Liquor Depot

Yetiman420

Ohio

4.15/5  rDev -5.5%
quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

A fine selection of local beers either cooled or at room temp near the back. The service was good to the extent that a salesperson pointed out that they had many more craft beers in the back. They have a periodic blowout beer available. In this case it was Troubelete (4 pack belgian white) for $2.99 each and Blanch de Brugges in 750 ML for something criminally low. My buddy picked up one of each. I picked up the 22 oz Smuttynose farmhouse for $5.49, and two bottles of Haandb Norweg Wood for $7.89 each. They also sell single bottles and had an organic set up.

07-31-2008 21:50:07 | More by Yetiman420

fredandboboflo

New York

4.4/5  rDev +0.2%
quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $

Nice spot, seems to be newish, so I figured I'd give it a review after a long hiatus.

Awesome glassware selection, including Rochefort and Westmalle goblets, the funny looking Lindeman's flutes, many, many others, all 2 or 3 bucks each except for Rochefort ($6, but who knows how long those will be around).

Beer selection is top of the line, Rochefort, Bernardus, Cantillon, 3 Fonteinen among others. Very little missing from the Belgian section, although the American, German, U.K. sections could be hit or miss, not quite as extensive.

Still, all great stuff, and very competitive prices, usually just a touch under standard retail value for Greater Hartford, sometimes noticeably under.

05-24-2008 23:59:37 | More by fredandboboflo

CharlesRiver

Connecticut

4/5  rDev -8.9%
quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$

About 15 min from where I work, but a must stop if you are in the area. As with the other Liquor Depot, you must go if you enjoy specialty beer glasses. Once you enter, go all the way back and to the left.

Overall the selection is solid. Lots of Belgians, Germans, locals and US beers. Good selection of Avery, Brooklyn and the like. Not a ton of new releases overall. Prices are slightly lower relative to where I live. Look for Orval at about 4.50, same with Rochefort 6. A couple of Lambics, but good prices.

Although today was my first visit, I will be back. I can't stress the wonderful glass selection enough.

04-04-2008 00:13:35 | More by CharlesRiver

Durge

Connecticut

4.35/5  rDev -0.9%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I don't live too close to Simsbury so this was my first visit by chance to Liquor Depot. What a great surprise. I would say it has arguably as good a selection as anywhere else in the state. A solid assortment of domestic micros, particularly the ones representing the Eastern US, and a great selection of imports of all varieties. It did seem that they had some obscure selections from the bigger micros like Dogfish and Magic Hat although they didn't necessarily have a comprehensive selection from any one of the brewers. New England is very well represented. I picked up a nice bomber of Bailey's Ale from Cisco Breweries on Nantucket. I thought they had a good number of bombers to select from and there were many unusual types of brews, not just brands. Be sure to check out the front left section which includes the coolers as well as the rear left of the store where there are many more selections, particularly imports on shelves and stacked cases. The store is well organized, neat and clean in keeping with the general neighborhood. There was a significant staff available on a Friday afternoon and several asked if I needed help. My only disappointment was that they were not too keen on breaking up six packs. The person I spoke to grimaced and said I could do it if I really wanted to but I could tell it wasn't encouraged at all. Although this is not so unusual, some bigger and better beer stores will do this now and I love it. Still, the selection here was good enough to make me forgive this easily and there were many singles and bombers to choose from on the shelves. They also have a pretty impressive collection of beer glassware with logos from micros and imports. They have some nice glasses and mugs and most are priced quite reasonably ($2-$4 each). Some local growlers are also on hand. They had some decent specials offered on cases for most of the higher volume micros as well as some macros. Considering the specialized selection and the upwardly mobile area, the prices weren't bargains but they were acceptable. I saw many beers that were totally new to me, primarily with the imports, and certainly some lesser known domestic items. I will definitely keep this stop in mind whenever I am heading anywhere near Simsbury. It's right on Route 202, on the left as you're heading west toward route 8. Grab a cart!

10-06-2007 03:25:28 | More by Durge

far333

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +2.5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

A mecca in an otherwise fairly uninspired area for craft beer. There are a few places in town to get decent beer, but none as large as this relative newcomer and none with as vast a selection, or depth of styles offered for each brand.

American craft beers are well-represented, including many relatively new entrants to the area like North Coast, Bluegrass, and Avery. Also always have Olde Burnside growlers, plus Hooker 500ml seasonals, 6-packs and mix packs. There is also a great selection of imports, including the standard German and English items, plus a vast selection from Poland, France, Russia, Japan, and of course Belgium. They also have the widest selection of organic beers I've seen anywhere.

The staff is helpful and knowledgeable, and happy to order new selections based on customer requests. Prices also seem to be a bit lower than in other area stores. Beer tastings are held on most Fridays and Saturday evenings. Open 6 days a week until 9pm.

02-24-2007 20:24:31 | More by far333

BlueHammer

Connecticut

4.65/5  rDev +5.9%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

Wow, I love this place! I walked in and was immediately impressed. Their selection is wide, especially for this area. Normally, I have to travel up to the Boston area to find some of the craft brews they had in stock. There is a wide selection of refrigerated beers and an even larger section against the wall in the back. Additionally, Liquor Depot carries an assortment of glassware and steins.

Some notables include St. Bernardus, the Chouffes, the Chimays.... Unfortunately not too many of some popular Americans like Rogue. They had a variety of mixed packs in the fridge section, including ones you don't normally find in the regular liquor stores, like Long Trail and Ipswich.

Staff was knowlegable - we got to talking with one of the guys as he packaged up our stuff and he definitely knew what he was talking about. I head up this way for virtually all my beer needs now!

09-06-2006 20:43:07 | More by BlueHammer