Managing the Bottle Barn Maze

Tips for managing the Bottle Barn maze

The Bottle Barn in Santa Rosa is a wine lover’s paradise, but it can also be a confusing and wild ride of a wine-buying experience. You may have been to Total Wine or BevMo stores, which both have many wines, but the Bottle Barn outdoes them with its warehouse inventory of wines. However, It can be a mind-boggling experience shopping there.

Unlike Total Wine or BevMo, the Bottle Barn is a single store and family owned. You will not find exclusive labels made for the store, or such labels as “Winery Direct” wines. The Bottle Barn negotiates with individual wineries or distributors to get the best prices. Not all their wines beat prices from Costco, Total Wine, or BevMo. What you will find is a collection of wines, both domestic and foreign, at excellent prices.

When you first enter this wine shop, your first thought is, where do I begin? The best thing to do is walk up and down the aisles to see how the wines are laid out. There will be sections for different countries. For wines from California, there will be rows laid out for each variety of wine. The sections have a generous selection of choices. For example, If you like Pinot Noir, you will find more Pinot Noir wines that you can shake a stick at.

To prepare for managing the Bottle Barn maze.

• Before you shop, prepare a list of wines to buy
• Use the Bottle Barn App and/or website to find the wine and price
• Set a budget for yourself
• Set a limit on the number of bottles for purchase
• Use the Wine-Searcher to price compare
• Sign up for the Bottle Barn email
• Give yourself ample time to browse.

More tips

Chances are the Bottle Barn cannot beat Costco in wine prices. Example Sonoma Seghesio Zinfandel is less expensive at Costco, but the Costco wine department is meager when compared to the Bottle Barn. The Bottle Barn is all about finding that niche wine.

Bottle Barn offers online exclusives. These are the best wine deals and go quickly. Act fast if you get an offer for a wine that you know and like.

If you do not live in Santa Rosa, you will have to factor in your shipping costs to determine the real cost of the wine. We love the Santa Rosa area; it is in the heart of the Russian River wine country. We often visit the wine country and, on the way back home, stop at the Bottle Barn. It is amazing to find how much you can save on wine at the Bottle Barn VS the tasting room prices.