Thumb through Chuck Kanski’s reading materials and one might find wine periodicals rubbing elbows with journals examining Eastern philosophy, meditation and quantum physics. The co-owner of Solo Vino Bottle Shop once majored in organic physics (“But calculus II had a different idea,” he quips), and later economics at the University of St. Thomas.
Kanski didn’t begin moving down his career path college lecture halls. Rather, he began his journey during those years at a part-time gig as the evening restaurant manager at the airport Hilton in Bloomington. “The beverage manager was hired just before me and didn’t want to work with the wine reps,” Kanski says. He stepped in to fill the void, and the rest is history.
After spending years in the restaurant business, a FranklinCovey leadership seminar prompted Kanski to make a sharp turn and leave his post as the assistant general manager at Pazzaluna Urban Italian Restaurant in Saint Paul. “I wrote my resignation letter that night,” he says. “All I knew was that my wine passion wasn’t being fulfilled in the restaurant. I realized I had to take a jump off the restaurant line.”
Kanski’s leap of faith landed him on Selby Avenue around Halloween 2001, playing beat the clock by handwriting price tags to get his new wine store up and running for its October 31 opening. Along with co-owners Mark and Katie Bourget, Kanski had a clear goal in mind for Solo Vino. “I wanted to create a wine shop where everyone—novice and neophyte, connoisseur and collector—is welcome,” he says.
Solo Vino houses about 15,000 bottles of wine (1,000 different labels), as well as beer and spirits. While wine constitutes about 85 percent of sales, the same care and attention are granted to beer and spirit selections, Kanski says. Imports comprise 90 percent of the inventory. Interestingly, Solo Vino has more than a passing affection for wines from the Iberian Peninsula, with about 35 to 40 percent of total sales from wines hailing from the region.
Providing information to customers seeking out the perfect bottle is where Kanski finds his Eden. It’s his sweet (or dry) spot, as it were. Staff includes two certified sommeliers. In-store wine tastings are held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Fridays. Kanski says three or four bottles are popped and presented for sampling. He says it’s important for staff and customers to gather and share. “That puts everyone in a good place to feel comfortable and welcomed,” he says. “At the end of the day, it’s grape juice. We’re not snobs about it.”
While each customer walks into Solo Vino with a personal preference or expectation, Kanski hopes they leave with some fundamental knowledge and understanding—one nugget being that the price of the bottle doesn’t necessarily equate with the quality of its contents. “We have many wines that drink well above their pay grade,” he says. That said, he explains that wines run their own race—some are sprinters, others are long-distance runners and the rest are marathoners. All wines can’t be compared with each other. For example, take $7 bottles of wine, which are probably sprinters. Don’t take them to the marathon. “It’s not their race,” he says.
Kanski’s passion for wine extends outside the shop on Selby. It takes on a philosophical note with a splash of quantum physics. “No other beverage can bring a person back to a moment in time like wine can,” he says. “Wine has the magical ability to teleport someone back in time.”
Chuck Kanski’s Spring Favorites
As the season melts into outdoor entertaining, Chuck Kanski has some thoughts. “I’m crazy-passionate for rosé wine,” he says for spring and summer beverage options. He recommends Zestos Garnacha Tinto (2014) for a red, Zestos Rosado (2015) for a rosé, and Zestos Malvar Blanco (2015) for a white. “I love this producer for spring and summer,” he says.
