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thePeorian.com
The Present
The store has 20 varieties of
olive oils and 14 kinds of balsam-
ic vinegars, all from California.
Brott and store manager Annette
Crady are well read about them
all and Olio & Vino has binders
filled with information about the
various types of oils and the olive
groves from which they are har-
vested. That information, Brott
said, includes the health benefits
of the oils.
“
We want to be able to educate
our customers about the benefits
if they don’t already know them,
then we invite them to find the
taste that suits them because
every taste is different,” she said.
The oils and vinegars are kept in
self-serve barrels.
Once a customer picks an oil,
he or she can buy one already
bottled or ask that it be bottled
right then. The store has its own
branded bottles and equipment.
“
There aren’t too many places
where you can go and taste the
product before you buy it. People
like that they can do that here. It
makes a difference,” Brott said.
Wine can also be tasted as cus-
tomers are invited to taste some
of the wines at the bar or from
the two automated Napa Tech-
nology wine dispensing stations
in the store. The stations each
hold four varieties of wine and
they are temperature controlled
so the customer experiences each
glass the way it is intended to be
served.
The store also carries some
specialty and gourmet foods, in-
cluding pasta, sauces, cheese and
marinades. All combine with the
oils, vinegars and spices to offer
customers a unique aromatic ex-
perience when they first walk in.
For the sweet tooth, truffles
and chocolates are available, as
well.
Brott invites customers to join
Club Olio so they can receive
email updates about the store and
its products, including when it
hosts events such as wine tasting
days. Each Monday is called “Re-
fill Monday” and customers can
bring oil and balsamic vinegar
bottles in to have them refilled at
a special price.
Brott said gift packages are
starting to become more popular
and she will fill them with just
about any product a customer
wishes.
When Brott isn’t at Olio & Vino
she is running the Bernardi’s res-
taurant she owns in Washington,
the third generation of the Ber-
nardi family to own a restaurant.
“
These are my businesses and I
love them. I am busy but I believe
we are giving customers a unique
taste experience,” she said.
OLIO & VINO
4603
N. Prospect, Peoria Heights
(309) 685-5505
Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday
through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday and Saturday; closed Sunday.
Offers a variety of extra virgin olive
oils, balsamic vinegars, wines, gour-
met food items and specialty gifts.
The extra virgin olive oils and balsamic vinegars offered at Olio & Vino in Peoria Heights are kept in steel canisters,
from which they can be decanted as store manager Annette Crady demonstrates.
