Four Winds Fine Food Market

ConorThomas

Kentucky

5/5  rDev +14.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 5 | $$

Outstanding. I was not able to visit this store in person, but their exceptional service resulted in me getting exactly what I was looking for, and at a reasonable price. I called ahead to order some Cigar City for a visiting friend to pick up in Pensacola, and bring back to Kentucky. The staff, especially Mike (the beer guy) and James (the owner), stayed in contact, and made sure all beer was safely delivered. I was extremely satisfied with my order, and the willingness of the staff to be flexible. This is how beer stores should act!

10-19-2011 20:06:14 | More by ConorThomas

TappaKeggaBrew

Ohio

2.51/5  rDev -42.6%
vibe: 1.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 1.5 | selection: 4 | $$$$

I really don't get the high ratings some folks are giving this place. I can only assume that they hadn't been to a *good* beer shop to know the difference.
The selection was good -- I have to admit that much -- but the organization was rather poor. Some of the beers were quite old, certainly not than what I'd call fresh.
The manager (or maybe owner) was very pushy, and only semi-knowledgeable (he kept trying to steer me toward his expensive labels, even though they weren't the styles I told him I was looking for).
All in all, everything in the place was quite overpriced. I didn't have enough time in Pensacola to see how the selection stacked up against other local places, but compared to shops I've been in elsewhere, this place was a disappointment.

10-08-2011 20:22:03 | More by TappaKeggaBrew

Beerbuddha

Louisiana

2.71/5  rDev -38%
vibe: 2 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3 | $$

Really people? The "best" in the Panhandle? This place is by far NOT the best in the Panhandle. Not even close.

Upon walking in we met the owner. Nice guy. A bit pushy as many of the reviews state. The place was gross. Cramped with shelves everywhere and open buckets of what appeared to be fermenting olives. We were approached by a cheese lady for a sample and she had no gloves on and handed us the cheese samples using the knife. Not what I expected.

The beer selection was....a disaster. NO organization at all with beer boxes all over the floor and Belgian beer next to American beer and all sorts of craziness. The one thing I can't stand is an unorganized beer section. And the selection wasn't all that impressive. As the former beer dude at Chans in Destin I can easily say Chans smokes this place. Hell, I went to Richies East right around the corner and it was better than this place.

09-24-2011 22:15:32 | More by Beerbuddha

cvm4

Mississippi

4.44/5  rDev +1.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4 | $$$

This place was easy to find and you could smell the goodness inside before you opened the door. First impressions is that it's a cluttered/packed store with interesting items in every nook and cranny. It's definitely an international market with different ethnic food varieties throughout. The smell of this place is just wonderful!

Once you wander around you find the beer. They had a huge selection of DFH, though no 90min which I found odd. Easily 5+ bombers and 3-4 packs of DFH beer. CigarCity was limited, only Jai Alai and Maduro Brown. There was a big selection of Great Divide and Lagunitas, along with Stone and Rogue. The German and Belgium beers were en masse as well. Though it was an impressive selection, the prices seemed a little on the high side from the 6'ers to the bombers.

I didn't eat here but I did sample some of the wares available. It seemed samples were handed out whenever you were interested in a product because they know once you taste it you will buy it! Kudos to Mike for selling me, my buddy and his fiance the store!

09-04-2011 23:51:21 | More by cvm4

LSUPT

California

3.75/5  rDev -14.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4.5 | $$$

Pretty enjoyable atmosphere here, it's a grocery/deli/beer store with hot food as well. Smells very nice and the beer is well placed and nicely organized without too much light damaging the beer.

Quality was good for the most part but one huge problem. I know anytime I misread or fail to read expiration dates I can only blame myself but for an A+ store 6 month expired beer is unacceptable. I misread best by February 2011 on a 6er of Prima Pils, 6 or 8 month best by date seemed right, so I was excited to walk out with super fresh Prima, which is one of my favorites. Instead I walked out with almost undrinkably yeasty 6 months past expired beer. Everything else that I checked was relatively good though but the food kept this rating from being lower.

Service was pretty good. The beer guy wasn't there that day but the two employees that were present asked me several times if I needed help and if I was finding everything alright. Also offered food samples as I shopped.

Selection was pretty good. They had a lot of stuff I was looking for: Oskar Blues, Great Divide, Victory, Highland etc. No Sweetwater and very little Bruery and only Jai Alai and Maduro Brown from Cigar City which was a big disappointment. I came for Cigar City but left with 2 4-packs of Wake-n-Bake which made it worth the extra 90 minutes of driving. Good selection of German and belgian beers though.

Food was excellent. I had a Gyro on french bread, they were out of pita, that was awesome. Tzatziki sauce and hummus were outstanding. My girlfriend had the Turkey salad which was pretty good, I don't like raisins in mine though.
Would have loved to leave with more but the prices were just too high to justify buying a bunch of stuff I will be able to get again. Nearly every 4 and 6 pack were were priced at 11.49 to 13. The food was reasonably priced though.

