Arrowine Staff
Doug started his wine career in 1977 working at Cheese and Bottle, in the very spot where Arrowine is now. He has worked for most of the leading wine shops in the area, Pearson's, Central Liquor, Larimer's Market and Morris Miller. While at Morris Miller, Doug developed over 20 exclusive winery relationships, bringing such wineries as Au Bon Climat, Qupe, Babcock, Rosenblum, Nalle, Claiborne and Churchill, Storrs, Hop Kiln, Lazy Creek and many others to the D.C. market.
In 1993, he took a six-year hiatus from the wine industry, and as part of the management team helped to successfully establish Starbucks on the East Coast.
While at Starbucks, Doug took several trips to France on his own time and dime to taste wines with his friend, importer Robert Kacher. These trips convinced him that his heart was still in the wine business, so in 1999 he became the managing partner of Arrowine and shortly thereafter bought out his partners.
Doug has made Arrowine a destination for wine and food lovers. He travels at least three times a year to wine-producing countries to find high quality and value wine, many of which are exclusive to Arrowine. He has been quoted in the International Wine Cellar and has been a guest on WAMU's "Kojo Nnamdi Show."
A refugee from war-torn Ethiopia, Shemsedin Hassen (Shem) arrived in the United States in 1987 with literally nothing. The son of a politician, Shem was trained as an electrician, but first found work in the U.S. as a bus boy at the Holiday Inn on Rhode Island Avenue. In 1989, he applied for a job as a stock person at Northwest Washington's Morris Miller Wine & Liquors. Then-manager Doug Rosen discovered that Shem was a natural, having the finest palate he had ever encountered and began introducing him to the world of fine wine.
Shem spent more than a decade at Morris Miller, becoming a co-owner of the Washington, DC, institution in 1996. He has combined his passion for and knowledge of wine with a keen business acumen. In 2004, he joined Doug Rosen again; this time as his partner at Arrowine.
Shem has traveled extensively, seeking out quality and value for his wine customers. While he favors no particular country, Shem has a depth of knowledge in wines from California and Bordeaux.
Jim first became seriously interested in wine more than 15 years ago. He was in law school in Richmond, VA, needed a part-time job to earn a little money, saw an ad about a part-time job at a wine shop, and thought it sounded like fun. It didn't take Jim long to realize he loved it! When he graduated and moved to Falls Church, he was out of the wine business for several years, but still liked to talk about wine, read about wine, travel to wineries, and drink good wine with friends whenever possible. Though he was practicing law, he regularly shopped at Arrowine. It was a fun place to spend time (and money) and in 2001 he joined Arrowine as a part-timer, helping out on evenings and weekends when his legal practice allowed. That's when he really "caught the bug" and in 2002, Jim became part of Arrowine's full-time staff.
Jim is interested in all kinds of wine, and enjoys when a customer tells him that a wine he recommended made a meal better; whether it was a $6.99 red wine that made Tuesday night's spaghetti dinner seem kind of special or a single vineyard Barolo that made a 20th Anniversary dinner even more memorable. Jim's particular vinous passion is for the wines of Italy. He has traveled to Italy each of the last 7 years and attended VinItaly in 2006 and 2007. Italy's wine scene is incredibly vast, diverse, and fast changing and Jim's knowledge and contacts in the area help keep Arrowine's Italian selections fresh, current, and exciting, the best in the area.
Your "local cheese and beer man," Perry is responsible for our excellent and extensive selection of cheese, meat and beer. Starting here as a high school student in 2001, Perry has acquired a tremendous depth of knowledge from his on-site training and many mentors. Over the years, he has willingly been exposed to the best of the best in the world of cheese and great food. Working closely with fellow cheesemonger Aldo Molina, Perry has grown the cheese and meat selection to one of the best in the Washington metro area. Every summer Perry attends the Fancy Food Show in New York to search for new and exciting cheeses and charcuterie to share with everyone at Arrowine. On these trips he “suffers” through hundreds of cheeses and meats, bringing back only the best of the show.
Perry’s passion for good food grows every day, and he is amazed and excited for the future of good food. Perry is also responsible for Arrowine’s amazing beer selection. In his earlier days he stood by the beer sidelines, but since turning 21, he has been avidly cultivating the department, focusing on procuring an eclectic, interesting, and tasty a selection of rare and delicious beers from small microbreweries in the U.S., Canada, Belgium, Germany, and the rest of Europe, and loves to share his experiences with all who visit Arrowine.
If you’ve found an exceptional item you’d like to share with Perry and Arrowine, please Contact Us.
Kathleen's interest in food began when she was a grade-schooler living in Port Marly, a town on the outskirts of Paris. Her family's row house was next door to Le Relais de Marly, the town restaurant, and Kathleen would stand in her courtyard, taking in all the wondrous and intriguing aromas. These aromas sparked her imagination, and her food curiosity hasn't stopped since.
She joined the Arrowine team in 1990. As business manager and specialty food buyer, she brings us both her background in business and her passion for food. Kathleen enjoys wearing many hats at Arrowine, from the day-to-day running of the business, to searching out new food items.
Be sure to email her kcalnan@arrowine.com with your new epicurean finds, or with special order items. She'll be happy to see if we can bring them to Arrowine.
Mike Feeney learned to appreciate the virtues of wine while stationed in the Mediterranean with the military. The beer was too warm to drink and you didn't trust the ice in your soda. Good wine was affordable and readily available. While trying all the new and exciting Mediterranean foods it seemed that they would harmonize so much better with the local wines.
Back in the States, Mike got caught up in the frenzy from the 1982 Bordeaux harvest. He heeded Robert Parker's advice to "run, don't walk" to his local retailer to snatch up as many bargains as possible. (Mike once even called his mother from his ship stationed in Norfolk to have her fight through a mob to get him a case of Cornas.)
While going to school in Washington, he put his computer skills to use by designing and printing wine menus. He needed to learn more about the wines to write the descriptions, so he started reading wine books and bothering the wine staff with lots of questions. One of the stores hired him for the holidays and he’s now been at Arrowine for more than 20 years.
While there are few wines and foods that Mike does not like, he has a special love for the wines of Europe, including Bordeaux.