Longtime NYC Wine Expert Opens Shop In Prospect Heights

PROSPECT HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN —A wine expert whose career stemmed from a shop in Prospect Heights has returned to the neighborhood with her own take on the Vanderbilt Avenue store.

Kilolo Strobert, who has worked at acclaimed wine stores throughout the city, officially opened the doors to a revamped version of Fermented Grapes wine shop on Vanderbilt Avenue near Prospect Place on Tuesday.

The storefront, previously run by a couple who opened it in 2004, was once Strobert's first foray into the wine world.

"A personal journey for Kilolo, Fermented Grapes was part of the Prospect Heights community for more than twenty years, and it’s where she had her first job in the wine industry," a press release states. "Now, Kilolo returns to her roots on Vanderbilt to re-launch Fermented."

The new Fermented Grapes will be run by Strobert and Max Katzenberg, a hospitality consultant whose credits include Prospect Heights staples Olmsted and Maison Yaki.

It will include a diverse selection of wines from across the globe and spirits selected from New York distillers. Fermented will also feature special sections highlighting female, Black and Indigenous winemakers, according to the release.

The wine shop, set up to look like a "mod living room," will host tastings, guest sommelier visits and other events starting in the spring.

Strobert's background includes gigs at Manhattan wine shops Le Dû’s Wines and Morrell & Company, and roles at restaurant review platform Zagat and Fresh Direct Wine & Spirits. She also works at the nonprofit Wine on Wheels and manages wine programming at StarChefs International Chefs Congress, according to the release.

Fermented Grapes will be open at 651 Vanderbilt Ave. from 12 to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.

Here are some photos from the new store: