Our Buyers' Mother's Day Picks 2026: Champagne, Barolo, Rosé & Spirits

Every year our buyers put together their honest picks for Mother's Day—not the obvious stuff, but the bottles they'd actually bring to their own mothers. This year that means Grand Cru Champagne from Avize, modern Barolo from one of Piedmont's most important winemakers, six Provence rosés all under $34, and three spirits that will make her cocktail hour considerably better. Plus two events worth getting off the couch for, and a couple of gift options that keep delivering long after Sunday.

Win Favorite Child Status: Jonathan's Mother's Day Spirits Picks

Forget the gift card. Jonathon Goldstein, K&L's Spirits Buyer, has three bottles that will actually impress her—whether she's shaking Negronis, stirring Martinis, or squeezing limes for a Margarita that finally tastes the way it should.

Spirits Selections in a New York Minute

Greetings from Midtown Manhattan, where I’m proud to represent the third generation of my family to work in the New York wine and spirits trade. With decades behind the counter—and now a new chapter as a Spirits Buyer at K&L—I’ve pulled together ten bottles I genuinely believe deserve your attention this spring. As warm‑weather holidays stack up, these selections span mezcal, tequila, whisky, rum, gin, and bourbon, each chosen for character, craftsmanship, and sheer drinkability. These aren’t trend‑driven picks or flashy one‑offs—they’re bottles I reach for, recommend, and enjoy. If you’re looking for smart, celebratory spirits with real stories behind them, start here.

St. Patrick’s Day Newsletter: Luck in Every Pour

At K&L, we love St. Patrick’s Day not for the kitsch, but for the craftsmanship—those meticulously made whiskeys, the world‑class stouts, the modern Irish spirits driving a new wave of cocktail culture. This guide is your passport to all of it: the bottles worth hoarding, the pours worth sharing, and the proper cocktails that prove Irish spirits can do far more than fuel a party.

People Want Great Scotch at Great Prices!

For the holidays this year, we celebrate a newly minted whisky season with an impeccable lineup of 10 single casks of Scotch from our dear friends at Douglas Laing in Glasgow. The wonderful and historic bottler has never failed to bring exciting casks to market, but we’ve turned up the value this year—fighting rising costs and bureaucratic delay to offer a wide variety of unique casks at market beating prices. These are some of the most unique and delicious barrels we’ve ever sourced from the storied bottler, and the prices send a message to the market at large: PEOPLE WANT GREAT SCOTCH AT GREAT PRICES!

Into the Diving Bell: Ardbeg: The Abyss Surfaces at K&L—Auction Now Live!

Imagine strapping yourself into a Victorian diving suit, lowering into the inky Atlantic, and finding—rather than shipwrecks and squid—an old Ardbeg cask still breathing with smoke and sea. That’s the feel of Ardbeg: The Abyss, a 34-year-old Islay single malt Scotch surfacing this October at K&L’s spirits auction… with a $1 reserve. Yes, one dollar. Try not to hyperventilate through your regulator.

The October Spirits Newsletter

October’s Spirits Newsletter is loaded: the long-awaited Every Drop 16-Year “Dawning Era” lands in stock, we welcome Josh Gelfand to the buying team, and we’ve lined up a showcase of exclusive barrel picks spanning bourbon and agave. Don’t miss Old Particular & Signatory standouts—from savvy daily drinkers to blue-chip rarities—and a preview of our Ardbeg Abyss auction with a $1 reserve.

Meet Our New NorCal Spirits Buyer: Josh Gelfand

Any spirits lover can attest that our spirits selection runs as deep and as wonkish as you any out there. We’re thrilled to bring on a second Spirits Buyer, Josh Gelfand, who can help build on the wonderful work David Othenin-Girard has been doing. Josh is based in Northern California, so he’ll be a great counterpoint to David in SoCal. We’ve seen so much enthusiasm from our customers and growth in this category, and it’s extremely exciting to watch how it will continue to grow in the years to come.

cocktails, Wine Newsletter, SpiritsKate SotoSeptember 26, 2025K&L Wine Merchantsklwines, josh gelfand, spirits

What I'm Excited About This Week: Day Drinking With David (Staff Edition)

My picks for the week highlight the cool factor in what we bring in as well as some great value. We started with a ready-to-drink infused gin drink called Sweet Gwendoline Fig And Wine Infused French Gin $36.99. It was super tasty and a nice start to the whole thing.

Kentucky Distilleries: Stories in Every Barrel

Some folks tell you, “If you’ve seen one distillery, you’ve seen them all.” I, for one, couldn’t disagree more. The equipment may look similar, but each place has its own heartbeat. The first time I drove to Four Roses, the sunny, Spanish mission-style buildings made me think I’d taken a wrong turn into California.

Ki No Bi Gin Is at the Epicenter of Japanese Craft Spirits

The Kyoto Distillery isn’t just the birthplace of Japanese craft gin—it’s the beating heart of a new spirits movement. Founded by Marcin Miller, David Croll, and Noriko Kakuda Croll, this pioneering distillery blends deep roots in the whisky world with an adventurous spirit and a love for Kyoto’s timeless culture.

June 1st 2025 – June 14th 2025: Second Spirit Auction Highlights

We have such an incredibly diverse set of offerings in this auction, but as we were putting it together there were some bottles that stood out–sometimes because of what was in the bottle, and sometimes because what was outside the bottle! Here is our top 10 list, in no particular order (and apologies to the other 300+ bottles that didn’t make this list).

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