Bellport Cold Beer & Soda

Hibernator

Massachusetts

3.64/5  rDev -18.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | $$

This place was pretty easy to find with the huge Beer & Soda sign decorating the front of the store. The enterance displays a ton of domestic craft beers from all over.

Selections included Dogfish Head, Stone, Stoudt's, Flying Dog, North Coast, Brooklyn, Blue Point and many more. I was happy to see bottles of Brother Thelonious & 2006 Brooklyn Monster Ale. The front has mainly warm six packs and offers some quality choices.

As you make your way to the back of the store, you'll pass the cash register. Across the register is a "make your own six pack" shelf that has a variety of singles for purchase. I think there was a sign that encourages people to "try a new beer". This kind of promotion is always nice to see and gives the customer a diverse choice.

The back of the store has more of the imported English, German and Belgian gems. I noticed an awesome magnum sized Anchor 2006 Our Special Ale. There is also a respectable line up of the Rogue 22 oz beers including Shakespeare Stout, Hazlenut Brown, Sharktooth Ale, Kells Irish Lager, Chiptole Ale, St. Rogue Red, Santa's Private Reserve (6 packs) and some others. Local favorite Southampton beers were there with the Imperial Porter & Double White Ale.

Atmosphere is rather straightforward with a slight warehouse feel. Service was decent. There were a couple of younger guys working there and they seemed disinterested and weren't particularly helpful. After reading the previous BA review I was hoping that the owner would be there, but I don't think he was during my visit.

All in all I thought this place was really good and worth a stop to stock up. Worth checking out if you're in the area.

12-26-2006 19:53:27 | More by Hibernator

plaid75

New York

4.15/5  rDev -7.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Located just south of Sunrise Highway in Bellport.

Upon entering there are shelf displays of craft beer. This is noteworthy, as most places will locate their macro displays at the entrance area. The long rows of shelves featured the usual suspects, as well as a few distributed, but hard to find labels. There is a good selection of bombers as well.

As you make your way toward the cash register, you will find some imports, a six and match section and a eventually the macro stock.

The four tap growler station was a nice suprise, as was the 750ml growler fill.

Dave also regularly holds tastings, which is enhanced by way of the growler system.

04-28-2008 21:49:31 | More by plaid75

SpeedwayJim

New York

4.15/5  rDev -7.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Bellport Beer and Soda. I was lured here by the promise of some old batch Ithaca Brute by a fellow BA.

There's some stuff on the shelf at Bellport that is definitely past its best by date. However, for the most part, Dave keeps his stuff up to snuff and its all well organized and updated.

The service here is really the reason to come. Dave is a huge craft beer enthusiast and it shows as he's always willing to help a customer out with whatever they need. Be it a special order, or something soon to be released, or if they're just looking for some odds and ends. Dave knows it all and if he doesn't, he's more than willing to find out.

The selection is quite good for the space. Bellport Beer is one of the only beer distributors on Long Island that I've seen that actually seems to dedicate more space to craft than to BMC products. Impressive. They also almost always have the latest hard to find CCB and Founders offerings along with the run-of-the-mill widely distributed products such as Stone and Goose Island.

Certainly one of the cheaper places on Long Island. And even if you're paying higher prices on certain things such as Founders KBS and CCB Marshal Zhukov's, its still cheaper than other places offering those rare finds. Worth a visit!!

09-13-2010 01:52:22 | More by SpeedwayJim

daliandragon

North Carolina

4.65/5  rDev +3.8%
quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Ok, this will probably come out like a biased review but this is a sweet little store. My buddy and I went today during the Barrier launch event and had a terrific time. When we got down there, the owner Dave was grilling kielbasa out front (supposedly shark was next)and a few dozen people were inside sampling Evan's excellent beer and milling around.

In between samples I perused the store and was thoroughly impressed. A strong selection of English ales and a nice variety of micros were the highlight for me. Eight kegs on tap for growler fills and more on the way. Busy, but friendly service. Plus, the website is regularly updated. Not at all near my regular haunts but worth heading out of your way for. These guys are trying hard for your business. Strong performance.

07-25-2010 03:55:13 | More by daliandragon

lehows

New York

4.6/5  rDev +2.7%
quality: 4 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

This place is on Station Rd. just south of the Montauk Hwy in Bellport. Can't miss the huge sign out front. "Over 200 varieties of beer". Ok, so when you walk in you'll think, "Whoa, this place looks waaay smaller inside than it does from the outside". Stuff is neat but crammed tight everywhere and you gotta ask for beer you don't see because it may be behind other similar-styled brews. The guys here are funny and very helpful/knowledgeable and the selection is good (the website lists beers). Once I was talking to the owner and he ran into the back and grabbed some six packs of vintage Anchor Christmas which he sold to me. He's got a lot of gems stashed for people who ask or know what they want. The first room is entirely craft and imported beers, as well as a ton of good current seasonals to be found here. A lot of focus on the locals, Blue Point, Southampton, and Brooklyn. The farther room has the fridges, where they do have a lot of cold stuff, again you must ask as I didn't see what I was looking for at first. Some macros in this room are in small pyrimids on the floor. It's refreshing to see a beer store that isnt stocking an absurd amount of macros. A shelf of "singles" where you can try various beers for cheap. I liked that. To the left of register is a decent array of Belgian and Belgian-style 750's as well as other oversized bottles like Young's, Sam Smith, etc. All around its definitely a good place if you're in the area.

