- Yankee Wine & Spirits

Chris has been writing reviews for Beverage Dynamics magazine since 2014.  He was recently interviewed by them for a feature article on beer appearing in their 80th anniversary issue published in November of 2015.  The Newtown Bee also wrote a full page feature article about Chris and his recent ownership of Yankee Wine & Spirits in Newtown, Connecticut.

The following is a list of the many places Chris has visited over the years gaining an incredible amount of information he generously shares with his customers.  On the Central Coast of California he has toured Justin Vineyards & Winery, Tablas Creek Vineyard, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines and Firestone Walker Brewing Company.  While touring the Napa Valley and Sonoma areas of California he had the pleasure of visiting Opus One, Charles Krug, Whitehall Lane Winery, Cakebread Cellars, Chappellett Vineyard & Winery, Russian River Brewing Company and the Lagunitas Brewing Company.  In Delaware he took a memorable trip with his brother, Scott to Dogfish Head Brewed Ales near his mom's hometown.  Then it was on to Pennsylvania to check out Stoudts Brewing Company and Lancaster Brewing Company.  Closer to home in New England he has visited the Portsmouth Brew Pub and Smuttynose Brewing Company in New Hampshire, Tree House Brewing Company in Massachusetts, Hill Farmstead Brewery and Fiddlehead Brewing Co in Vermont.  And right in our own backyard he frequents Veracious Brewing in Monroe, Connecticut as well as Two Roads Brewing Co. in Stratford, Connecticut.  Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York and Red Hook in Brooklyn, New York complete the list for the time being. With a thirst for knowledge, good beer and wine he is always willing and ready to check out the latest releases from his favorite haunts.

His experience doesn't stop at beer and wine.  As a former member of the Single Malt Whiskey Society Chris had the distinct honor of attending one of the largest single malt tasting events at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City  He has also attended Whiskey Fest in New York City tasting a wide variety of whiskeys adding to his expertise.

With a Bachelor's Degree  in Engineering Scott works full time by day as an engineer in  Plainville, CT and in the evenings and weekends as one of Yankee's most  valuable "behind the scenes" personnel.  Being part owner of Yankee Wine  & Spirits Scott provides an invaluable service as our technological  expert designing, setting up, and maintaining our website, Facebook  page, Instagram and Twitter accounts.  Also having a background in  drafting with a natural talent for artwork, Scott designed the store's  new logo when the family purchased the business.

Possessing the same passion for craft beer as his brother, Scott is  also a feature writer for the store's Beer Blog.  With a very  discerning palate and a vast amount of knowledge he  also enjoys providing input on new craft beers coming into the store and  visiting breweries when time allows.  He has so far been to Dogfish  Head Brewed Ales in Delaware; Treehouse Brewing Company in Massachusetts  and Relic in Plainville Connecticut to name a few.

Although Scott works full time during the week he finds time to  lend a hand at the store on Saturdays and sometimes Sundays working on  the computers, hanging signs, greeting customers and of course, checking  out the new craft beer arrivals.

Steve Small is a veteran of the wine and spirits industry. He has worked in all aspects of the trade including bars and restaurants, wine distribution and retail. He has also traveled extensively, visiting vineyards around the globe. Academically, Steve has certifications from London’s Wine and Spirits Education Trust and The Society of Wine Educators.

Steve’s career in the hospitality business began as the owner of The Chestnut Pub in Morgantown, WV, the home of West Virginia University. It was the nice bar in town, catering to both students and faculty in a comfortable atmosphere. Highlights included hosting professional actors, musicians and athletes who visited the WVU campus.

We moved to Connecticut to be closer to family and he was the owner of Steve’s Liquor Store in Newtown, CT for 13 years. The growth of the store closely paralleled his growing passion for wine. During this period he wrote a monthly wine column for our local paper, The Newtown Bee, hosted numerous wine dinners, and began really learning about wine.

After selling the store, he was a fine wine manager for a start-up distributor that was subsequently purchased by Winebow. In addition to opening new accounts like Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, he was responsible for introducing new wines to the state of Connecticut including Mionetto Prosecco, the top selling brand of Prosecco in the United States. Steve's visits to vineyards also began at this time with trips to Friuli and Valdobbiadene in northern Italy.

His next stop was Yankee Wine & Spirits, where he has been the wine manager since 2004. During this time he has earned the Certified Specialist of Wine designation and a Level 4 Diploma in Wine & Spirits. Steve has also visited vineyards in Napa, Oregon, Washington, New York State, Italy, France, Spain, Chile, Argentina, Australia and South Africa. He is a judge for Winemaker magazine’s amateur winemaking competition, the largest of its type in the world. He is also a member of Beverage Dynamics Wine Retailer Panel, making wine recommendations to the wine trade monthly. The excellent selection of wines available at Yankee reflect a palate, education and experience that is a rare combination.

He also loves to share his passion and vocation with wine lovers at every level, from the novice to the serious collector.  Steve looks forward to engaging in conversations about wine on your next visit to Yankee Wine & Spirits.