Mom-Preneur and Sommelier Toasts to Success with Chipmonkey Wine

Sommelier Kanchan Schindlauer launched Chipmonkey Wine in 2019 following a desire to send delicious wine with a personal touch to a dear friend who had just lost her husband to cancer.

Nearly two years later her business, born out of a gesture of compassion, has become a unique, go-to source for wine gift-giving for any number of life’s celebratory or challenging occasions. Through the Chipmonkey website, anyone can personally and easily send high-quality wine hand selected by Schindlauer.

Always the funny kid growing up, Schindlauer pairs wine and humor at Chipmonkey with witty, customized cards and clever packaging. In fact, even the company's name has a quirky origin story. It's the combination of chipmunk and monkey, the nicknames of her two small children. She jokes, “they are, after all, the reason we need a drink.”

Schindlauer developed a passion for wine many years ago during a trip to Styria, a fairy-tale-like Austrian state famous for wine, endless rolling green hills and castles. Today, after much research and studying, she's become a certified sommelier and holds an advanced Level 3 wine certificate with the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET). Given her knowledge of wine and industry expertise, Schindlauer wanted to ensure that the wine she offered was approachable but never sacrificed on taste and quality.

"Although I pair wine with life using lots of humor, I always take my wine selection very seriously," she says. The majority of wine that she offers is from her home state of Washington and other areas throughout the Pacific Northwest. "The grapes grown in Washington have potential to make spectacular wines. I love being in a position to help promote the industry here," she says.

While she wants to support the grapes grown in her own backyard, she also features true Champagne from France and other old world wines that fit the bill of artisan and delicious. While sparkling and red wine remain the most popular wines to gift, Chipmonkey also offers whites, rosés or a mix as well. Tasty, non-alcoholic options are also available upon request.

As Chipmonkey continues to grow and expand, Schindlauer is looking to focus on opportunities with corporate clients. She has already had a number of larger orders from companies in the Seattle area looking to provide special gifts of appreciation for their staff and clients.

During the pandemic, Chipmonkey also had success with an interactive virtual wine-trivia game (no wine expertise needed) for companies to play with their work-from-home employees as a way of bringing them together. With tidbits of wine info sprinkled in a fun, interactive game, she guaranteed everyone to learn a little and laugh a lot.

Schindlauer says that the popularity of the trivia game showed her there is a strong need for companies to stay connected with their employees and clients and recognize their value. While this became especially relevant this past year during quarantine, she says the importance of forming and strengthening connections is a trend that’s here to stay.

Chipmonkey's tagline is "There's A Wine For That!" and Schindlauer aims to deliver on that promise. In fact, as the Covid pandemic eases and employees head back into the office, she believes this is an ideal opportunity for companies to re-engage their employees and clients. "What better way to say thank you for your hard work and dedication through this wild time, and to toast the promise of post-pandemic

re-entry than a with a unique, specially-created sentiment paired to a delicious bottle of wine," she says.

For more information on ChipMonkey Wine and its unique approach to wine gift-giving, please visit www.chipmonkeywine.com.