Liquor stores where you get GOOD service

[Josh]

I've been complaining a lot lately about bad liquor store service in this forum and elsewhere but it recently occurred to me that I might be going about it the wrong way.

Instead of griping about the 95% of stores that are rotten, it might be more constructive to praise the 5% that provide good service and act like they want our business.

Locally, Hills in Bloomfield Hills and Red Wagon in Troy are always fun to shop at.

Binny's, TPS and Liquor Barn have always done well. Liquor World and Toddy's in Bardstown are good too.

I took my first visit to P & M in Elizabethtown last fall and I got great service and had a great chat with Eric.

Where do you get good service?

[TunnelTiger]

Riley's in Chattanooga, Tn.

[DBM]

My challenge, in my state, is that the best customer service stores have the worst prices, often by wide margins (30-50%). A bottle that is $49.99 at Total Wine (lowest average prices in the state) could be $65 to $75 at an independent store that has great customer service.

I used to purchase almost exclusively at one Total Wine (I track my whiskey in CellarTracker, a side effect of which is that I can see what and where I paid for it - $6,400 at this one store in the past 12 months). I felt by supporting the store I may be rewarded (whatever that means) occasionally, but in the past two years I have been proactively offered one, literally one, bottle that they didn't put on the shelf - an OFBB. On many occasions I have walked in the store, been personally greeted by multiple staff members that know me and my "hobby", and because I didn't ask "anything new in the back?" they have failed to tell me about limited bottles which arrived in the store until I ask during a future visit, after they are gone. They don't care about individuals, they are driven by profit and only profit - their customer service is merely a facade.

However, do I want my $6,400 in purchases to be $8,000-9,500 for the exact same product at a store with good customer service? Dilemma.

To keep on topic - good customer service in the Seattle metro area.

- Capco in Issaquah and West Seattle

- Clearview Spirits in Monroe

- BevMo in Bellevue and Tukwila

[nd2005]

I've been complaining a lot lately about bad liquor store service in this forum and elsewhere but it recently occurred to me that I might be going about it the wrong way.

Instead of griping about the 95% of stores that are rotten, it might be more constructive to praise the 5% that provide good service and act like they want our business.

Locally, Hills in Bloomfield Hills and Red Wagon in Troy are always fun to shop at.

Binny's, TPS and Liquor Barn have always done well. Liquor World and Toddy's in Bardstown are good too.

I took my first visit to P & M in Elizabethtown last fall and I got great service and had a great chat with Eric.

Where do you get good service?

Heh - my problem is I don't really want to point the flippers who lurk on this board towards my favorite spots...

[Josh]

Fair enough, but I don't necessarily mean the places that give you your favorite special releases, I mean places that treat you right. Places that act like they want business.

[nd2005]

Fair enough, but I don't necessarily mean the places that give you your favorite special releases, I mean places that treat you right. Places that act like they want business.

But the overlap between those two is pretty high!

I'll cast a vote for Tippin's Market in Saline, MI

I haven't gotten any limited releases from them beyond ECBP - I live too far away to make it down there often enough to be a "regular". But they have a great selection, their staff is super nice and helpful, and they've done some really good barrel picks in the past couple years (including the first 4R barrel picks in the state).

[amg]

I have to give props to A-1 Liquors in Indianapolis. It's a small store that doesn't get great allocations, and they don't take credit cards (which really helps me to control my spending), but they're very friendly, have better prices than most stores (on most items), and the owners are always willing to sample you on something that's unfamiliar. They did a small lottery this year for what special releases they did get, and they were very transparent about what they were getting and how many.

They also get a lot of closeout items (mostly beer) and sell them for dirt cheap, so it's always fun to see what closeouts they have. I once got a case (24 bottles) of Founders Red's Rye IPA there for $22.

[squire]

This is a useful thread for those of us who may find ourselves in one of the locales mentioned.

[cbus]

Ohio as a whole doesn't get much in the way of limited releases at all, so I don't think that I'd be tipping off anyone with this. I've always received great service at Weiland's in Columbus.

[WhiskyRI]

I've had really good customer service at Julio's in Westboro, MA. They aren't my local store but they do 25-30 private barrel picks, and the staff is generally very responsive. In the past they used a loyalty card lottery for whisky buyers to allocate the Fall releases. They also have weekly whisky events and an annual Whisky weekend. Prices are reasonable - sometimes they are super cheap and other times they aren't.

[garbanzobean]

Perfect Pour in Elkridge MD is my go to local place. Their prices can be a bit high at times, but they'll work hard to get items you want. They did a raffle for the right to buy this fall's LE releases, which was very fair. They charge reasonable markup for a large independent store competing with Total Wine. Cranberry Liquors out in Westminster MD has an awesome whiskey guy.

Both places will happily talk to you about bourbon all day, but the employees aren't always at the level enthusiasts might hope for. But they generally know their stuff and work very hard to please. I don't expect store employees to be as obsessed as I am, personally.

Edit: Midway Liquors out in Joppatown is full of great employees too. Very unassuming and friendly.

