Marty's Fine Wines

tendermorsel

Massachusetts

4.65/5  rDev +10.5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Right now is my favorite local place. I have been going here for many years. Truth be told it had fallen out of favor with me for while. Too many older beers and little changes in what they had. However, in the last few months this place has taken a major turn for me do to a drastic change in the level in service.

Dan the relatively new beer manager is awesome. He is always available to answer questions, give suggestions and tell you what is coming in. He is spot on in his suggestions especially with many Belgians that I loved but would have never tried had he not recommended them. I have become a once a week customer and he hasn't forgotten that taking care of ensuring that I get a bottle or two of the rare stuff when it comes in. He really cares about beer and ensuring that those who are into it get what they need. Recently after a 10 minute discussion about barley wines he went down to the basement and grabbed me two 2005 Old Ruffian's without skipping a beat.

I have also had a good keg ordering experiences recently. I got home and my rapscallion keg had a European tap instead of the ball tap that they had given me. I called Marty's tols them about the mishap and they had a driver at my house in 30 minutes with the correct tap.

Some stores may have slightly better selection and pricing but for the service and knowledgeable staff Marty's can't be beat.

08-06-2007 03:30:08 | More by tendermorsel

BostonHops

Massachusetts

4.08/5  rDev -3.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$$

for my money Marty's in Newton is in the conversation of best beer selection in the Boston area. it's not quite Julio's caliber but it's in that ballpark. all the usual suspects, brewery-wise, are well-represented, along with some off-the-radar stuff you wouldn't see in your run-of-the-mill places. great range of local breweries and a very respectable collection of Belgians. have chatted with employees on several occasions; they have always been helpful and happy to chat about beer - what they have, what's coming down the pike (no pun intended), and so on.

the store also has what looks to be a pretty extensive selection of wines, as well as an impressive assortment of bourbon, scotch, and other spirits. and oh by the way there's a pretty decent deli on one side of the store adjacent to the liquor. while I almost always go for the beer, it's nice to have options.

biggest knock, and it's been pretty well-documented, are the price points. noticeably higher than other beers stores in the Boston area, including other high-rent districts. now this is offset in part by the deal they offer (forget the specifics but something along the lines of 10% or 15% off when you buy 6 or more bottles). but still. craft beer is expensive enough, we don't need those prices inflated even more.

so all in all, while not for bargain shoppers it's definitely worth a stop. just don't do it on a week where you're penny pinching.

05-09-2013 22:48:33 | More by BostonHops

Dope

Massachusetts

3.44/5  rDev -18.3%
vibe: 1 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$$$

Decided to try them out when I was in the area for work.

Good sized section on the right side of the store for the beer. There are country-specific sections but it's pretty random after that it seems, you have to wander around the whole place to make sure you didn't miss something. It's very messy too. Lots of empty spaces on the shelves, bottles kinda strewn about. Open boxes of random bottles literally just lying on the floor in various areas (watch your step!). Just gives a general impression of disorganization and lack of care.

Service was friendly, I was approached somewhat quickly. I overheard the gentlemen helping some other people with good advice.

Selection was pretty solid, on par with the better stores in the Boston area (Bermans, Redstones, Julios, etc).

Prices, however, were ridiculous. It was a minimum of 10% more than your typical prices at any other place. WWS/120min were $12 or 13 instead of the typical $9 or 10. IST for $20 or 21. FW15 for $22 or 23. The cheaper bottles were actually more of a ripoff, easily $2-3 more for a bottle that only costs $5-6 in the first place. Needless to say I didn't buy anything.

So, unless you're looking for something really specific or you live down the street, I'd avoid it. You can find the same selection at a dozen other stores but they charge a LOT less.

05-23-2012 19:44:44 | More by Dope

SalMineo

Massachusetts

4.44/5  rDev +5.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | $$$

What a great store with an awesome selection of beer. I literally wandered around for thirty minutes unable to decided what I wanted. I felt like I was six years again in Toy's R Us right after my birthday.
Their selection is crazy from Mikkeller to a variety of Geuzes/Lambics, to Stouts to IPAs. Last time I bought a bottle of BooGop a bottle I have not been able to find anywhere else in MA including Julios. (Side note their great selection is do to the fact that the owner of Marty's is also the owner of Atlantic Distribution) If Marty's doesn't have it you can't get it in Massachusetts. Along with their great beer selection they have an amazing beer glass selection. This is something I have not seen anywhere else and I love it.
My only complaint about Marty's is that they are a bit pricey when compared to Julios or RedStone Liquors.

