Business Amid A Pandemic: Wine Shop Offers Virtual Tastings

MOUNTAIN BROOK, AL — The COVID-19 pandemic has had an effect on businesses of all sizes and types, and small businesses in particular have had to make significant adjustments to serve their customers. Just look at Finch Fine Wines in Mountain Brook.

When the wine shop opened in November of 2019, one of the goals of the store's management was to focus on educating and helping customers find wines they enjoy, with tastings and community events to help people learn and develop their own taste in wine. Social distancing guidelines amid the pandemic have placed a damper on that.

However, the partners in the new business have found a way to bring the wine tasting experience to customers while complying with social distancing guidelines: virtual wine tastings.

Like schools throughout the country, Finch Fine Wines offers wine classes via Zoom, and the concept has grown in popularity over the last several months, with many of the virtual wine tastings attracting up to 100 participants.

The tastings are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. every Friday and last about an hour. Typically, two wines are chosen, often from the same region, and one of Finch's experts takes customers through the history and make-up of the wines they are tasting.

Customers participate by ordering that week's featured wines and logging on to the Zoom meeting link provided by the store.

For instance, Friday night's tasting features wines from Oregon. Once the wine is purchased, customers receive a link to the Zoom interactive tasting session.

"The virtual tastings have been a welcome break from the physical distancing, a safe way to engage with friends each week, have some fun and enjoy terrific wines," customer Christopher Patterson said. "What better to do on a pandemic Friday night?"

Customer Carrie Buntain, who has participated in several of the virtual tastings, said she thinks the virtual tastings actually offer a more intimate experience with the presenter than tastings she has attended in person.

"In many ways the virtual tastings are better than ‘live’ ones," Buntain said. "Rather than people milling around casually paying attention to a presenter, everyone’s more engaged and focused virtually and the discussions go deeper into the wine, region or producer and the whole group’s opinions."

Finch Fine Wines is located at at Suite 144 in Mountain Brook Plaza off Highway 280.