Taste the world and ‘something new’ at Bedford Wine Merchants

If you don't look closely, you might miss The Bedford Wine Merchants, and that would be a pity. An unassuming storefront in a row of white clapboard buildings right on the Village Green, the shop, which is owned by Arthur Wunderlich and his son Scott, is small in size but legendary in stature, which might be why there are such dedicated fans.

Wunderlich was one of the first wine store owners to promote and sell California wines, back at a time when most Americans drank imported French wines.

He opened his first wine store on Sixth Avenue in Greenwich Village in the 1970s and stocked it with bottles from then little-known vintners like Chateau Montelena, Chateau St. Jean and Raymond Matnazas Creek. Today, of course, all are highly regarded labels that can fetch more than $100 a bottle. Back then, you could pick up Chateau Montelena for about $6.

"There were two reasons I was specializing in California wines: One, I couldn't afford the French wines, and two, there was really no way I could compete with other stores, like Sherry Lehman, who already sold French wines," says Arthur Wunderlich. "California was just about to come into its own, and that's where I went."

A few years later, Wunderlich brought the concept to northern Westchester and found his new suburban customers were just as receptive to something new as his Manhattan client base. "The great thing about our customers is they are wide open, and they will try anything," he says. "They are open to advice, they are willing to experiment and taste something new."

Today, says Wunderlich, about 50 percent of the shop's offerings are California wines - there still is a sterling portfolio - with the rest an interesting amalgam of wines from around the world, including the great wines of Italy, Portugal, Spain, as well as up-and-comers from South Africa, South America, Australia and New Zealand.

I stopped recently looking for a 2003 Heitz Cellars Martha's Vineyard, an outstanding California cabernet I sampled at a wine tasting. Quickly, Scott Wunderlich tells me he doesn't think they have a bottle in the store, but after a few seconds on the store's computer, he's located a bottle in the warehouse.

"I can have it for your tomorrow," he tells me. Two other stores just dismissed my request out of hand, telling me they didn't stock the wine. The Wunderlichs will go the extra mile.

"Sometimes, we don't have everything, but we'll do the research - where we can find the wine and how we can get our hands on it," Arthur Wunderlich says.

This is, after all, what you want in a local wine shop: a good selection of wines in all prices, ranges and regions, and the chance to have an informed conversation about wine.

If you go
Bedford Wine Merchants,24 Village Green, Bedford, 914-315-8333 bedfordwines.com