CHICAGO, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Sam's Wines & Spirits will open their fourth retail location on Saturday, November 17th at 8 am. The location is in a historic building in Chicago's South Loop with one of the largest retail wine and spirit inventories in the country, including a fine wine room with rare and allocated wines. The new store at Wabash and Roosevelt also features a 55-seat wine bar, a Dom Perignon champagne bar, a gourmet market with the city's broadest selection of artisan cheeses, and a unique rooftop party space overlooking Soldier Field and the John G. Shedd Aquarium.

The building at 50 E. Roosevelt will be christened on Monday, November 19th at 11am with a magnum of champagne, marking the rebirth of a local landmark that opened in 1928 as the country's first $1 million bus terminal. The two-story structure was designed by a protege of renowned architect and urban planner Daniel Burnham and is instantly recognizable by its classically decorated terra cotta façade. The site fell into disuse decades ago and recently had the electricity restored for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Sam's opening celebration will kick off on Monday with a series of festivities leading up to the holiday shopping season. The calendar includes:

-- Cognac and Cigar Night (Monday Nov. 26) -- Whether your tastes run to Courvoisier, Remy Martin, Louis Royer or any of Sam's 30 other brands (including 80 SKUs), you get a free custom cigar with any cognac purchase. Free. 4-7 pm -- 10 Cane Rum Mixology Camp (Tuesday Nov. 27) -- Learn to make nine different rum drinks with 10 Cane (so-named for the Trinidadian sugar cane, traditionally harvested in groups of 10, that gives 10 Cane its distinctive flavor) and take home the recipes. Free. 4-7 pm -- Bordeaux Futures Night (Wednesday Nov. 28) -- Taste 20 '05 Bordeauxs, purchase '06 Bordeaux Futures, and attend a presentation on this popular wine investment strategy -- the practice of purchasing Bordeaux several years before it hits the market to get the best price as well as guaranteed delivery. $20. 6-7:30 pm -- Sam's Wine IQ Challenge Grand Finale (Thursday Nov. 29) -- The culmination of Sam's first-ever wine tournament to find the smartest wine consumer in Chicago. The six finalists will compete for the title of Ultimate Wine IQ Champion and a $1,000 Sam's shopping spree. Observers will be treated to gourmet food samples and blind wine tastings to test their palate. Free. 7-8 pm -- Watch the Bears in the Wine Lounge (Sunday Dec. 2) -- Wines by the glass, gourmet cheese plates, and three flat panel TVs for watching the Bears battle the Giants. Sam's will be offering free gourmet food samples as well as Toasted Head and Monkey Bay wine tastings, and raffling off a Bears Grill, stadium chairs, and two tickets to the Dec. 30 Bears-Saints game. Free. 3-6 pm -- Champagne Grand Tasting (Tuesday Dec. 11) -- Just in time for the new year, the bubbly will be flowing at Sam's most popular annual Grand Tasting. Sam's will be sampling hundreds of sparkling wines from around the globe, including Spanish Cava, German Sekt, American Bubbly, Italian Spumante, Prosecco and -- of course -- Cremant and Champagne from France. $40 in advance. 5-8 pm

For more information, call Sam's South Loop store at 312-663-9463 or visit http://www.samswine.com/.

About Sam's Wines & Spirits

Sam's Wines is the country's largest independent wine retailer based on annual gross sales volume, with four stores in the Chicago area that stock more than 8,000 wines, 2,500 spirits and 1,200 beers as well as a popular online store at http://www.samswine.com/. Founded in 1946, the company has been honored as Retailer of the Year by both Wine Enthusiast and Wine Spectator magazines, has earned several Best of the Web awards from Forbes, and was recently named the best wine store in Lincoln Park by Chicago magazine.

CONTACT: Jill Schmidt, +1-847-415-9311, cell, +1-847-921-1295,
jills@sspr.com, or Rob Weiss, +1-847-415-9300, cell, +1-224-436-9520,
rweiss@sspr.com, both for Sam's Wines & Spirits

Web site: http://www.samswine.com/