Park Lane Liquor

trancesk8er

California

3.71/5  rDev -10.4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | $$$

Great dive with a massive selection of craft beer as well as a huge import section. The guy who does the beer ordering is good at finding your request. Unfortunately he is the only one of the staff that has any beer knowelege and is very rarely there. I love that they're stock is always being updated. You are able to find the new beers here as soon as they come out. Over the past 5 years they have turned from a convenience store to a dedicated liquor store with a heavy beer foot. Some bad points are that they have isles of UN-refrigerated beer, normally not a big deal. Although, that on top of it being an open air store is a bad thing. I have yet to EVER see the door closed. Keep in mind that at this time of year we are seeing an average temperature of 90, with a avg low below 70. This is not good for beer. Be careful what you buy, and give it a good eye over. There is a lot of beer that I've seen there for years and never move. I wouldn't want to waste my cash on that. Last to the cost. I marked this place as a bit pricey because they do a generous markup on big names. ESPECIALLY Firestone beers. Example is this years parabola. The standard price in stores is $15.99. I passed on some of these in san diego last week because I didn't feel like transporting it back to the AV after a day with the kids at sea world. I walked into parklane wednesday and could've kicked myself for that decision when I saw 12 boxes on the shelf marked up to $25.99!!! If this was a fluke I would have marked them reasonable, however like I said before they like to mark these up. Expect the same for anything by the Bruery or Rogue. That said there are some good deals in here from time to time and is always worth a stop.

06-09-2012 03:53:10 | More by trancesk8er

Alucard4

California

3.86/5  rDev -6.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 4.5 | $$

In the AV this is pretty much the stop to find good craft beer. There is a Bevmo here but lets face it the people that work there are usually god damn idiots and never can go out of there way to get anything for you. That is not the case with Park Lane. I have been going here for years and the buy who orders beer with usually go out of his way to try and get whatever you are looking for. The only thing you have to worry about is sometimes their stuff is not the freshest and you have to pick and choose what you think is still good and what is no good anymore, especially with the foreign stuff. That being said this is a place stop usually a couple times a week

07-17-2011 22:17:33 | More by Alucard4

DarthKostrizer

California

4/5  rDev -3.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Living in the Antelope Valley this place has been the only place to get HTF craft beers in the AV for the past several years before BevMo moved up here.

When you walk in this place could be a bit off putting because well its a liquor so you most likely have some one ask you for change if you know what I mean. Also food section is a bit crowded but if you go there what I do then you head straight to the back of the store where they keep the goodies.

There are overall about 15 shelves about ten feet long that store the warm beer. about 10 of the shelves store most of the imports. They have a really good selection of Belgian beers and other beers from Europe but their Belgian selection really stands out. The other 5 shelves are filled mostly with craft beer from the U.S. while their selection is vast please please please make sure you purchase with caution because there is alot of stock that is out of date or has a nice layer of dust on them. With that being said as long as you pass up on those you should find just what your looking for and even ones that your not. For instance I was there saturday and they had a few Vertical Epic 06's. I would say they have a few hundred different beers at all time which can satisfy any want.

The store also has about 10 sections of coolers with a great selection of European and local favorites that are prime and ready to drink. Except the Twilight summer ale it had a best by date of 09/10 so might wanna pass on that but apart from that everything else in the coolers is good and fresh.

Overall I absolutely love this place the workers are always friend and the guy who orders stuff will go out of his way to find whatever you are looking for well at least he is for my brother and I. If you are ever in the AV this is a must if you are a beer lover.

06-27-2011 04:45:38 | More by DarthKostrizer

UCLABrewN84

California

3.55/5  rDev -14.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | $$

Visited Park Lane Liquor today on a road trip with the wife to see friends. This is located in a strip mall and it's a pretty decent sized place. Walking in there is a HUGE section of beer in the back. Some is refrigerated and some is not. There are beers from all over the world and all over the US. Like others have said, some of the beer is old and probably should be purchased and consumed with "caution" as to the quality. However, there are also beers that can hold their own with age and are still good for purchase. I was able to find some rare gems here: Stone Vertical Epic 07.07.07 and 2005 Thomas Hardy's Ale to name a few. I also got a Sam Adams Triple Bock just to experience this one for myself after reading so much about it on BA. Overall, there are about 6 coolers of craft beer, 2 coolers of BMC and well-known imports, and 3 huge shelves of craft beers from around the world. Overall, this is a great place to check out if you can hunt out the good from the old.

04-18-2011 02:50:50 | More by UCLABrewN84

GRG1313

California

3.33/5  rDev -19.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | $$$

Wow. There is a huge selection of beer from all over the world. There are domestic beers that I've never seen in California as well as imports that I've never seen anywhere. This place is like "an antique store" of full bottles of beer.

