From waiting in lines six feet apart from other shoppers at grocery stores to pre-ordering groceries for pick-up or surviving solely off GrubHub, the current landscape of food consumption is almost unrecognizable. To add a little bit of joy to the difficult task of shopping for food and drinks these days, this Maryland winery is using its 11-year old boxer to carry wine orders to customers in a saddlebag.
Photo: Stone House Urban Winery/Facebook
Soda Pup, the Winery Dog, Does Curbside Wine Deliveries During the Coronavirus Crisis
At the Stone House Urban Winery in Hagerstown, Soda Pup is helping the social distancing effort by carrying wine to customers waiting curbside for pickup. He can only carry two bottles of wine at a time but does a great job of it.
Photo: Stone House Urban Winery/Facebook
According to owner Lori Yata, “When we get the call, I hold up Soda’s vest and he hurries on over. Not exaggerating, he really hurries over and stands ready. I put a couple treats in the pack, a bag for the wine, and the two bottles of wine. I then open the door and he marches on up the walk to the curb and parking lot to deliver the wine.” But Soda Pup is a dog after all so, Yata has to make sure there are no distractions that would take him off course, like geese or squirrels.
As you might imagine, Soda Pub has become more than just a convenient means of wine delivery but a major attraction and a reason for many to visit the winery.
“We’ve had people call in just specifically to have Soda Pup bring wine out to them. People who have never even been here before,” said Yata. “They said they came in because they saw the post about Soda Pup and they wanted to come and meet him.” 