Members of Local Option Coppell, the political action committee responsible for getting the issue of alcohol sales in Coppell on the November ballot, saw the fruits of their labor last week, just in time for New Year's Day.Tom Thumb, located at the corner of Denton Tap and Sandy Lake roads, now carries beer and wine, thanks to the ordinance passed in November."We're obviously excited. When you work hard at something you're always pleased to see it finished," said Larry Kingsbury, Local Option Coppell member. "I've had members say they thought it was super that it happened before New Year's so they could stop in and get some bubbly and not send their tax dollars to Grapevine or somewhere else."Many proponents of the legislation hope for greater convenience when shopping and an increase in sales tax revenue.

Tags: beer

Some of the best private collections of wine anywhere are in the Palisades. A few of the super rich (in wines) declined to be interviewed for this article, but here is a sampling of a few local collectors who love wine.

Neil and Cindy Selman bought their home on Latimer Road in 1987. Cindy visited Latimer Road many years before, and fell in love with it, and when she and Neil were looking for a home in the Palisades, she remembered its beauty, and was delighted to find a home for sale there.

Both were also pleasantly surprised to find that the prior owner had built a concrete and reinforced steel bomb shelter attached to the house, with a filtered air supply and plumbing, but converted to a wine cellar with wine shelves already installed.

Recalling their early dates before they married, when they drank 'nectar ros',' the Selmans began to collect wines in 1982, and moved the collection to their new cellar when they moved to the Palisades.

Tags: wine making

A glut of grapes in the United States and abroad has pushed down prices of some better-quality bottles of wine, making it a good time for people to stock up at home.

Even as the under-$10-a-bottle market explodes, consumers can trade up to a much nicer bottle of wine for just a few dollars more, something to keep in mind as New Year's Eve partygoers flock to liquor shops and grocery stores to pick up vino.

"In terms of what you can get, bang for your buck, it just keeps getting better and better," said Cyril Penn, editor of the California-based trade journal Wine Business Monthly. .

Tags: wine making