We have two Aldi's but PLCB is harsh on stores selling wines in our grocery stores. getting a Beer licence was big todo's at a local market! I always thought it was funny that the CVS in Indiana could sell you a bottle of Jack Daniels with your script, but we here in stubjumperville can't get a good bottle of wine. When I'm at Cleveland Clinic again, I"ll have to make a trip and try some...Maybe sneak a few bottles to the next ultreya..see if Fr. will bless a few bottles. I love Merlot with oranges in it. thanks!

Dad-gum it, Nikki, now I'm going to have to go buy a bottle of Merlot just to try the orange thing ... never even heard of it! And we don't even have an Aldi's around here. I wonder whether Trader Joes might have something like the deal you've described, Vesper. I know the locals around here are crazy about a wine at Trader Joe's called "Two buck Chuck." All I know is it's a white wine produced by a vineyard in our state. People always say it tastes like a much more expensive wine.

Most of our "liquor stores" are state-run stores, and those are the only places allowed to sell hard liquor. Beer and wine can be sold in grocery stores and places like RiteAid and Walmart. True wine connisuers (sp?) are always complaining that the state stores and retailers don't sell the truly expensive, fancy wines or a lot of big name brands. The hard core wine people (who might know the difference between a name brand 1977 and the same brand from 1976) end up having to go to the most expensive restaurants to get what they consider a good bottle of wine.

We can have a "wine store" here, but most of those are in the upscale parts of Seattle, which is King County. I'm one county to the south in Pierce County, and traditionally we're a more "blue collar" area, though we don't hear as much about those kinds of distinctions as we used to. I know of one place where there used to be a wine store in our county, but haven't been there in a couple of years and don't know whether they are still in business. It used to be a combination wine & fancy cheese store. Another place that has a little bit of fancier wine is the gourmet produce & meat market I recently mentioned in the "what's to eat" thread. That is likely where I will look for the wine you mention, and then maybe a special trip to the place that used to be a wine store--which would be an interseting field trip.

Trader Joe's does have a lot of organic stuff, including fresh produce, a bit of meat, and a lot of organic packaged foods. If there is one near you and you really want as much organic as you can get, it would be worth a trip for you to check it out. Plus they have lots of other little goodies like cookies and candies that are not carried elsewhere. A lot of people around here love their frozen meals, especially single people and older married people who are cooking for 1 or 2, and want something "natural" or organic without having to buy a ton of it. They also have a large selection of "green" soaps and detergents ... I have gotten a lot of good soap products there, but once did get a soap that was billed as "natural," but which irritated my skin far more than something out of a grocery store ... so you have to be careful. As a friend of mine said, something might be full of natural components--but a few of those natural components can be harsh also--and there's probably not a product on earth that someone isn't allergic to.

I also think the prices in Trader Joe's are very reasonable.

Then it certainly is worth a look at Trader Joe's, and if that's hard for you to get to, maybe Katie could go and take down some info for you. Then you could figure out if it's worth a special trip. I love Sam's Club! (Don't tell Moose, but their pizza is really good, for those who are deeply into unhealthy living!) Honestly though, I think Costco has more natural and organic stuff, especially cleaners.