La Cave in Marigot

MichaelG

SBH Member
Does anyone know what happened to the stock of La Cave, the wine warehouse in Marigot? The building is still there but the Cave closed long ago.
 
Does anyone know what happened to the stock of La Cave, the wine warehouse in Marigot? The building is still there but the Cave closed long ago.
Believe it moved to Gustavia. Others on this forum would know better. I do fondly remember shopping at La cave in Marigot.
 
I have wondered the same. It was a special place, I used to buy bottles of armagnac to bring home. Cyrille, who ran the business after his grandparent(s) passed, was very nice, and I remember his grandmother. He was still there in 2011 for sure as I recall visiting, maybe also in 2012 or 2013? Someone told me he moved back to France but I can't remember when. I assumed perhaps local restaurants purchased the inventory? Hopefully others will know.
 
It’s a sad story. As I recall, the son (maybe grandson?) of the former owner, who had died — was knowledgeable about wine & urged his mother (grandmother?) to allow him to sell the inventory. For whatever reason (sentimentality, as I recall), she wouldn’t permit him to do so. Whether she died or eventually capitulated, when a sale of the wines occurred, many (maybe even most) of the great wines had gone bad. Acknowledging that, and not knowing which wines still were good & which ones were not, pricing of the entire inventory was a bit crazy. I was there, & some notable red wines were offered at ridiculously low prices . . . some more appropriately priced, as if the bottles were not spoiled. White wines, as I recall, were practically giveaways! There was no way for a buyer to figure out what he / she was getting. As a consequence, when paying for a purchase, the son would say something like, “You know, I really don’t know what these will be like, so here —take another bottle!” (Sometimes several bottles!). It was fun . . . everything was reasonably priced-to-cheap, & the excitement of occasionally getting a “diamond in the dustheap“ made the experience a great memory.

It was a bittersweet time because I had been around — & a customer — since the opening. The father / grandfather was a sweet, engaging guy . . . who also sold Cuban cigars. I’m talking about a time that was more or less 40 years ago . . . when I used to think that I could get a suntan (which never happened . . . only sunburn) & thought that Cuban cigars were “cool.” When I one time told him that I wanted a “Churchill” cigar, he paused & then gently said, “Oh no — your face is too small,” as he directed me to something else. (It was a short lived phase in my younger life.)

. . . happy memories!
 
It’s a sad story. As I recall, the son (maybe grandson?) of the former owner, who had died — was knowledgeable about wine & urged his mother (grandmother?) to allow him to sell the inventory. For whatever reason (sentimentality, as I recall), she wouldn’t permit him to do so. Whether she died or eventually capitulated, when a sale of the wines occurred, many (maybe even most) of the great wines had gone bad. Acknowledging that, and not knowing which wines still were good & which ones were not, pricing of the entire inventory was a bit crazy. I was there, & some notable red wines were offered at ridiculously low prices . . . some more appropriately priced, as if the bottles were not spoiled. White wines, as I recall, were practically giveaways! There was no way for a buyer to figure out what he / she was getting. As a consequence, when paying for a purchase, the son would say something like, “You know, I really don’t know what these will be like, so here —take another bottle!” (Sometimes several bottles!). It was fun . . . everything was reasonably priced-to-cheap, & the excitement of occasionally getting a “diamond in the dustheap“ made the experience a great memory.

It was a bittersweet time because I had been around — & a customer — since the opening. The father / grandfather was a sweet, engaging guy . . . who also sold Cuban cigars. I’m talking about a time that was more or less 40 years ago . . . when I used to think that I could get a suntan (which never happened . . . only sunburn) & thought that Cuban cigars were “cool.” When I one time told him that I wanted a “Churchill” cigar, he paused & then gently said, “Oh no — your face is too small,” as he directed me to something else. (It was a short lived phase in my younger life.)

. . . happy memories!
Great anecdotes, Dennis.
 
In addition to wine, we used to buy Griottines there - Morello Cherries bottled in liqueur.

After Luis, or possibly the following year, La Cave was selling bottles of wine with missing or damaged labels for a song. We bought a few bottles for the villa, and as I recall, we did OK.
 
