Winebits 709: Sommelier arson, wine delivery, hat etiquette

This week’s wine news: Sommelier arrested for arson, plus wine delivery’s future and hat etiquette — because hats matter in cheap wine

• Arson charges: Caleb Ganzer, a former Food & Wine magazine sommelier of the year and a partner in a well-regarded Manhattan wine bar, is facing arson charges. The New York Times reports that New York City police arrested Ganzer last week and charged him with two felony counts of arson and several other crimes in connection with three fires, including two at outdoor dining sheds in Manhattan. There was no indication of motive.

• Bring on delivery: Wine retailers continue to see delivery — jump-started by the pandemic — as key to success in whatever becomes the new normal, says Market Watch magazine. The “emergence of on-demand delivery has resulted in added sales, while consumers have quickly become enamored by the convenience and reduced-friction transactions the services offer.” Delivery has always been something small retailers had mixed emotions about, since it usually offered as much aggravation as it did profit. But better websites, third-party delivery services like Drizly, and relaxed state laws have reduced the former and offered more of the latter.

• Hat hair: The WC doesn’t want to hear this isn’t a wine item — how can I spread the gospel of cheap wine without knowing hat etiquette? And, of course, how to fix hat hair? Fortunately, The New York Times’ Ask Vanessa column solves all. I knew most of the etiquette; it’s the hat hair stuff that was a revelation: Use “dry shampoo, also known as hair powder.” Who knew, given the long, sordid history of hair powder? Her advice? Excuse yourself to powder your hair, sprinkle hair powder into your hands and scrunch. Who knows? Maybe I can get an endorsement deal.