T minus 2 days until oysters!!! 🦪 🦪 🦪

We hope you stop down to see the smorgasbord that we have ordered for you to enjoy this Saturday...

Hours of Operation

Monday - Tuesday, 10am to 6pm

Wednesday - Saturday, 10am to 8pm

Calendar 🗓

January 27 (Saturday) - It’s our BIG Oyster Saturday!!! Since National Oyster Day is only once a year in August, we've decided to create our own because we all know that one day year is simply not enough. We've got 1000 oysters on the way from 3 parts of North America: Northern Belle Oysters from PEI, Moonlight Bay Oysters from Massachusetts, and Chef Creek Oysters all the way from British Columbia. If you like oysters (or even if you don't), you won't want to miss it.

February 2 (Friday) - Winter ArtWalk in Downtown Findlay. We will be open late until 9pm for this event.

February 8 (Thursday) - We will be hosting our friend, wine importer Kevin Bonnano, from Barone Trading Company from 5-8pm. We will have wine flights of Barone's wines and some Italian fare. Come on down to meet Kevin and enjoy yourselves on this special evening.

February 10 (Saturday) - Second Saturday in Downtown Findlay. We will be dishing up the infamous Triple P: Pulled Pork Poutine.

February 13 (Tuesday) - FAT TUESDAY! More details to come in the next week or two.

February 14 (Wednesday) - Our annual Valentine's Day Dinner (reservations required), 6-8 pm. A FEW SPOTS REMAINING.

February 13-14 (Tues-Weds) - We will have hand-crafted bouquets from the local Bella Floral Design available for purchase in the store. Make your Valentine's Day beautiful with some flowers!

March 1 (Friday) - Friday night charity wine tasting (Clothe a Child), 5-7pm.

News 🗞

You may remember that last week I mentioned a new Dry Aged Program. There's a story that goes along with this. Not too long ago, Chelsea and I visited Buckhead Meat & Seafood in Northwood, OH. On this impressive tour, we learned about this program they have which many restaurants in Northwest Ohio participate in. I saw some beautiful cuts hanging there with names like Mancy's on them, and I thought to myself... I want to be a part of this. Through this program, we will be able to choose the cut (Ribeye or Strip), the quality (Choice, Prime, Wagyu), and then the length of the dry-aging process. These are basically made-to-order Dry Aged Beef products that will arrive in the store 4-6 weeks later. Now, if you would like to special order an entire Ribeye or Strip Loin, you can of course do that, but we will be ordering some of these special items on a regular basis to have available for you in-store. Our first delivery will arrive in our coolers on February 8 --- perfect timing, because what else says I love you more than a beautiful cut of Dry Aged Beef? That's romance, people.

Wine Feature ⭐️

This week's feature wine actually came in last week, so I've given it to a few of you to try already, but I wanted to go ahead and feature it anyway: Beckmen Vineyards 2019 Cuvée le Bec. This rich red blend hails from the Santa Ynez Valley in Central California and consists of 51% Syrah, 38% Grenache, 6% Mourvedre, and 5% Counoise. From Wine Enthusiast: “The 2019 Cuvee le Bec is superb. Ripe red cherry, plum, blood orange, spice and leather all meld together nicely in the glass. This supple, open-knit Syrah-based red delivers the goods, and then some.” Beckmen is a great California winery that focuses on quality farming and quality grapes, specifically Rhône-style blends. Plus Becca says this one is named after her, so you have to give it a go.

Wine Pick 🥂

My pick this week is a Chardonnay from southern Burgundy, Château de Cary-Potet 2020 Les Bassets. If you are a fan of Chardonnay — or even if you're not — and you haven't tried one from France, it's time to give it a go. It's in my opinion the best expression of Chardonnay you can find. This wine is named after the original owner of Cary-Potet, Charles Basset. Cary-Potet is now owned and produced by Château de Chamilly's Desfontaine family, who can trace their winemaking lineage in the region back to the 12th century. "Château de Cary Potet Les Bassets pours a light straw in the glass with brilliant lemon highlights. On the nose, aromas of persimmon, just-ripe peach and a saline mineral note plume form the glass. On the palate, the wine is textured and refreshing with a lively concentration of ripe fruit flavors and chalky mineral complexity. The finish is energetic and exciting, calling you back for another thirst-quenching sip.” This is a beautiful, full-bodied white that will pair with tons of dishes, so don’t hesitate to buy one.

Food Feature 🐟

Our Rinaldi Italian Sausages are back in. Several of you have asked for these in recent weeks, and I finally remembered to order them! If you haven't had Rinaldi products before, you should give them a try. They are more or less local, being from SE Michigan, and have been family-owned for 35+ years. Their sausages are made from quality ingredients and are both gluten free and nitrate free, so they're a better option than many. Most important of all... they're delicious. Stop in and try some for just $8.99 for a pack of 4 good-size sausages. Wait... why am I talking about something other than oysters???

