Fabbioli Cellars

Dear Friends,

45 and Great to be Alive
As you know, I had a bit of a jolt to my system and life a couple of weeks ago. I had acute diverticulitis which, without the emergency 4 hour operation, could have killed me. I spent a week in the hospital and have been home for another week slowly recovering. My energy is good but short lived: it is amazing how much energy your body uses to heal. I will be under the knife again in a couple of months to finish the job and get me back to fully functioning. It will be a long spring of wishing I could get on the tractor or roll around the barrels but considering the alternative, I will find and keep my patience. The biggest thing that gives me patience is the thought of how much Colleen and others sacrificed as I was in the hospital and now at home recovering. I am not going to do something stupid now to put me in the wrong direction as far as healing goes.

I received so many well wishes, prayers, thoughts, flowers, food for the kids and everything else - it was overwhelming. I know that I work to throw the positive energy out but it really feels great when it comes back in spades. Thanks to all for keeping that flow going; it has healing power. A lot of you have asked how you can help and as you read, you will see opportunities to step in.

February 23rd Event - Casual Barrel Tasting!
My birthday is February 21st and I have already received the greatest gift one could have, but let’s share some time together because that is a pretty special gift too! I will be here on February 22 and 23 with some of Aaron's special soups and some barrel samples. We have all talked about how great the 2007 harvest was, so let’s try it together and define what we taste. Also, we will have the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon available for pick up for those of you who have purchased futures. I know this is short notice, but my inspiration is coming and I want to share what I can with all of you. We will be open 11am to 5pm both days as usual but we will have some special wines to taste and share. Come by and visit as I cannot hit the road like I used to for a little while.

Marketing Thoughts
We are working to get our self distribution rights back. The State of Virginia is finally moving forward with the virtual distributor plan. We have started marketing in Washington DC and are getting our permits for MD hopefully within the next month. In VA, Commonwealth Wines will still distribute to the bigger stores and to areas south of Manassas. We will be covering Northern VA ourselves. We will be targeting some stores or restaurants and I am going to reach out to you to say hello to folks at these shops and tell them about Fabbioli wines. This month’s targets are Calvert and Woodley in Washington DC and Wegmans in both Sterling and Fairfax. If you frequent these shops, visit them and ask for some Fabbioli wine. I promise these businesses that I will bring them customers and this is the proof in the pudding.

Thanks for reading, and hope to see you soon.