It’s a sad story. As I recall, the son (maybe grandson?) of the former owner, who had died — was knowledgeable about wine & urged his mother (grandmother?) to allow him to sell the inventory. For whatever reason (sentimentality, as I recall), she wouldn’t permit him to do so. Whether she died or eventually capitulated, when a sale of the wines occurred, many (maybe even most) of the great wines had gone bad. Acknowledging that, and not knowing which wines still were good & which ones were not, pricing of the entire inventory was a bit crazy. I was there, & some notable red wines were offered at ridiculously low prices . . . some more appropriately priced, as if the bottles were not spoiled. White wines, as I recall, were practically giveaways! There was no way for a buyer to figure out what he / she was getting. As a consequence, when paying for a purchase, the son would say something like, “You know, I really don’t know what these will be like, so here —take another bottle!” (Sometimes several bottles!). It was fun . . . everything was reasonably priced-to-cheap, & the excitement of occasionally getting a “diamond in the dustheap“ made the experience a great memory.

It was a bittersweet time because I had been around — & a customer — since the opening. The father / grandfather was a sweet, engaging guy . . . who also sold Cuban cigars. I’m talking about a time that was more or less 40 years ago . . . when I used to think that I could get a suntan (which never happened . . . only sunburn) & thought that Cuban cigars were “cool.” When I one time told him that I wanted a “Churchill” cigar, he paused & then gently said, “Oh no — your face is too small,” as he directed me to something else. (It was a short lived phase in my younger life.)

. . . happy memories!
Sad but a wonderful story. Thanks for sharing
 
Speaking of wine, where is the cheapest place to buy bottles these days? In the past, we just bought at the Marche U by the airport but didn't know if there was a better/cheaper option now.
 
If you’re looking for cheap, Super U and U Express are good places to shop. The two MonoPrix stores may be worth a look too, but I haven’t been in either of them yet.
 
If you’re looking for cheap, Super U and U Express are good places to shop. The two MonoPrix stores may be worth a look too, but I haven’t been in either of them yet.
Monoprix wines are not cheap at all. Super U had some good prices, though.
 
Speaking of wine, where is the cheapest place to buy bottles these days? In the past, we just bought at the Marche U by the airport but didn't know if there was a better/cheaper option now.
Very limited selection, but great wine prices at Mono Shop at Marigot Bay.
 
It’s a sad story. As I recall, the son (maybe grandson?) of the former owner, who had died — was knowledgeable about wine & urged his mother (grandmother?) to allow him to sell the inventory. For whatever reason (sentimentality, as I recall), she wouldn’t permit him to do so. Whether she died or eventually capitulated, when a sale of the wines occurred, many (maybe even most) of the great wines had gone bad. Acknowledging that, and not knowing which wines still were good & which ones were not, pricing of the entire inventory was a bit crazy. I was there, & some notable red wines were offered at ridiculously low prices . . . some more appropriately priced, as if the bottles were not spoiled. White wines, as I recall, were practically giveaways! There was no way for a buyer to figure out what he / she was getting. As a consequence, when paying for a purchase, the son would say something like, “You know, I really don’t know what these will be like, so here —take another bottle!” (Sometimes several bottles!). It was fun . . . everything was reasonably priced-to-cheap, & the excitement of occasionally getting a “diamond in the dustheap“ made the experience a great memory.

It was a bittersweet time because I had been around — & a customer — since the opening. The father / grandfather was a sweet, engaging guy . . . who also sold Cuban cigars. I’m talking about a time that was more or less 40 years ago . . . when I used to think that I could get a suntan (which never happened . . . only sunburn) & thought that Cuban cigars were “cool.” When I one time told him that I wanted a “Churchill” cigar, he paused & then gently said, “Oh no — your face is too small,” as he directed me to something else. (It was a short lived phase in my younger life.)

. . . happy memories!
We were in St Barts with Denises brother and has wife; Ellen couldn't resist a bargain. When we returned home; every bottle was undrinkable.
 
Very limited selection, but great wine prices at Mono Shop at Marigot Bay.
Mono shop has great prices! I have found Super U jacked all their prices up a lot in the past year. Veuve regular yellow label used to be around 54€, now it's around 89€! Monoprix by the airport has much better pricing at around 55€. I think Mono shop beats that, even, if I remember correctly.
 
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