I didn't check out anything else in the area but the selection here was nothing too incredible. Definitely would have some stuff you could go home happy with if you don't mind the prices.

08-18-2011 23:39:14 | More by LSUPT

abeerlovr

Florida

3.7/5  rDev -15.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$$

This is a gourmet grocery store that sells foods and drinks from around the country and world.
I'll begin by commenting on the beer selection since this is BA. Great beer selection, and from what I understand from friends that shop here more often than I do, they have a good rotation and turn around so no worries on picking up a stale beer.
There is also a cheese counter if you are looking to pair a particular beer with a cheese. One word of caution, watch the cheese they cut vs. the cheese you think they are cutting...I swear the cheese I got home was not the same as the one I thought I was buying.
And now to why I rated the atmosphere and service low. The proprietor is pushy to say the least. Be sure to have a budget thought out before you go because he will push you to buy more and more and more. Also, they try to get you to taste everything from the deli. You may be fine with this, but I have issues with mayonnaisey foods that have been sitting on a cracker for who know how long. Go for the beer selection and gourmet food stuffs and hopefully you won't walk out spending 3x more than you expected.

08-10-2011 18:42:09 | More by abeerlovr

brewskifan55

Mississippi

4.68/5  rDev +7.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5 | $$

Stopped here while we were visiting Pensacola Beach, based on BA recommendations. Wish I could've stayed twice as long, but my wife was getting a bit antsy.
Take a quick left and the beers greet you in massive quantities. One refrigerated area for singles. Two long aisles of warm beer; German on one side, Belgians on the other, with many famous breweries alongside lesser known ones. Another wall had lower priced beers. Prices weren't bad for singles (clearly marked). Around $2.19 for DFH,Cigar City and Terrapin.
Didn't see the hard-sell owner until checkout, which we didn't have to wait in line very long for. He was trying to sell us everything from coffee to wine to cheeses. Loved the lady walking around with cheese samples. You gotta buy some muchies along with the beers. The food is outstanding!
Ask for Mike, the beer man. He took at least 15 minutes talking about dopplebocks and Trappist ales. Loved his lecture.
This is a place I wish I lived near. I'd go at least once a month and stock up...on beer and great food and wine and coffee. Four Winds is a must-go in the Pensacola/Orange Beach area. Don't worry about the medium-pressure owner trying to sell you the store. Just say no, unless your temptations kick in.

08-05-2011 20:43:40 | More by brewskifan55

Compton25

Texas

4.28/5  rDev -2.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5 | $$$

Stopped by here in April after reading the reviews here on BA. First off, be prepared for the hard sell from the owner. I ended up with a few more bottles than I planned on buying.

The selection is the best I have seen in Pensacola. The prices are a bit high, but once again you can't find a better variety of beer anywhere close. I picked up several bottles of The Bruery's beers, which I can not find back home. Great selection of Belgian and German beers.

On a side note, the store has a full deli with really good food. I ended up buying several meats, and cheeses to take back home. A very unique market, with lots of beers and great food.

05-08-2011 04:10:27 | More by Compton25

20jcontra

Alabama

5/5  rDev +14.4%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

This is by far the absolute best place in Pensacola to buy great beer. The quality of the beer for sale is amazing and there is a constant rotation of different beers so there is always something new to try. The beers are mainly sold in singles which is great for sampling a wide variety. The place also sells a variety of other things that go great with beer such as cheeses and meats. The prices are great as well. The last time I was there the guy who is in charge of the beer was there (I think his name was Mike) and was showing me some of the beer that he had just marked down. It wasn't out of date or anything he was just passing along the deal he got when purchasing the beer. I would recommend this location to anyone who loves great craft beer. A+++

02-18-2011 00:17:50 | More by 20jcontra

ABVfreak

Virginia

4.85/5  rDev +11%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Went over to P'cola to do some old school Smokey & The Bandit bootleggin' and the power of BeerAdvocate (FYI, BA its time to get one of your tech geeks to produce a mobile app) lead me to this amazing joint. Great service, awesome attitude about beer and great tips and knowledge from Mike, the beer dude on staff!!! This place looks to be churnin and burnin through stock and I attempted to make off back to Bama with as much as possible! Mike was extremely helpful and hooked me up with some killer brews. This area is a tough demographic when it comes to beer geek-dom and Mike made me feel right at home if not a neophyte in this game. I highly recommend Four Winds to anyone in the FL-AL-MS-LA I-10 corridor who has a penchant for high quality beer and great service. Oh and don't pass up on the cheese samples...I will be back for more!

09-12-2010 23:09:15 | More by ABVfreak