Wetting a New Whistle

It seems funny but since he officially opened the doors of his new store in Wilton Center on March 31, Mitch Ancona has actually gotten to take a little breather.

Ancona was the first to launch a liquor store in previously damp-but-not-wet Wilton, the culmination of months of work on his part. His new digs, Ancona's Wines & Liquors at 5 River Road, is a quaint establishment conveniently located near Stop & Shop and with a wide and still-growing variety of beer and spirits.

Though Ancona is still trying to finish selecting and stocking his products (he said he was at about 70 percent capacity a week or so ago), and is permanently busy getting and keeping his stores in shape, the proverbial sigh of relief comes as he sees all the hard work he put into getting the liquor store initiative on the ballot and legalized finally pay off.

Ancona was the spokesman for Wilton for Wine, a group largely responsible for putting the liquor store allowance question to voters and seeing them respond by approving it last fall. The process of getting the issue to a vote is not quickly told, though you can read about it all here. Suffice it to say that since 2008, Ancona's been leading the charge and this is his victory.

We figured we'd check in with the man and see how residents are responding to the new-yet-familiar guy in town.

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