Some people just GET IT… Period.

I’m spending some time in Florida, introducing Direct-to-Trade and some incredible wines to select accounts in Naples, Tampa and Orlando. I feel like I’m coming to a knife fight with a Bazooka! I’m taking the state by storm, armed with some incredible juice with incredible pedigrees; Lamborn Family vineyards, Jones Family Vineyards, Three Sticks and Olson Ogden just to name a few. In this rough economic climate, the smart people are looking for ways to survive, differentiation is one way, and Direct-to-Trade is the way to accomplish it.

This evening I walked into Absinthe Restaurant, a beautiful restaurant on the north side of Naples. It has an incredibly clean look without being sterile. The colors were soft, yet contrasting, white and a green you’d find after peeling a cucumber. I sat down at the bar and introduced myself to Armand, the owner/manager/bartender/husband/father which explains why he was attempting to wipe the exhaustion out of his eyes. We chatted for a quick minute as I explained the program and he responded with “Makes sense, let’s taste some wine.”

After tasting through the line up, he was blown away by the 2006 Three Sticks Chardonnay, and the 2006 Olson Ogden Pinot (which will soon be available exclusively in Naples at Absinthe, hence the differentiation) but now to the good part, I wanted to stay for a bite to eat. I asked him to pick two dishes, which is kind of a status quo for me, as I figure who better to ask than the people that eat the food on a regular basis, right?!

The first dish he brought was a julienned salad of apples and machengo cheese with copious amounts of fresh crab and a few caramelized onions… WOW!
Round two; two lamb sliders (which were more along the lines of mini burgers than sliders) with goat cheese and thinly sliced rounds of egg plant with a bit of arugula … Speechless. I live in the Napa Valley so I’m pretty spoiled when it comes to food, and I have never had a burger, lamb or otherwise, that has come anywhere near perfection as this one did, Thomas Keller take note (and I know I’ll be hearing from Thomas as he follows my blogs religiously). BRAVO my friend. Look, if you go to Absinthe, order the Lamb Sliders and don’t like them, send me an e-mail along with an explanation and I’ll refund your money.

Moral to the story? Armand gets it. In this economic climate you have to set yourself apart from your competition; whether it be through the food you serve, the wine you have on your list, or the service you provide, you need to do it and do it right. Armand has the food, he has the service, and now, thanks to Direct-To-Trade, he has the wine, Armand GETS IT….Period.