Applejack Wine & Spirits Denver

My brother Jeff and I flew into Denver last week, and drove up through Wyoming into South Dakota, where we immersed ourselves in the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for a day.  We were there to promote Diamond Gusset Jeans, which Jeff co-founded, and which are popular with Harley riders.  But before heading up to Deadwood, we stopped at Applejack.

Applejack has evolved to be the biggest wine and liquor store around.  The original store was geographically well-placed by visionary founder Herb Becker along the route to the ski resorts.  It was then purchased by alcohol beverage retailer pioneer (& current CEO) Alan Freis, who moved it into the current building in 1974 and has expanded it several times.  Now, together with son-in-law Jim Shpall, they have created a store that is buzzing even at 10 in the morning, and the action just gets busier from there.  A dull moment at Applejack is rare. The employees work hard for the money, moving a lot of cases.

Wine selection is beyond extensive.  The layout is good for a large store.  The case displays are at the front, and you don't even have to go back into the aisles to find plenty of choices that are current.  Back in the aisles there are extensive selections from all parts of the world, including impressive depth in Italian reds and Bordeaux.

A couple of years ago, Alan Freis himself was the first person to say hello when I came in.  He said then that he enjoys being on the floor, which having his son-in-law Jim in the business allows him to do.

The prices are very good, but you cannot use your plastic to pay - cash only.  Still, I purchased three wines to be reviewed here soon.  Because of the new air travel restrictions, I had to put the bottles in my checked luggage.  Thankfully, they made it home intact.  No interior pictures were allowed.

Comments

[erika freedman]

the bitch barossa is fabulous and i really really need to have more. is it possible to purchase from you? i live in massachusetts and i bought this wine at the capr this summer but cannot remember the name of the store. please can you help me???

[chateau haut pougnan]

dear sir,
my red wines aoc bordeaux 2006 has got a star in guide hachette 2009
are you interestred by this wine
price 2,35 € with colerette guide hachette
want you a sample
looking forward to hearing from you
kind regards
j; gueridon

[None of yo business]

LOL my dad is the complete manager of the store. I was really board so I decided to google my daddy's store and saw what poped up. My dad works so hard every day, and only gets a day of on sundays, but nowdays he sometimes works on sundays.

Alan is sooo nice, he used to give me a lot of candy when I was little. Jim is probably one of the funniest men on earth. BUT NOW YOU CAN PAY WITH CREDIT CARD! So don't be worried about that now. :D

Alan has been in bad health lately, so give him your prayers. Just to let you know in case you are wondering, all of the workers there are responsible drinkers, and there is no employee discount.

I know my way through that store inside and out, and I can name at least 75% of the people that work there, including the people that hide in the back and the cart boys. :D

Everybody there is so nice, but they refuse to sell to people who are drunk and underage. It sure is better than Tipsys, which one of the people who started it just got fired. o_0 GO APPLEJACK!!