Gautam Patel appreciates the increased business of the summer months.
Credit: Murphy Birdsall

When Gautam Patel first walked into Pine Plains Fine Wines and Spirits at 2881 Church St., he immediately liked the layout and the “welcoming vibes.” Having driven from Monticello, N.Y., where he managed his brother’s beer store, it was his first time in Pine Plains.

In 2017, the liquor store was up for sale. A childhood friend and Patel’s brother Dipak had already met with the seller, Will Carter, and Dipak went back to his younger brother with the pivotal question: “Do you want to run it?”

Patel officially became the owner of the liquor store on July 10, 2017, though he had started running the business in April. Will Carter helped him through the learning curve of his first week and remained available by phone. “He was a really good guy,” Patel said. He recently heard that Carter died on July 9 after a year-long battle with cancer.
 
 

Patel is proud of having learned the business by working for someone else and then putting that knowledge into his own store.

Pine Plains Fine Wines & Spirits carries local products from Millbrook Vineyards, Taconic Distillery, and Hillrock Estate Distillery, among others, as well as the California wines that he notices locals favor, and the French and Italian wines that his customers from the city tend to prefer. Appreciating varying preferences, Patel balances his selections between high-end wines and spirits and price-friendly options to keep the business going. “I can sell a $300 bottle once a week, but several at $10 to $20 every day,” he said. He happily orders customers’ requested wines and spirits. When asked, Patel said his own taste runs to Pinot Noir, Burgundy, and Single Malt Scotch.
 
Pine Plains Fine Wines and Spirits sits two blocks west of the traffic light on Route 199.
Credit: Murphy Birdsall

Expenses keep going up, with rent increases every year, and business is down. “Three liquor stores have opened up, in Milan, Stanfordville, and Ancram,” he pointed out, drawing customers from an already small population. The challenge is aggravated by the lack of other shopping options in town. A once-regular customer of Patel’s told him she doesn’t come in as often because she can no longer find the groceries she needs at Peck’s Market, so she goes elsewhere to shop. And, “purchasing power is low” for small stores, Patel said, with multiple cases being sold to a larger retailer at a discount over the one case he can reasonably buy for the limited space of his shop.

Christopher Hurley likes working at the liquor store. However, he does not like consuming wine, spirits or beer.
Credit: Murphy Birdsall

Christopher Hurley, born and raised in Pine Plains, is an appreciative employee, having just returned from a readily granted vacation. He works every week and said that “the hours are good. He’s a pretty understanding boss, flexible.” Hurley added that his sister Chelsie had a first job working in a liquor store and is now a wine distributor.

Patel loves the community of Pine Plains, living in the center of town with his wife, Parita, and their infant son, Vidhan. He moved to the U.S. from India in 2014 from Khandali, a village similar in size to Pine Plains. “Parita,” Patel said, “landed for the first time in Pine Plains,” having grown up in the very different locale of Delhi, India. She loves to cook, and though they can find most ingredients locally, they pick up needed spices at the Indian markets when visiting his uncle and aunt in Edison, N.J.

For Patel, Pine Plains is home—where his son was born, where his family lives, and the site of his first business.

 

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