Edited December 22, 2014 by garbanzobean

[El Vino]

The places I frequent most in NJ are Bayway World of Liquor in Elizabeth, Liquor Outlet Wine Cellars in Boonton, and Joe Canal's in Iselin. Excellent whiskey selections and all do private barrels. The spirits managers are all knowledgeable and helpful.

[t44tq]

I tend to shop only at stores that give me good service, although I will make the exception when I find a place that has some hard to find stuff at a reasonable price.

Astor Wines in Manhattan- the staff isn't as knowledgeable as I would hope, but they are generally helpful in helping you find stuff. They don't seem to have a good way to order stuff if you want something that they don't carry. However, it is fortunate that they carry a tremendous selection of spirits. They are usually very fairly priced, which is unusual for a store with this large of a selection and an overall very nice store.

Park Avenue Liquors in Manhattan- this is THE place to go for whisk(e)y in Manhattan- they have the largest selection of single malt scotch that I have seen, and often get some very rare bottles of scotch that you can't find at most stores. They're on the expensive side, but it doesn't really matter when they get stuff you can't find anywhere else.

I have yet to find a store in NJ that really ticks all of the boxes. PA is state-owned, so you often do get access to limited release products (if you're lucky), but you also have to deal with nasty, lazy employees when you go to the stores.

[mbroo5880i]

I have to give props to A-1 Liquors in Indianapolis. It's a small store that doesn't get great allocations, and they don't take credit cards (which really helps me to control my spending), but they're very friendly, have better prices than most stores (on most items), and the owners are always willing to sample you on something that's unfamiliar. They did a small lottery this year for what special releases they did get, and they were very transparent about what they were getting and how many.

They also get a lot of closeout items (mostly beer) and sell them for dirt cheap, so it's always fun to see what closeouts they have. I once got a case (24 bottles) of Founders Red's Rye IPA there for $22.

I have only been there are few times (opposite side of town) but I will echo Andrew's perspective. Almost a throwback in today's era of super liquor chains. I have also found the employees at Kahn's (Indy) and Vine & Table (Carmel) to be very nice and always helpful. Depending on the store, some of the larger chains (Crown and Big Red) have nice employees and are helpful. Some stores are more knowledgeable and helpful with bourbon and whiskey while others are more knowledgeable and helpful with wine and beer.

In the Fort Wayne area, folks at both of the Cap n' Cork stores I have been to are very nice and do a good job helping you find "something" of interest.

[Vadertime]

If you ever make it to Taipei, I highly recommend BatiaoJiuKu. It is more of a wholesaler to the Japanese Style Men's Bars in the "Triangle" area of Taipei, but they have the best selection of Bourbons I have found in TW. It is not really a store per se, but they have a small showroom (more of a entry hallway) for their ample selection of Scotch and Nippon Whisky. You have to ask about Bourbon, it is more of a novelty here (mostly Beam and BF products but they also have a few WT, 4R and BT products as well). You can also sometimes get some nice prices on old stock. It was tough going over here for awhile, but once I found that place it has been smooth sailing.

On the plus side, they deliver to your door!

Post Script- The island wide chain Drinks.com.tw is the local distributor of HH. They have a rolling selection of HH Bourbons

[JonRob]

In the Nashville area, Red Dog in Franklin has the best customer service hands down. Small store with a huge selection at good prices. You can try almost any spirit in the store at their bar before you buy. They also have LOTS of great store selected whiskeys. Well worth the visit if you are in middle TN.

[ramblinman]

Around here Decatur Package Store is my favorite. A good portion of the staff knows their bourbon (long haired guy especially, can't remember the name), and their barrel picks line up well with my tastes.

They also do a lot of highlight quality value pours like EWBiB, Rittenhouse, AA10 star, etc which is think is great for people getting into bourbon to see.

[TomH]

Like someone else said, I really don't like to give away special places (it's getting harder every year just to come up with a couple of special bottles). However, since obviously since he is well known here I not giving away any secrets here, but I don't know of anyone that provides better customer service both to individuals and the Straightbourbon.com community than our own Lost Polito...Joe Maloney. Tell me another store that would accomodate our get togethers the way that Binny's has....and they only do that because of Joe's efforts. Despite how busy he may be he gives personal attention and never tries to push you into items just to move the merchandise.

[garbanzobean]

Thankfully my honey holes for cheap scotch and LE bourbon have just the worst owners and mediocre at best staff, so they are in no danger of ending up in this thread.

[danz]

I tend to shop only at stores that give me good service, although I will make the exception when I find a place that has some hard to find stuff at a reasonable price.

Astor Wines in Manhattan- the staff isn't as knowledgeable as I would hope, but they are generally helpful in helping you find stuff. They don't seem to have a good way to order stuff if you want something that they don't carry. However, it is fortunate that they carry a tremendous selection of spirits. They are usually very fairly priced, which is unusual for a store with this large of a selection and an overall very nice store.

