Dawson's Liquors

weller1js

West Virginia

4.71/5  rDev -3.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$$

Went here with ianjsullivan on the morning of his wedding day. He told me about the place (see review below), so what better a relaxing trip to the liquor store prior to getting hitched.

I love when looks can be deceiving. From what looks like just a typical liquor store, once you enter and make your way past the front area where the liquor and wine are shelved, you discover the hoard that is their beer selection in their back area.

Limited warm shelving, most of the warm six pack selection are sitting on top of an island of sixers, 7-8 cold cases containing the expected mainstream and some special craft beers as well.

Their niche is in their larger bottles, with a more extensive and diverse craft beer selection in 750mL than what I have seen in some of the big-boy stores in Maryland or elsewhere for that matter.

Staff was quick to offer assistance, and was very helpful in assisting us with our selection. We went all-out and bought some Sink the Bismarck! by Brewdog, which they even told us that wasn't at a high mark-up simply because they like having it on hand.

Only downside was the cramped layout, but one can easily get past that once they get a load of the selection.

If you are ever in Anne Arundel, it is worth a slight detour.

06-09-2011 19:09:12 | More by weller1js

Poucher86

Maryland

4.74/5  rDev -2.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$$

Awesome place to search for craft brews. I have never seen a selection like that before, even from some of my favorite liquor stores. The whole crew is extremely knowledgeable and helped me choose between the so many great choices. I will forever be a customer there now.

One flaw I will point out, was the price. I have been other places where they have some of the same craft beer for lower prices but other than that, I have never been this excited about a liquor store before and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience!

07-29-2012 17:18:02 | More by Poucher86

ianjsullivan

Maryland

4.45/5  rDev -8.6%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

I went to Dawson's Liquors for the first time today. It is a tiny place, and it is cluttered. I was not expecting what I found. The staff at Dawson's was very helpful. I was asked at least three times by three different people if I needed help, and one employee came and talked to me about a few of the beers he had recently had in order to give me a good recommendation (I had already had the beer he suggested). Dawson's has an excellent selection of both micro-brews and imports. In particular, the have real strength in 375, 500, and 750 ml bottles. They have vintage selections and hard to acquire beers from most of the major players. They also have things you may have never heard of before. Their prices are reasonable considering that it is a small establishment. The only knock against Dawson's would be that some of their beers are older and beyond their fresh date. Of course, they do put these beers on sale. Also, since they have such a large selection of more expensive beer, I am not surprised some things sit longer than their date. Honestly, it feels like a lot of the beers are their for beer fanatics, not to make a profit. There are too many rare beers the average beer drinker would not pick up. It is clear Dawson's takes on the cost to have some amazing beer.

05-21-2011 19:54:39 | More by ianjsullivan

MrWinky

Maryland

4.8/5  rDev -1.4%
quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

I grew up working next to this place and have been going there since I turned 21. They've always had a good selection of beer, wine, and spirits, but once The brothers Nick & Danny got more involved it's gotten better. The service has always been great but it's the selection and quality of the selection that improved so much. Basically anything thats good or new they have as well as plenty of other hard to find specialties. I know they do stuff with Lures in Crownsville...which is also a place beer interest. Check them both out if you haven't.

02-03-2011 18:43:57 | More by MrWinky

dlmccabe1

Maryland

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

This place is great for both everyday drinking beers and all of your rare and limited release beers. The biggest thing going against this shop is that it's located in Maryland which has antiquated distribution laws. But the good news is that whenever anything good makes it into our lovely state you can find it here.

A few examples from my last trip:
Stone Vertical Epic
Every Stillwater release ever
The full line of Ommegang
Five beers from the Bruery
Mikkeller Mikkeller Mikkeller
Urthel Saisonnerre
LOTS of Belgians
Sam Adams/Weihenstephaner Collaboration
Brooklyn Local bombers

Etc, etc, etc, etc.

The selection is great, the staff is knowledgeable and helpful, and the prices are reasonable.

12-24-2010 01:59:44 | More by dlmccabe1

mutmanns

Maryland

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

I only live 15 minutes from this place and never knew it existed until joining BA. I have been driving to places that were 30 to 45 minutes away to get good beer when I had this little gem practically in my backyard. This place is awesome and the staff is very friendly. From the outside you would never realize that this place has such an inventory on all types of beer. Some of the prices area just a tad higher than what I have paid at some other places, but I make that up in the gas money I save. If you are in the area, and looking for a store with a lot of variety, you will not be disappointed with Dawsons.

11-09-2010 01:48:42 | More by mutmanns

bpfishback

Maryland

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

Dawson's, simply put, has the best selection of beer in Maryland. Not to mention an awesome and well priced American whiskey and other liquors selection. I've never really talked beer with any of the employees but they are always there patrolling the store and asking you if you need any help. You can tell whoever runs the beer section knows their beer, there are always awesome new releases to be found there. Recent examples are FF exit 16 and GI Night Stalker.

Dawson's has a mix of east coast and west coast craft and everything in between. They have some hard to find items too. For example I found some Firestone-Walker there the other week which I did'nt even know was distributed to Maryland.

Which leads me too the one thing I don't like about Dawson's. Some of the beer on their shelves is old. That Firestone-Walker I was so excited about was over a year old. I also managed to find some nearly two year old DFH Palo Santo there which was quite good though.

So if your're looking for something hard to find chances are you will find it at Dawson's. But, when you go, check the dates if you're after anything where freshness matters.

Edit: Just wanted to add that this is really the best beer store in MD. Blows Chevy Chase wine and spirits away.

09-21-2010 18:17:51 | More by bpfishback

spratmi

Maryland

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

Danny, Matt, Nick, and the whole staff have always been extremely helpful - willing to walk through the store with me and discuss beer styles. They are always willing to make recommendations - and I have always appreciated and agreed with their choices. The store selection is very good, as I like to stock up on bombers to allow more variety in my samplings. They also run a beer club in conjunction with a local restaurant and host dinners paired with beer selections several times a year at another local restaurant.

08-29-2009 04:18:14 | More by spratmi

pershan

Maryland

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

I have lived in Severna Park for the past 20 years, and Dawson's is by far the best place to get good beer (and wine, for that matter). The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, and don't hesitate to recommend beers to you, especially if you're a regular and they know the beer styles that you like (for me, it is high-gravity, hoppy ales). They have a huge selection of micro brews from across the nation (Stone, Lagunitas, Rogue, Sierra Nevada, Southern Tier, Blue Point, Oscar Blues, to name a few). They also host a monthly beer tasting at Lures restaurant in Crownsville, as well as some less frequent beer and/or wine tastings at Cafe Bretton restaurant in Severna Park. I attended the Stone beer tasting they hosted at Cafe Bretton last year, and it was fantastic. If you're in the area, be sure to check Dawson's out.

02-26-2009 16:12:06 | More by pershan

Gatordaddy

Maryland

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

Dawson's has by far the best selection of domestic and import beers in the area and a great staff as well. Floor-to-ceiling racks are filled with domestic 22-ouncers, and other racks feature large import singles and Belgians/lambics/etc. A wall is devoted to six-packs, and several coolers offer the same refrigerated. Stacked six-packs and cases fill the floor of the beer section. The selection changes regularly; they usually have the new seasonals. In addition, Danny and the beer staff are very knowledgable and passionate about beer. My only gripe is I spend too much money there.

02-20-2009 03:02:07 | More by Gatordaddy