Forget record stores, rep you favourite LIQUOR STORE!
Danno3000
2,851 Posts
Once upon a time, when I travelled I looked for records stores. I still do, but now I get just as excited by a good liquor store. I like whisky, and in Ontario our booze is controlled by a state monopoly that limits selection and taxes the good stuff prohibitively. Good US liquor stores are special places for me. My favourites...
http://www.totalwine.com/ in Las Vegas--unquestionably the best warehouse style store I've been into. Not only is their scotch and artisanal US distillery section on point, this place is cheap enough to make a fellow giggle. For the past three years I've visited, they always have interesting independent bottlings of single malts, standard classics at exceptionally good prices (Laphroiag 10 for $30? Lagavullin 16 for $50? Yes please) and baller stuff at fair prices. The selection does seem to change pretty wildly year to year.
http://www.liquorbarn.com/ in Lexington--good for local stuff, especially rye, but otherwise underwhelming for the size. I never understand why Canadian Whiskey has cachet in bourbon land. They have huge walls of the stuff, or course at a fraction of what it costs here. Whenever I'm driving through kentucky, I stock up on cheap stuff there.
http://www.binnys.com/ in Chicago--good for the high end independant stuff, and always a sure source of Chicago's Koval, which makes some really interesting whiskies. They also often have Anchor's Old Potrero. Not as cheap as Vegas, but tight selection.
http://www.riversidewine.com/ in Chattanooga--this is what I love in a good, small liquor store: low-key building managed by people who care about what they sell and curate their selection carefully while keeping prices low. Excellent for bourbon and rye, good for scotch. They also have an interesting Madeira selection, which apparently is popular there.
Please let me know where your favourite liquor store is, because I'll come and visit.
http://www.totalwine.com/ in Las Vegas--unquestionably the best warehouse style store I've been into. Not only is their scotch and artisanal US distillery section on point, this place is cheap enough to make a fellow giggle. For the past three years I've visited, they always have interesting independent bottlings of single malts, standard classics at exceptionally good prices (Laphroiag 10 for $30? Lagavullin 16 for $50? Yes please) and baller stuff at fair prices. The selection does seem to change pretty wildly year to year.
http://www.liquorbarn.com/ in Lexington--good for local stuff, especially rye, but otherwise underwhelming for the size. I never understand why Canadian Whiskey has cachet in bourbon land. They have huge walls of the stuff, or course at a fraction of what it costs here. Whenever I'm driving through kentucky, I stock up on cheap stuff there.
http://www.binnys.com/ in Chicago--good for the high end independant stuff, and always a sure source of Chicago's Koval, which makes some really interesting whiskies. They also often have Anchor's Old Potrero. Not as cheap as Vegas, but tight selection.
http://www.riversidewine.com/ in Chattanooga--this is what I love in a good, small liquor store: low-key building managed by people who care about what they sell and curate their selection carefully while keeping prices low. Excellent for bourbon and rye, good for scotch. They also have an interesting Madeira selection, which apparently is popular there.
Please let me know where your favourite liquor store is, because I'll come and visit.
Comments
I don't know the one in Vegas but there's a Total Wine that's literally a stone's throw from the PA border in Claymont, DE. I think half the Philly metro must get their booze there. Great for stocking up on Shiner Bock (which isn't sold in New England or even NY) on the way home from the in-laws.
And Binny's...I've been to a few, both in downtown Chicago and the suburbs and they've all been excellent. Always fun to browse through all the stuff we don't get in CT. Their single malt scotch section is always impressive.
Best place I know in CT is Amity Wine & Spirit in New Haven, right off the Merritt/Wilbur Cross Pkwy. exit 59. They have tons of everything including an especially ridiculous beer selection. And there's a Sam Ash next door, not my favorite music store but more interesting than the usual strip-mall fare.
About a half hour north of New Orleans, I just wanted to pick up some local liquor and stopped in at http://acquistapaces.com/ I was impressed by the selection. I don't know if it is unusual for the area or not, but it looked good.
I've never been to Memphis, but the next time I'm in Tennessee I'm going to make the trip. That is an awesome sign.
