Robert Wolfe opened the Oregon Wine Warehouse when he was tired of being H.O.S.E.D. He sold wine out of his home, where he would sit in his pajamas and stare at a computer screen all day.
“I decided that I was suffering from home office social engagement deficit disorder, the acronym of which is H.O.S.E.D, so I was feeling very hosed,” Wolfe said.
Wolfe founded the Oregon Pinot Noir Club, which allows customers to receive two bottles of Oregon Pinot Noir each month, after years of being a wine writer for publications such as The Wine Spectator, Food and Wine, Wine Tidings, and The Northwest Palate.
“Being a wine writer was groovy because I got lots of free wine samples but I wasn’t making any money,” Wolfe said.
The reality of finding a job that paid a decent sum lead and allowed him to leave his house, lead Wolfe to purchase the building that formerly housed Wilson’s Music Store at 943 Olive St. in downtown Eugene. One of Wolfe’s friends owned the building and when the music store went out of business, Wolfe received an offer he could not refuse.
Today the former music warehouse tinkles with laughter and the sound of wine glasses that echo off the high ceilings. A wall is lined with bottles upon bottles of some of Oregon’s best wine. The Oregon Wine Warehouse stocks over 3,800 bottles and takes orders from all around the country, sometimes
even internationally.
“I believe, based on what all the wineries tell me, we are the largest sellers of Pinot Noir in the state,” Wolfe said. “The whole idea was for me to get out of the house and have a social life. I didn’t want to be hosed anymore.”
Wolfe admits that the wine market in Eugene is not as vigorous as other areas in Oregon, such as Portland and McMinnville but he constantly searches for new ways to draw customers in.
In May of 2005, Wolfe opened a wine tasting bar that lets people sample the best wines by the taste, glass or bottle. The wine bar offers 10-12 different Oregon wines starting at around $6 a glass, depending on the brand of wine, of course.
Wolfe encourages wine samplers to get a flight of wine, which allows them to sample several different brands of the same type of wine. This is also the best way to experience wine tasting, Wolfe said.
“So for eleven dollars, the cost of a good glass of wine, you can try four different pinots a quarter glass each and compare and contrast,” Wolfe said.
Only the best wines make it through the doors of the Oregon Wine Warehouse. Wolfe personally samples every wine he considers, relying on his years of experience in the wine business to distinguish the good wines from the bad.
What is the secret to finding a good wine anyway?
“You want the wine to be intense, complex and have flavors that last a long time on your palette,” Wolfe said.
He also searches for that “undeniable wow factor” that every great wine should have. A wine that when sampled makes one literally say “wow.”
Wolfe admits that Oregon wine is not cheap, most bottles start at $15 and from there on can reach the sky but he says it’s well-worth the price.
“We only have a few bottles in the shop that are under fifteen dollars. But for $18-25 we have many fabulous wines that are really worth the money,” Wolfe said.
No wine bar would be complete without a wide menu of appetizers that complement the wine. The Oregon Wine Warehouse offers a selection of cheeses, breads, olives, patés, smoked salmon and more. At least once on the weekends, sometimes both Friday and Saturday nights, they have blues or jazz performances beginning at 6 p.m. until closing at 8 p.m.
Wolfe set out with a mission to create an informative and fun atmosphere where people could go to learn about Oregon wine and leave with a purchase or two. He points out that the wine bar is not the place to go to sit around at and get drunk.
“That’s why I close at eight. I don’t want to be here till two in the morning,” Wolfe said. “You’re currently living in one of the world’s greatest wine regions. You owe it to yourself to explore this great resource.”
The wine tasting bar is open Friday 3-8 p.m., Saturday 12- 8 p.m. and Sunday 12-5 pm. Wine can be purchased at the bottle shop Sun-Tuesday 12-5 p.m. and Wednesday-Saturday 12-8 p.m. More information about Robert Wolfe and the Oregon Wine Warehouse can be found at its Web site: http://www.oregonww.com/
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