A regular at the shop told me a story a while back, about her child's first day of daycare. When the mother picked her kid up after work, she approached the doorway and her toddler lit up from across the room. Tears of joy and relief in her eyes. A trembling, exhausted exultation followed: "You came baaaack!...".

Retelling that memory, the mom could almost laugh about it now but was gutted at the time, absorbing the drama of her little one's mind, taking for granted that not all things are obvious nor certain to all hearts.

Tomorrow Max departs for the East Coast and will be traveling off and on for a couple months, but he sat me down and reassured me that his return is obvious and certain. We will miss his calming presence at the shop, his gentle nature, his unique sense of humor, his encyclopedic brain, and the occasional morning cello suites reverberating through the ceiling beams on some melancholy mornings. Friends, put in an order or stop in for a bottle today - and say bon voyage to our captain on this ocean of wine. He promises to send letters every other week as usual, and update us on his travels. And we'll be seeing him again before we know it. As Daniel the Tiger says: Grownups come back.

And speaking of returns, it is with a bursting toddler heart that I am delighted to announce that we will welcoming you back and returning to our old selves again. Starting next week, July 20th, OAKLAND YARD will be reopening the bar for wines by the glass and will be extending our store hours. We will now be open SUN-THUR 11-8 and FRI & SAT 12-9. The tasting bar will operate at a set (limited) capacity and we plan to offer some outdoor seating. Stay tuned! We will continue to monitor the data and will implement appropriate operational protocol as the current situation requires, following the guidance of public health authorities. Thank you, as always, for your support and understanding.


See you again soon,

Daniel