I've never seen a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle rye for sale. I know it exists, but it's sort of mythical to me. I want.
1) Barrel House on 14th & Rhode Island
This was the place you could get 64's of Olde Golde in the city. Years later my friends moved above the dry cleaners 4 storefronts down. Their beer selection is all crafty now due to the neighborhood change and there's no way you can find beer in cans over 16ozs in there but still show love.
2) Press Liquors
And If you skated in DC and liked to cause trouble/drink beer, Press is within 100 steps of this iconic skate spot @ 0:15
ontario, CAN or CAL? if ontario canada, maybe i can hip you to some good LCBOs that have good selection based on demographic. can't compete with 'murrica tho, or even quebexico for that matter.
our liquor prices suck but our beer game is tight
this is the best beer spot in MTL (Peluso)
amazing selection, variety, small batch stuff, seasonal flips, great clearance deals..just incredible
one stop shop if you want to taste some of quebec's finest brews
Come to DC. The Pappy and his 15 & 23 year old cousins stay in a bar across the street from me.
so. fucking. good. :face_melt:
But I will ride for the two places close to my shop, Astor Wines & Spirits and Warehouse Wines & Spirits. Both are fantastic in the price category; both have significant selection, although Astor's is deeper and more curated if you ask me. I used to have a great customer whose family was part of the operation there and he spent most of his time in Ireland, tasting whiskeys, and claimed that the store was basically buying up whole vintages and vineyards. Their cheap wines are really bang for the buck, and of course if you want to splurge they have whole aisles of whatever region or spirit you might deign to peruse.
Should you ever visit Berkeley, CA you should fuck with Kermit Lynch. Matter of fact I am headed there next month and will definitely be stocking up!
aside from the aisles of bourbon, LB gets love for the excessive and ever-changing taps they have.. cheap growler fills
Personally speaking though:
Parkdale LCBO on Brock Avenue ??? I used to live around the corner from this one, so it wins for convenience. Pretty grittygrimey, making it a winner for the staff which mostly consisted of take-no-BS scrappy ladies (including two really cute redheads!!) and smirky youngish guys - all friendly and nice and taking the street drama in stride. I???ve never seen bottles break at a liquor store for all my years of patronage all over the city except for at the Brock LCBO. Policy is to not sell to intoxicated customers, but that doesn???t prevent them from coming in the store, wobbling around and bumping into a cart full of red and white wine that someone is putting on the shelves. It looked kind neat all mixed together. The staff didn???t even react, just went for the mop bucket.
This location also holds a particularly special place in my heart; I can honestly say I have never experienced a more foul and knock-you-out odour than what one shopper had to offer. The cashiers felt no way about grabbing their air fresheners (it's the kind of location where the staff have air freshener spray at their registers) and spraying the whole front area before dude even got there to pay.
Most LCBO joints that have police stationed in the store have the cop hang out at the front by the cashiers. At Parkdale, they're walking the floor, keeping an eye on the whole store.
I also almost got into a fight with some fuckwad in the parking lot at this location who thought it was funny to pour his beer on a homeless guy sleeping on the ground.
Sheridan Mall LCBO at Jane and Wilson - This is my local now. It sits between a dollar store that blasts oldies reggae and a clothing/bootleg DVD and CD spot that blares dancehall ??? they both put their speakers outside and it???s strip mall soundclash. A while ago I put up a story about this woman flirting hard with some young guy in the line and them exchanging phone numbers outside, it happened at this store. There???s kids in tow at this location a lot, too ??? last time I was in there, the dad had his little girl carrying two Breezers to the counter???.and the cashier thought it was the cutest thing. Maybe it was, I dunno. I'm uptight about certain things. And two different guy friends of mine have been propositioned by a pro at their cars in the parking lot. Now that I???m writing this all out, I realize it???s a super weird location.
http://healthy-spirits.blogspot.com/
Fucking expensive though.
when comes to the hard stuff, the only right option is cacha??a, and there's a decent store in the public market
none of that rubbing alcohol shit they export to the US, just barrel-aged goodness