Sandusky Wine Merchant

After finishing our cocktails at the Moseley's Rooftop Bar, we exited onto Water Street to explore the downtown. The streets were bare compared to Princeton, yet the air felt vibrant and alive.

The Sandusky Wine Merchant is next door to our hotel, tacoria, and rooftop bar. The Sandusky Wine Merchant offers wines from Australia, Chile, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, New Zealand and Spain but also has a good selection of local wines. I started talking to the store's charismatic owner, Kevin Bertschi, who soon learned that I was more interested in craft ales. Kevin recommended a stout from one of the area's craft breweries. Our hotel’s mini-fridge could not handle the beer for the few days we were there. I promised Kevin that I would return before the end of our trip.

When Kevin’s wife, Alana Shock, discovered that we were eager to try the ales from Sandusky’s three breweries, she directed us to what she considered the best brewery in town, CLAG. I felt that Kevin and his wife were informal local guides to downtown Sandusky.