I say the foregoing since there is clearly no rotation. There are bottles on the shelves of beers long retired, some even have dust on the caps. Of course, that didn't stop me from purchasing old brews that I've not seen for a while to try. I.e., Sam Adams Triple Bock, Hardy's Ale 2005, Lagunitas Saison Style Sonoma Farmhouse, etc. So, the purchases here while fun and almost historic, is done with a gamble.

Prices are high but the selection is great. Again, problem is one of freshness or beer that can take the age still being stored properly. The vast majority of the bottles are on the shelves at room temperature. And, the staff knows nothing about the beer. I.e., "It's my Uncles collection," a lovely young Cambodian girl pronounced when I commented on the large selection. "Uncle" was not there and the staff was less than clueless.

Note: There are a number of bottles that I bought that I will not review as it would not be fair to the beer, i.e., the Lagunitas Saison Style, among many others. Many of the bottles I purchased were way over the hill; a beer that should likely not have been aged in the first place and should have long ago been removed from any reputable stores shelves. Question: Is keeping clearly old and outdated brews on the shelf fair to an uneducated public? I took a chance, knowingly, on many bottles. "Joe Public" may walk in, see what he believes are some great things to try and end up drinking a 4 year old IPA!

Based on all of the above, my grade must stand.

03-19-2011 05:25:56 | More by GRG1313

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

4.5/5  rDev +8.7%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I was surprised by this place. Walking in, the joint is a bit overcrowded, with the aisles packed pretty close together, but once you get to the back, it's all worth it.

They had a pretty decent selection of beers from all over the US, and their imports were pretty numerous, as well. Some of the beers looked a little dusty, so they got left behind. Others were a tad bit overpriced, so they, too, were skipped over. Once those few were weeded out, it was a decent score.

I spent about $80, but carried out a pretty big box plus a bag of bombers and loose bottles. It was a mix of some German and Belgian imports, as well as some favorites from Decshuttes, Rogue, and North Coast. Decent pick up, and I will definitely be making a return trip at some point.

01-23-2011 08:26:31 | More by GarthDanielson

Gorefiendus

California

4.3/5  rDev +3.9%
quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 4 | $$

Being an A.V. native, this place is a needle in a haystack, a diamond in the rough if you will. I'm somewhat of a regular and get to chat up with the buyer every now and then. Great People. I've been offered stuff that they don't even carry. But i digress. Selection is great, and broken up into regions. 3 Shelves for American, 1 for German, 1 for Belgian, etc, etc. Prices are on par for what I've seen around most of Los Angeles. Only turn off about this place is how long stuff sits on the shelves. If it has dust on it, Move On. Other than that, great beer, great prices, great service. I keep going back, so that must say something.

03-13-2010 05:23:45 | More by Gorefiendus

JBogan

Nevada

4.65/5  rDev +12.3%
quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Thanks to Beerfly or I would have never known about this gem located off the beaten path.

Just a standard looking liquor store from the outside, but walk straight towards the back and there are racks of imports and craft beers to your right, double sided racks to your left and a half dozen cooler doors as well.

Nice mix of some of the better known craft beers along with some obscure ones. All were priced about the same as I'd seen elsewhere. A small area is dedicated to two or three dozen different branded glassware.

Service was excellent. I was greeted with a friendly hello when entering. Upon checking out, the register person chatted me up and even spent a good while giving me recommendations and directions to a number of other southern California area liquor stores which carry good beer.

If you live in the area or just passing through, this place is absolutely worth a stop. Some beer stores in the southland get more attention, but this one is as good as just about any of them.

02-13-2010 16:21:53 | More by JBogan

HaggisIBM

California

5/5  rDev +20.8%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

I can't believe the selection of this place! WOW! A world class selection from beers around the world. This place is the Beer Mecca of the 661.

Local Brews (Indian Wells and Kern River BC), other Californian breweries (Greenflash, Rubicon, Pizza Port, Anderson Valley), other US Breweries, Belgian Breweries, Scottish Breweries, German Breweries, etc...,

They also have a small, but very nice selection of Glassware to purchase.

I would put their beer selection up against BevMo and Hi Times Wine Cellars selection anytime.

01-01-2010 07:26:46 | More by HaggisIBM

FLBeerGuy

Florida

3.95/5  rDev -4.6%
quality: 5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 4 | $$

This place rocks, it's my favorite place to pick up some micro brew in the AV. A little quickie mart looking place from the outside, but great micro brew selection on the inside. Some hard to find stuff like the Stone 060606 & 070707. They have both domestic and imports. Very good selection of California beers. Prices are very reasonable, almost always cheaper than BevMo. If you're looking for Anderson Valley, they have a good selection on the bombers at a good price. Only downside is the people that run it don't speak the best English so communication can be a problem.

04-06-2008 06:41:21 | More by FLBeerGuy