12-21-2006 20:27:29 | More by lehows

LilBeerDoctor

New York

3.65/5  rDev -18.5%
quality: 3.5 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$

I have been to this place a few times. The selection is good for the area, but I can generally get the same stuff and more from Big Zs, Shoreline, or Port Jefferson, which are closer to me. They sometimes have a good growler station, but it does vary a bit.

Quality/Selection: Bellport carries a large variety of beers that is fairly typical for the area (Stone, Captain Lawrence, Allagash, Unibroue, Cantillon, Schlenkerla, Coney Island, Brooklyn, etc). I don't think they carry the rarest beers in the area (ie limited releases) so I wouldn't seek them out in addition to the other top stores because they aren't going to have anything different.

They have 4 growler taps, usually including a local beer such as Captain Lawrence or Southampton.

Service: The owners are really nice and helpful. I got a few discounts a couple of times. Very friendly people.

Value: Pricing is similar compared to other stores in the area.

Overall: A good beer store to have as your local store. If you live close, definitely check it out. If you don't, it's probably not worth the trip, assuming that you live near Huntington. Be sure to check out their website before heading out because they update their growler list fairly consistently (probably once a week). If this was my local store, I'd probably rate it higher.

12-29-2008 21:15:37 | More by LilBeerDoctor

donkeyrunner

Massachusetts

4.7/5  rDev +4.9%
quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 4 | $$

I was told to go here by a fellow BA because "it's the coolest beer store ever!" It just might be.

The owner, Dave, makes this place. I introduced myself as a masshole and he promptly put together a box of beers that I couldn't leave NY without (Captain Lawrence, Blue Point seasonals, Ithaca Brute, etc), taking me around the store, pointing out rarities and oozing beer enthusiasm. I left with a t-shirt and a few gifts in exchange for some homebrew I happened to have in my trunk.

The store itself has an excellent selection with a focus on craft and micros. I didn't find a single bottle past expiration date. The growler system in NY is pretty cool to a MA resident and Dave adds 6 more taps during the winter--all of which are updated on the website.

02-03-2010 15:19:55 | More by donkeyrunner

bonbright7

New York

4.15/5  rDev -7.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

I was at Bellport Cold Beer yesterday for a Sixpoint Ales tasting, which went very well and it was my second time there. Though I live 10 minutes from Shoreline Beverage in Huntington, Dave's Bellport Cold Beer is a cool place to stop when I am out on the Eastern end of Long Island. I never think of going there as being a chore as I have been welcomed there as if I was a neighbor. The store has a good selection leaning more on American craft and micro brewers than imports and the service is always very good. I couldn't imagine any beer geek/lover being disappointed with the place as the store has a good reach and will call other stores just to look for something for a customer (as I observed yesterday).

12-17-2007 03:53:57 | More by bonbright7

Gmann

New York

4.2/5  rDev -6.3%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$

Though not close, the store is very easy to get to from Babylon. The store is fairly small but they try to utilize their space as best as they can. I didn't recognize any organization to their layout, except that their imports seemed to be against the wall. They have a good selection of Beglian and German brews and the standard selection of US craft beers that we get around Long Island. I didn't see anything that I couldn't get from the various other stores that I frequent and they didn't seem to have some of the rarer brews that I can find in the Huntington stores. The growler station is a plus and they seem to carry a nice selection which is kept up to date on their website, which is a big plus. This was my first visit to the store and the service was ok. They asked if I needed any help or if I was looking for anything in particular. I didn't find them all that engaging but it was my first time. Overall, a nice little beer store and I am sure I will put them into my rotation. I would probably pay a visit if I am in the area or if the have something intriguing in the growler station.

11-23-2009 04:34:21 | More by Gmann

BBM

New York

4.15/5  rDev -7.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

I stopped in here just before New Years after a few reccomendations. I was amazed at the amount of micro and imported beer they have! The entire place is basically dedicated to these types of beer. Macros take a back seat in the far corner of the store.

I talked briefly with the owner, Dave, and he seems to really know his beer and be passionate about it. That's always a plus. If you don't see what you're looking for, ask him about it, as he may have it elsewhere. Overall I was pretty impressed with the store. I will certainly be going back there.

01-11-2007 20:44:42 | More by BBM