February 2010         

Dear friend of fine spirits,

  On www.caddellwilliams.com, please click here to see some new stuff.  It’s a tiny sampling of what’s available from Henry Preiss and his Preiss Imports.

  The economy being what it is, we chose some of Henry’s well-priced spirits.  In addition, the link on our site here allows you to shop the extensive Preiss on-line catalogue, which includes an amazing number of absolutely wonderful things.  Every spirit in the Preiss portfolio can be ordered through Caddell & Williams (but some are allocated & may be sold out).

  It’s great at last to be working with Henry.  We’ve been crossing paths for 25 years.  That’s because we work at – and care deeply about – the same thing: wonderful small-production spirits.  Actually, it’s the other way around: we love the stuff…and then struggle with how to make a living by dealing it, which is very very far from easy.

   Henry has an unparalleled eye for great product, but that’s not enough.  What he and I face daily is how tough it is to move very small quantities of craft-method spirits through the beverage alcohol wholesale/distribution network.  We work inside separate organizations, but we’re walking the same path.  When we meet at some event, we always have a great time talking because it’s with someone who understands what the issues are.

   Henry is very intense.  He once told me that he feels good about going to the dentist for teeth-cleaning because it forces him to sit there, doing nothing: he gets some time to think.  Out of this intensity, he has built up an astonishing network of suppliers from many of the world’s distilling regions.  Most of the fabulous spirits Preiss Imports sells would not be on the market in the US if it were not for Henry.