Park Avenue Liquors in Manhattan- this is THE place to go for whisk(e)y in Manhattan- they have the largest selection of single malt scotch that I have seen, and often get some very rare bottles of scotch that you can't find at most stores. They're on the expensive side, but it doesn't really matter when they get stuff you can't find anywhere else.

I have yet to find a store in NJ that really ticks all of the boxes. PA is state-owned, so you often do get access to limited release products (if you're lucky), but you also have to deal with nasty, lazy employees when you go to the stores.

Astor is great in my view: they are very helpful, they have fair prices for the area and they have a nice space that allows you comfortably browse their selection. They do some private barrels, also.

I have to recommend against Park Avenue Liquor. Their prices are regularly the worst I am aware of outside of the tourist trap in Grand Central and they are one of two places I have dealt with who tried to sell me a Stagg Jr., repeatedly, as a G.T. Stagg substitute, for $150. Their store layout is incredibly cramped, you really can't browse what they have so you have to rely on whoever is behind the counter to let you know what they may actually have and how much it costs, and their hours are really short. Check them out online - I have yet to see them have a competitive price on anything. It's like they have a worst price guarantee. Their bourbon selection did not impress me at all and I am not in the market for $500+ bottles of scotch (their alleged claim to fame), so their selection in general is just not that interesting to me. But maybe if you are a journalist who is willing to give them a favorable mention, they would cut you a deal.

[jvd99]

I bash Binny's on occasion because I get frustrated with their inconsistent handling of limited editions, however, I've generally found their employees working the floor to be consistently friendly and eager to help at all of the outlets I've visited. My go to shop, which shall remain nameless (a few people around here know what it is), are very connected to the community by hosting fun activities at their store, conduct charity drives and they really appreciate their customers. Mrs. jvd99 and my mother-in-law always report back that the employees were helpful when they buy presents for me which is nice, because while I'm a familiar face in the store, they are not. I try to direct most of my business there for those reasons, and because they give me full line-ups of VW & BTAC , and only stray if I'm looking for hard to find single malts.

[NickSmithIsDead]

I'll second Tippins in Ann Arbor. Great service, great

barrel selections, probably my favorite liquor store from a selection standpoint. I am far from a regular but they still set aside an ECBP and a FRSmBLE for me when I mentioned I was looking. Unfortunately, Tippin's is approximately an hour from my house.

My other favorite store is Joe's Liquor in Ferndale, MI. It's a much smaller store but the bourbon selection is disproportionately large, and Randy there is one of the nicest guys I've met in a liquor store. He's been pretty up front about the fact that due to their small size, they probably won't ever be able to get me any Pappy or BTAC, but this is my go to store as it's only a mile away, and despite the fact that I rarely buy more than a bottle a week (and even then it's usually just OGD BIB), they always treat me like I'm their best customer. Another plus is that everything is all sold at MI state minimum.

Edited December 22, 2014 by NickSmithIsDead

[jvd99]

I'll add in Prestige Liqours in Countryside, IL. Not most attentive service, but a nice selection of single malts. Bourbon selection is good for most everything, but I've never cracked the LE pipeline there. The do occasionally get some great WFE bottles that they inexplicably just put on the shelf. This summer I stumbled upon a WFE 23 bourbon sitting on the shelf.

[boneuphtoner]

Perfect Pour in Elkridge MD is my go to local place. Their prices can be a bit high at times, but they'll work hard to get items you want. They did a raffle for the right to buy this fall's LE releases, which was very fair. They charge reasonable markup for a large independent store competing with Total Wine. Cranberry Liquors out in Westminster MD has an awesome whiskey guy.

Both places will happily talk to you about bourbon all day, but the employees aren't always at the level enthusiasts might hope for. But they generally know their stuff and work very hard to please. I don't expect store employees to be as obsessed as I am, personally.

Edit: Midway Liquors out in Joppatown is full of great employees too. Very unassuming and friendly.

+1 on Midway Liquors...Stan the owner is a great guy, and all of his barrel selections I've tried have been phenomenal!

[sailor22]

Tallahassee is a small town that has a liquor store that is punching way above it's weight. Market Square Liquors on Timberlane is a a special store that has a great stock of single barrel selections and a shelf selection much larger than you would expect for a town this size. Not in the same league size wise as some of the very large supermarket or liquor barn stores it has great personal service and a liquor buyer and owner who are genuine Bourbon enthusiasts. The result is that everything that they buy for the shelf is tasted before they are purchased so there are much fewer overpriced "craft" or mystery labels. They do a great job with their barrel picks too, taking the selection seriously.

Perhaps the best thing about this store is the fact that there is a bar next door that you can enter through the liquor store. Want to sample what your thinking about buying? If you don't act like a jerk it's no problem.

Easily accessible from I-10 it should be worth the stop any time you passing nearby. The man you want to talk to on the floor is Barry, mention SB and I promise you will be treated warmly. I should warn you that in some cases bottles are a couple dollars more that you can find them at other retailers, but the opportunity to taste first more than makes up for that.