Bakker Bugle Blog

Last Saturday, totally out of the blue, Will and I had the best shopping day ever, or at least of 2010. Here’s our story:

It’s a special time of the year in Luxembourg – it is the fall wine season. Our preferred grocery store had issued a special flyer listing all the wines that would be available.

Will took his responsibilities seriously. Like a young boy with the Sears Wishbook, he sat down with the flyer, his Hachette guide and a fresh sharpie. His goal – find excellent wines at a reasonable price for us to sample.

There were several that he was excited about.

With the preparatory work complete, we headed off to the grocery. Will took the cart and started finding his wines, while I gathered our regular groceries. After a time, I rejoined Will. He has filled one paper box with six bottles of wine, our traditional way of bringing wine home. (We tend to avoid wine in plastic jugs.) He had several more bottles, so we needed a second box. Since he normally handles the wine duty, I was uncertain where to get the boxes. So we walked together to get a second box.

As we walked up to the area of the store with the wine cartons, the day turned from good to fantastic. The day became the day I will remember for a very long time. The day became…. the day I found the reusable wine shopping bag!

I had spied other shoppers for months with various reusable wine shopping bags. I had coveted, from a distance, their awesome compartments that keep wine (and olive oil) separate and safe. Oh, how I had wanted one!

It is unclear how long the bags had been available. Apparently, I had not effectively communicated my desire to my life-partner, as he was shocked and amused by my joy.

While I was gushing over my new bag, he was eyeing the wooden crates used to store and display most of the wine. He wanted a box – oh, how he wanted one of those boxes!

We continued strolling the aisles when we saw an empty wine crate, just sitting there – practically begging to become part of the Bakker storage system. Will asked the women working one of the wine tasting booths (yes, there were multiple wine tasting areas in the grocery store at 10:30 on a Saturday morning) if we could take it. She gave her blessing and off we went, with our very own crate!

And a second, smaller crate that Will grabbed at the last moment. But we needed both, since he found a bottle or two……

I think we are set for a winter of fine wine tasting. Plus, I now know where I can find the perfect Christmas gift for everyone. You too will love the reusable wine shopping bag – it’s the best thing ever!

By the way, this Sunday is Mantelsonndeg — also a remarkable shopping experience! Even if you aren’t in Luxembourg to get the full experience, you can still celebrate. The Bugle staff suggest the following family-friendly activities:

• Make an animal coat rack.
• Parents, check your closets to see if your child’s coat has a homicidal streak.
• Show the uppity Europeans how to roll really green with an up-cycled plastic coat.
• Begin a copycat coat-related crime-spree.
• Visit the Go Fug Yourself website, search for “coat” and laugh at the fashion choices of celebrities.
• Have a bit less snarky experience (but only a bit less) with Tom & Lorenzo.