Rare vintage? Try Gibson's

Bakery to offer wines for any palette

As you sit down to prepare for your weekly French meal, you realize that you lack a bottle of 1986 Chateau Brignon to accompany the roast pork tenderloin. You realize that there is no time for a trip to the culinary mecca of Cleveland. What is the desperate shopper to do? Walk, drive or teleport to Gibson's Bakery.

But why would a bakery want to add wine to its inventory? Dave Gibson, fourth-generation co-owner, said, "The main reason behind the wine addition was to complement the selection of cheeses in the store. We have cheese from France, Italy and Spain, and we wanted to offer the wines to accompany them. It's working well so far, over the summer and with the town residents." He also said that Gibson's is always trying to keep up with the changing tastes and desires of the Oberlin customers. A new addition to the deli section in Gibson's that will also go well with both the wine and cheese is fresh fish. The Gibsons are now importing Norwegian salmon for Oberlin's lox aficionados.

For a small-town bakery, Gibson's offers a small,but thorough selection. Gibson's currently carries wines from Argentina, Australia, Chile, France and Germany, in addition to many varieties of California wines. Red and white wines are fully represented in all ranges of sweet and dry, as are champagnes and sparkling wines.

While not geared towards college-level bank accounts, the prices are satisfactory for the quality of the product. If you are looking for less expensive wines, there are affordable bottles on the shelves. The price may jump substantially if you are looking for a good vintage, a 1999 Australian Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon can be purchased for just over nine dollars.

If you do not see what you are looking for, though, do not hesitate to ask for help. Gibson's has a few thousand wines that are available through mail order, and Gibson expressed his willingness to bring in any specialty wines he can. He was also very excited about the possibility of making up gift baskets. Be sure to give the store's staff enough notice to make up the basket, or to order the wine you desire. You can add things such as cheeses or chocolates to the basket, too, but it would probably be ill-advised to include any of the new ice cream additions from the store.