On Vanderbilt Avenue in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Prospect Heights stands Fermented Grapes, a wine shop and decades long staple in an ever changing community. Sandwiched between a reflexology spa on their left and an apartment building and barbershop on their right, Fermented Grapes planted roots in the area in 2004 and switched hands in 2021. The original owners, a black woman and a Jewish woman, made waves by creating the first wine and spirits shop on the block and because few members of the wine and spirits community looked like them. They set an example for their first ever full-time employee in their first year of opening, so much so that she decided to purchase the establishment when they were ready to retire.
Kilolo Strobert, a Brooklyn Native with blue-green faux locs and an infectious laugh, knew years before purchasing that she wanted the wine shop. “I approached them in 2018, to buy the store. I knew they were getting older, so I said let me put this in their ear before they start getting other offers or entertaining other people.” Only having worked in the establishment for a little over a year, she left to pursue other opportunities which included training at one of the best culinary institutes in the U.S., Johnson and Wales University. Upon finishing her education, Strobert went on to work for culinary businesses like Le Parker Meridien, Zagat, and Fresh Direct.
The shop located between Park Place and Prospect Place is recognizable by its cerulean blue awning. No logo is displayed, just Wines & Spirits across the flap. From the outside looking in, you can see the array of bottles perfectly arranged on the wooden shelves and in glass fridges. As you get closer you notice the unassuming logo of Fermented Grapes in block letters encased in a rectangle, it’s attractive and simple. What you can’t see, however, is the vibe that Strobert brings until you open the doors and enter.
On a hot, muggy NYC summer evening, cool air greets you and the sound of hip hop generated from the speakers invites you to the party. Strobert sits behind the checkout counter cutting little plastic tabs with a mini paper cutter to adjust displays throughout the store. You can’t step more than two feet into the establishment before she looks up from her station to greet you and offer support and expertise in choosing the night’s libation.
“She’s a serious oenophile, she’s very well versed,” says Elijah Servance III, Market Manager for Ten To One Rum for the Tri-State area. He has only dealt with Kilolo in a professional capacity but says he’s had nothing but wonderful interactions since the first time he met her. “I remember it was a really crappy, rainy day and she was there and just warm and welcoming. A few weeks later I booked my first tasting in the store and it’s just always been red carpet treatment.” Servance says he visits about 30 liquor stores monthly and, of them, about less than 25% are black owned and even less are women owned.
As a native New Yorker, Servance recognizes the cultural and communal shifts happening in the outer boroughs. Where Brooklyn used to be predominantly inhabited by people within the African diaspora, those people and communities have either left or been displaced. The importance of Fermented Grapes is beyond just being woman owned, it is also inadvertently “maintaining cultural presence,” he says, adding “Also showing acumen, as well, because to own a wine shop specifically you have to be well versed in these products, in these spirits. So, I think it’s just great to have that representation.”
Strobert acknowledges that being a black woman in a predominantly non-black male dominated space is both power and protest. She encourages people interested in entering the wine space as a shop owner, winery owner, or sommelier to have discussions and build community with other likeminded individuals. She mentions groups like Anything But Vinifera and Babe Winebar and how they are slowly building momentum for the queer BIPOC community in the natural wine space through events across the U.S. “These are all younger people,” she says. “All of these people are looking for spaces or building their communities around inclusivity and diversity.”
While Strobert is not natural wine focused, she does carry traditional, organic, and biodynamic wines in store, as well as, rums, vodkas, and her least favorite beverage to drink, Japanese sake. Though the store is not curated to her taste, Fermented Grapes’ Out the Box Wine Club is. She provides two bottles, once a month for about $70 with a tasting note directly from her. “The wine club is based off of me. It’s what I like. It’s what I would want to drink everyday. I have a bomb ass palate,” she says laughing. The best part of the wine club? It’s exclusivity. “Once we run out in the store, the chance of you being able to get it again probably won’t happen.”
When she’s not helping customers directly, organizing shelves, or dealing with paperwork, Strobert is on Instagram promoting weekly Saturday tastings. “I didn’t want to do that. That came out of necessity,” she admits. However, the in-person vibe of Fermented Grapes and Strobert’s personality can be felt through the screen. In every reel, she’s laughing, she’s dancing, and she’s inviting. “I just think wine should be fun. Wine should be interesting, it should be approachable and my industry is very famous for making it the total opposite. I had to break through all of that to understand that I did have a place here.”