies. Markert has been in the business for 35 years, and this project is worthy of an award. Markert has created a wine shop within the store that can most assuredly be referred to as a boutique. "The foundation for this concept came from what I saw in the best restaurants," Markert explains. "I would take notice of what they were pouring by the glass and make sure I stocked those wines in our stores located nearby." Jack Brennan, Executive Vice President of Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits of Califor- nia, was actually the person who urged me to visit Markert in person. "You have to see it for yourself." He further pointed out, "Phil has had this vision for over 20 years. This grocery store steps outside the normal boundaries and can compete with any fine wine shop in the U.S." Markert's correlation between restaurant and retail was geared to make his custom- ers happy: If they like the wines they drink when they're out, why not make those bottles available to purchase to drink at home? "It's all about consumer-driven strategy," he adds, as he escorts me through a paradise of wine. "Plus, we don't mark up the wines as much as the restaurants tend to do." A judge at the prestigious San Francisco International Wine Competition, run by Clever Root/Somm Journal Editor-in-Chief Anthony Dias Blue, Markert knows what it's like to taste 600 wines over a three-day period. "The competition is a wonderful opportunity for me to taste the world," he claims. Markert also has his fingers on the pulse of what's trending. Whether it's Albariño from Spain GROCERS TO WATCH Phil Markert with Meridith May, Publisher/Editorial Director of The Clever Root. Here, they're discussing the burgeoning category of artisan mixers.

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