03-27-2012 16:43:46 | More by SalMineo

brureview

Massachusetts

4.58/5  rDev +8.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5 | $$

Marty's is one of best beer stores in the Boston area. I spent about 20 minutes with a salesperson picking out different beers. They have an excellent selection of craft beers- from Belgians to American micros. I have emailed them in the past and received a prompt reply.

There is a 15% discount for 6 separate bottles. Few retailers offer separate bottle purchases from a 4 or 6 pack. Although more expensive for a single bottle from a pack, the price goes down with more purchased bottles.

The salesperson I spoke with knows beer and I was able to purchase a number of beers I hadn't considered.

There is also a store in Brighton.

03-09-2012 18:58:26 | More by brureview

mdaschaf

Washington

4.3/5  rDev +2.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$$

Been here a few times and have been impressed each time. Tons of wine and a nice gourmet food section when you walk in with the beer all the way to the other side of the store.

Selection and variety is great, there is usually something there that I was not expecting to pick up. Typically I make am mix 6 pack and then-some. Good selection of imports and plenty of American beers as well. Price is average for the area, with some beers being a bit more expensive than I would like, but on the flip side, those beers are the harder ones to find. Can also find some good deals when they are trying to get rid of excess stock.

A store I will certainly return to.

01-23-2012 21:12:02 | More by mdaschaf

boozemeup

Massachusetts

3.63/5  rDev -13.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 2.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$$$

Easily the most overpriced store I know of in the greater boston area. Expect to pay $1 + than almost anywhere else for bombers and standard 6 packs.

$9 for Maine Brewing Lunch... $5 for Berkshire Brewing bombers (typically $3.50-$4)... Stone More Brown than Black $4.99 12oz.

Best part about Marty's is they do have excellent selection and do to the high costs the harder to find beers tend to sit on the shelf longer than your better beer stores. CBC in Belmont, Redstone Liquors, Julio's, are fantastic but always move through the latest and great so fast - cheers to them!

01-22-2012 18:00:12 | More by boozemeup

s1ckboy

Massachusetts

3.39/5  rDev -19.5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 2 | selection: 4 | $$$

Been to Marty's quite a few times. They have a huge selection of beers here, as well as wines and some food. You can usually find some good stuff in there. The price is generally quite a bit higher than other stores. I would say the highest prices I have seen in the boston area. The more limited beers usually never make it onto shelves and you apparently have to have an in to get them. I've tried on more than one occasion to inquire about some more rare stuff before it's been released and am usually met with "it's already been spoken for". Kind of puts me off to this place. If what your looking for isn't limited the staff is pretty helpful, they pointed out some styles of beer I was looking for and turned me on to some new stuff.

08-11-2011 03:06:16 | More by s1ckboy

beerman999999

New York

4.3/5  rDev +2.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$$

Marty's liquors is an awesome place. Though it's a bit pricey, that's fairly normal for the area (Newton). Their sales team is great, always helping me find some harder-to-find stuff, and on numerous occasions I've gotten some bottles of limited releases, even retired beers. They're also a local distributor for DFH, so they get a lot of their rarer/harder to find beers like 120 minute (when it doesn't fly out of there in 5 minutes), World Wide Stout, Raison d'Extra, etc. Also, if you get tired of the beer (impossible, but anyways), they have an awesome wine section, lots of gourmet meats/chocolates/etc., and a small but decent mead selection (lots of B. Nektar). Once again, their beer team is really knowledgeable and they're always willing to help you find stuff. Having a specific beer department definitely helps them with their customer service.

08-08-2011 23:40:51 | More by beerman999999

xpatriate

Quebec (Canada)

4.38/5  rDev +4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

Found this place through BA.Great selection.Coming from out of town,I wanted to try some New England brews.Went with Mayflower IPA and Cadillac Mtn stout.
Talked a bit with shawn.Nice guy with plenty of info.
They have a deli inside also.Not the most impressive looking place inside or out.But,give my great selection and none of that matters.
The next day I went to Julio's a few towns west because I heard it was a "beer mecca".WRONG!!!Weak staff,limited selection,etc..Marty's blew them away!

08-04-2011 15:29:16 | More by xpatriate