Stew’s Wines
June 18, 2008
At the grand opening last week of Stew Leonard’s Wines just off Route 3 in Clifton, there was a large crowd, local cops directing parking lot traffic, and a security staff worthy of a rock concert.
Part of the attraction was a guest appearance by Sopranos star Lorraine Bracco, who autographed bottles of wine from her vineyard. You can watch the video on www.njmyway.com.
Part of it, too, was the free wine and food that kept customers happy in other parts of the store.
And part was the Stew Leonard legacy. The family-owned grocery chain (three stores in Connecticut, another in Yonkers) has a near cult following for its cheerful mega-stores with fresh produce and a huge selection of cheese. They like you to bring the kids —there’s a barnyard animal petting zoo and employees costumed as Stew’s friendly cow mascot.
The New Jersey outlet is a wine shop and liquor store, not a grocer like the others. But like the others, this Stew boast a large collection of “hard to find” wines. It’s almost impossible to imagine any wine is hard to find in New Jersey, where vino superstores are growing as fast as grapes on the vine.
No question, New Jersey loves wine. We’re told Bracco was on track to sell a thousand bottles of her Italian wines during her three hour autograph session. This fictional mob shrink-turned-wine mogul signed three bottles at a time, laughing and joking with fans.
If you haven’t heard of Stew Leonard’s before, you will probably get used to hearing about it now. Another wine store is due to open on Route 17 in Paramus next month. We have a feeling we’re in for one of those legendary grocery stores as well; Stew is out to make a name for himself on this side of the Hudson.
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