A Quest for Quaffs

Our friends the Ds are always turning us on to some cool hideaway for food or drink in our humble suburb. During a Friday night dinner outing, we got to talking about scotch and wine, and where to get good, affordable stuff, preferably from a purveyor who knows more than just a little about buying the stuff.

It took no time at all for them to regale us about Silesia Liquors, located in an extremely dumpy strip mall (and that’s being kind; there are only about three stores in the whole strip, and one of them used to sell feed) right across the Potomac River from us, in Fort Washington, Maryland. So we all set off on a Saturday morning expedition to Prince George’s County to scope out some wine and spirits.

What we had planned was to pop in, get a few things, and head back to Old Town for lunch. But lucky for us, we got sidetracked by a planned wine tasting that was to take place later that day. A vintner from Germany had traveled all the way to li'l ole Fort Washington to showcase her family’s wares. That little tidbit alone convinced us that this place, though disguised as a dump by its drab surroundings, was indeed a world-renowned purveyor of wine and spirits, helmed by one of the most generous and knowledgeable wine experts I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet. KD said when she and her husband used to go there more often, they’d walk in, and the owner would ask “what’s for dinner?” She'd describe what she was preparing, and he’d grab something off the shelf and ring it up. And it was done.

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Walking into Silesia doesn’t do much for the eye in the beginning. Mixers, liters of coke, and other pedestrian items greet you at the door. But if you have any sense of what you’re after, a sharp turn to the right will get you where you need to go. Rows upon rows of wine, organized by region, go on forever.

Unfortunately, when I’m looking to buy something special, I need help. One of our friends was looking for a white. She had some specific flavor notes in mind, but other than that, needed a bit of guidance as well. The proprietor gave us all a riveting dissertation on various pinot gris grapes, among others. Before he could even get to the reds, I already had a Renwood 2004 Viognier ($10) in my hand.

When it was my turn, I gave him a vague notion of what I like, and he wasted no time grabbing a 2004 Chilean Casablanca Valley Pinot Noir ($12). Even though that was a bad year for the pinot grape, he was persuaded by the vintner to pick it up. And it was great, exactly what I like in a red—refreshing, lots of fruity and oaky flavors, not too acidic.

Same went for the Cotes du Rhone ($22) that AC insisted upon.

As we were looking around, the owner convinced us to stay in the area for lunch, so that we might enjoy the wine tasting later that afternoon. When I asked the owner how many wines were being sampled, he said, “Wherever the muse takes us.” I got the message—cancel your plans for the afternoon, stay in town, and come back and drink more. And so we did. We took his suggestion to try out Bangkok Golden for lunch, and enjoyed some of the best curry puffs we've ever had
and a deliciously light country curry.

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We returned for the
wine-tasting and sampled one of the muse's intense reds and several Rieslings from various stages of grape picking (the early pickings result in a less-sweet wine—my preference). Also crammed in this tiny corner of the store was an independent caterer preparing hors d'oeuvres, including two types of Asian chicken salad, and slices of tender roast beef, all of which were delicious.

On the other end of the store, AC was focused on the bounty of high-end scotches that were displayed along the back wall. AC settled on Aberlour's single cask strength A'bunadh, which he will discuss in a future post. It’s a good thing there’s a scotch expert on hand because otherwise, we’d have no clue what to get.

In fact, besides the owner, there seem to be at least two or three other employees who each have their own area of expertise, and are generous with their time and opinions. Tucked among the racks of wine and further underscoring this passion for their product is a bookshelf stacked with books not just limited to wine and spirits, but also covering subjects as diverse as art and opera, and even, inexplicably enough, the 1991 Michelin guide on dining in Spain and Portugal.

For expert commentary on wine, scotch, and more, visit Silesia Liquors at:

10909 Livingston Road
Fort Washington, Maryland
(301) 292-1542

—AK