Good Wine
“What I've learned, over and over in life, is that you gotta pivot,” says Heather Johnston, owner of Good Wine. The Long Island native, 57, has mastered the art of changing course. After graduating from Harvard with a degree in American history, she moved to Brooklyn to pursue a passion for independent filmmaking. She and her now husband premiered their 1989 feature, “The Big Dis,” at Sundance Film Festival and internationally in Berlin. The New York Times called the low-budget movie “exuberant;” the Los Angeles Times said it “put bigger films to shame.” They even sold the rights to Nelson George and Chris Rock. But Heather describes their second effort as a sophomore slump, while a third film in 1997 gained only a little bit of traction. “By this time, I’m tired,” she says. “That starving artist thing is really tough.” So she headed to culinary school.
After years of hustling as a freelance recipe developer and food writer, mostly for Essence Magazine, in addition to hosting an early YouTube cooking show, she pivoted again. “Print magazines changed dramatically,” she said, prompting a move to a marketing job at the French Culinary Institute. “Then I realized how much I hate sitting at a desk.” So when she heard the owners of a wine shop in her Park Slope neighborhood were selling it in 2015, Heather took over, rebranding from Pcada-Y-Vino to a simpler name: Good Wine. “I’ve done all different types of things, but nothing like owning a small business in New York City,” she says with a laugh. “But I am very satisfied doing things on my own terms.”
“I’ve done all different types of things, but nothing like owning a small business in New York City. But I am very satisfied doing things on my own terms.”
At Good Wine, Heather wants you to feel welcome, above all. “I’m constantly trying to demystify the store,” she says. ”Before COVID, we had food pairing classes that I’d cater and tastings almost every day to lower the barrier of entry.” Decked with seasonal white lights and ornaments, plus Heather’s entire cookbook collection, the shop has a rustic feel and warm atmosphere. It’s like visiting a friend’s home.
“One of the things that I promised myself once I left that awful marketing job and took this shop on was that I would create a great work environment,” she says of her tight-knit and knowledgeable team, who are happy to help you pick a perfect bottle (or three) from the store’s wide selection. “Anybody here can tell you about literally every wine on the shelf.”
With a highly curated selection of bottles in a range of prices, Good Wine avoids big brands in the hopes that you’ll discover something new. “There are a lot of gems out there,” says Heather, who focuses on the home cooking consumer. Her eclectic inventory includes choices from Black winemakers, including Bosman Family Vineyards, which has been making wine for eight generations in South Africa; Aslina Win; Red Phoenix, a California wine from a Belizean winemaker; True Wine Connoisseurs and House of Brown Wine.
“They can be hard to find, but I work hard to get them,” Heather says. To make your search even easier, every bottle in the store is accompanied by a short description. In these wintry Omnicron days, whether you’re quarantining or just want a low-key hang with friends, Good Wine is the balm you need.
327 5th Ave, Brooklyn, 718-499-2392, goodwine.nyc