Oyster Feature 🦪

Three features this week! The three oysters we'll be serving on Saturday. Northern Belle Oysters are from PEI and have a crisp brine with a mushroom umami finish. Moonlight Bay Oysters are from Massachusetts, just off of Cape Cod, and have a solid brine with sweet meat and a seaweed finish. Chef Creek Oysters are from British Columbia on the west coast of Canada, and they are milder with plump meat and a lettuce finish (and a cool shell). Which one will be your favorite? Come try them out and see.

Market Items 🛒 

*Fresh Hand-Cut Demkota Upper Third Strip Steaks - $19.99/lb

*Fresh Dry-Aged Prime Ribeyes, 12oz - $34.99

*Fresh Oysters - $24 a dozen

*Fresh North Atlantic Salmon - $18.99/lb

*Fresh Wagyu Burgers, 4pk - $18.99

Frozen Sakura Bone-In French 10-Bone Pork Racks - $8.99/lb

Frozen Duroc Dry Aged Bone-In Pork Chops, 14oz - $15.99

Frozen Whole BMS 6/7 Wagyu Tenderloin - $39.99/lb (1 remaining)

Frozen CAB Steak Burgers 4pk - $14.99

Frozen CAB Dry-Aged Ribeyes - $18.99/lb

Frozen Center Cut 8oz Beef Tenderloin Filets - $16.99

Frozen Choice Sirloin Cap Strip Steaks, 8oz - $9.99

Frozen Lamb Sirloin Roast - $22.99/lb

Frozen Lamb Rack, 2lbs - $49.99

Frozen Spiral Cut Dearborn Hams, approx. 9lb - $27.99

Frozen Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin - $12.99

Frozen Pre-Cooked Frozen BBQ Ribs (approx. 3lb racks) - $23.99

Frozen Bratwurst, 5pk - $8.99

Frozen Wagyu Hot Dogs, 5pk - $11.99

Frozen Rinaldi Italian Sausage, 4pk - $8.99

Frozen Black Pepper Bacon - $14.99

Frozen Sashimi-Grade Ahi Tuna - $18.99/lb

Frozen Chilean Sea Bass, 6oz - $16.99

Frozen Buddy’s Detroit Style Pizzas (Veggie, Pepperoni, or Cheese) - $17.99

Frozen Ahi Saku Block Tuna AAA Sushi Grade, avg. 16oz - $19.99

Frozen U-13/15 Raw Jumbo Shrimp Deveined (2lb package) - $39.99

Frozen U-16/20 Raw Shrimp Deveined (1lb package) - $19.99

Frozen U-10 Scallops - $29.99/lb

Frozen Lobster Tails, 2pk - $35.99

Frozen Lobster Claws - $44.99 (2lb package)

Frozen King Crab Legs - $48.99/lb

Frozen Whole Petite Potatoes - $8.99

Frozen Oven-Roasted Potato Wedges - $8.99

Frozen Au Gratin Potatoes, 4pk - $9.99

Fresh/Frozen Quattro Formaggi Ravioli - $9.99/lb (serving for 2)

Fresh/Frozen Drake’s Pasta Ravioli (Veal or Butternut Squash) - $12.99/lb (serving for 2)

1932’s Pasta Sauce (Arrabbiata, Pomodorina with Fresh Basil, Pomodorina with Barolo) - $7.99

Maurizio Dried Pasta from Italy (Casarecce, Spaghetti Chitarra, or Trofie) - $7.99

Tribeca Bakery Bread (Rosemary or Asiago) - $5.50

New Wine🍷

Lapis Luna 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon, California - $14.99

Carl Everson 2020 Cape Blend, South Africa - $29.99

New Beer 🍺

Bell's Big Hearted Imperial IPA, 6pk cans - $11.99

North High Filthy McNasty Imperial Stout, 6pk cans - $11.99

Kegs - 1/6 Barrel 🛢 

Sonder Brewing Voss Kölsch - $109.99

R. Shea Downtown Nut Brown - $109.99

Branch + Bone Spectral Alphabet Hazy IPA - $161.99

Final Thoughts 💬

You may have noticed that we have a boatload of events coming up in the next month or so... wish us luck. These are of course a lot of fun but also a lot of work. That said, I hope you're as excited as we are for this Saturday. Chelsea and I have been protecting our wrists in preparation for our shucking duties... I just may take out an insurance policy on them. We will have over 1000 oysters in the house ready and waiting for you to come and enjoy. Three oysters, three locations, three flavor profiles, and three drink pairings, one specially selected for each oyster. If that doesn't sound like a good Saturday, I don't know what does...

Cheers from all of us here at the Wine Merchant!

📞 419-424-0391

📧 findlaywinemerchant@gmail.com

💻 https://www.findlaywinemerchant.com