Binny's Blog

We take a stroll down the NA beer aisle, where the options have never been better.

There's never been a better time to checkout non-alcoholic beverages. Binny's stores are stocked with a wide variety of carefully crafted, alcohol-free beverages at great prices.

Not only are there more options for Dry January, but they're better than they've ever been. The Barrel to Bottle crew runs through the best of NA beer, wine and spirits.

When six o’clock rolls around many Italians have their hearts firmly set on a leisurely cocktail and maybe a nibble or two before dinner. It’s Aperitivo time and most will opt for something a bitter cocktail to stimulate their appetites. But what are devotees of the cocktail hour, the ranks of which include countless Americans, to do during Dry January?

The original Matador cocktail called for Tequila, Orange Curacao, and French Vermouth. “Trader” Vic Bergeron created his own version in the early seventies throwing pineapple and lime juice into the mix. These are just the two most famous Matadors but certainly not the only ones. Today, in keeping with the growing trend of “Dry January” we humbly submit our spicy nonalcoholic version to be added to list.

Travel out to Whiskey Acres in DeKalb for a Whiskey Hotline/Barrel to Bottle field trip.

Sauternes has the unfortunate distinction of being a wine everyone loves, but few people actually drink. It suffers from the perception that wine must be dry to be fine.

“Americans are allergic to bad vintages,” observed one person in Bordeaux during a recent trip. I couldn’t disagree. The view here is often absolute: a vintage is either good or bad. And people don’t want to drink “bad” vintages.

As we gear up to focus on Bordeaux for the month of September it seems fitting to recap the annual Binny's en premier trip.

A group of our wine specialists recently visited Illinois Sparkling Wine Company. Founder and lead winemaker Mark Wenzel walked us through the vineyard and shared his family's story