The Wine Mapp Opens in Greenwich

The Wine Mapp, a unique wine and spirits boutique, recently opened its doors in Greenwich. The store is nicely sized, cozy and intimate. There’s a feeling of warmth at The Wine Mapp that eludes the larger competitors.  

The store is owned by Allyson and Charlie Do of Norwalk. It was Charlie who first had the idea of opening up such a shop after visiting a restaurant in New York City where a waiter came out with a list of wines that were stored on an electric tablet of some sort. He knew, at that moment, that he was going to open a wine shop that would incorporate technology - more specifically, he knew he was going to incorporate the iPad to give customers the best possible shopping experience. 

“We feature a wonderful selection of high-quality wines and spirits from around the world,” said Allyson. With roughly 170 different wines and champagnes at the store, the selection is intimate yet diverse. The price-points are also varied allowing each customer to purchase fine wine no matter their budget. 

I was given a tour of the store by Do and her manager, Rachel Halperin who told explained that “each wine is grouped by varietal and then by region.” The bottles are easily viewed and accessible to all. “You’ll find some familiar brands, but we take pride in finding the lesser known gems, produced in limited quantities,” added Do.  Halperin was quick to tell me that any wine can be specially ordered. “Just because we may not carry a certain wine in our store, doesn’t mean we can’t get it for our customer,” she assured me.  “We want your experience here to be fun and yet educational. Our store is set up for tastings,” says Halperin. “We are knowledgeable and accessible and are here to help you.”  Shopping for wine at the Wine Mapp is a unique experience that cannot be compared to that of shopping at a larger store. 

The store’s unique iPad application, the Wine Mapp, was designed to match the customer's tastes to an appropriate bottle.  The application is simple, fun to use, and quite informative. To use one simply points to a region on the customized world Mapp on the iPad, selects a varietal - red or white, a staff recommendation, or a pairing. Each wine mentioned has a detailed description of its flavors, how it’s made, and any ranking it may have earned from the select group of well- known publications.  The Wine Mapp offers a perfect shopping experience for both connoisseur and novice alike. 

In addition to their impressive selection of wines, sparkling wines, champagne and specialty beer, the Wine Mapp has a wonderful assortment of spirits, including organic varieties. “We’ve handpicked some fun choices specifically for holiday entertaining,” said Do and she cannot wait to share her findings with you!

“We have a computerized client database,” Halperin explained to me. “We keep track of your purchases. If you buy a wine that you particularly enjoyed but can’t remember what it was, we can easily look it up in our system. Likewise, we can let you know that something has come in that we think you might like.” 

Not only was I thoroughly impressed with the energy, enthusiasm and knowledge that Halperin exhibited, but I loved the attention to detail at The Wine Mapp. Nothing was omitted - even the price on each bottle, carefully written on the glass with a China marker so as to be easily wiped off before leaving the store. I decided to pick up a bottle of Sean Minor, a Pinot Noir from California that Halperin highly recommended. I generally prefer European wines, but was happy to try her recommendation. She was right on the mark with this suggestion.

“We love to host wine tastings at the store,” said Halperin. “We’re all set up for it. And we can easily create a tasting based on whatever our customer wants or needs.” She was quick to add that it would be a great girl’s night out!

The Wine Mapp is easily accessible at their location on 469 West Putnam Avenue. There’s both street level and below street level parking as well as an elevator on site. The building and store are handicap accessible. 

The Wine Mapp 469 West Putnam Avenue, Greenwich.

[Photography courtesy of Natasha Montero]