Half Time

spipenge

New York

1/5  rDev -78.7%
vibe: 1 | quality: 1 | service: 1 | selection: 1 | $$$$

I saw the flyer from Half-Time Beverage in the latest issue of the magazine. My father is a Sam Adams fan, so I ordered their sampler for him. I ordered the item on the 19th. They charged my card and emailed me the same day saying I'd receive a tracking number from the shipper. I emailed them on December 21, December 22 and December 23 from their website (they don't have a number to call on their website). They never got back to me. (By way of reference, I ordered something for my Step-Mom at Wine.com on the same day to go the same address. It came from California and actually arrived on December 22.).

I called them on December 23 (after looking them up on "the Google"). I told them I never received a tracking number. They told me that the package would arrive on December 27...8 days after I ordered it. They are in New York, and my Dad is in Ohio...so not a very long way. With a cough drop in his mouth or a bite of a chicken sandwich, the man told me that there are problems with the automated tracking system. I then asked why it took three days to even ship my package (I ordered it on 12/19 and the UPS tracking systems says they did not ship it until 12/22). The guy tried to tell me it took three days to pack and send to the shipper. He then told me that UPS doesn't work on the weekend and is closed Monday. He told me that "things get busy around the holiday." I told him about my Wine.com experience and his response was to roll his food or cough drop around in his mouth, but, other than that silence. Never an apology, never a real explanation...nothing.

You guys have a great magazine. I've come to love good beer. You guys are too good to have any association with this outfit. You should end any association with them.

12-23-2011 18:42:55 | More by spipenge

rokosz

New York

1.35/5  rDev -71.2%
quality: 1.5 | service: 1 | selection: 1.5 | $$$$

Ok. Only Service and Value are truly appropriate here for this review. But I had to put something in. I started showing up here not too long after they opened and on average about 4x/year. Its always been a stellar experience. I've learned in the last year or two though that the prices are amongst the highest in the entire Hudson Valley (Glens Falls to Manhattan).

Its not a conveniently easy place to get to (for me). A minimum of 30 mins out of my way and somtimes a 30 mile total oomw. But always worth the visit.

Not this time. Sunday afternoon 10 October. I get there about 4:45P I've got a mixed bunch of bottles for return (2-3 cases) and I start pickling -- because what if they close at 5Pm and stop bottle returns at 4:45P? I hate carrying these suckers around. I breathe a sigh of relief, they close at 6pm. Bottle return and shopping s/b a pleasure.

I walk in. the place is void of customers. two emps sitting jawing at the counter. "Oh, sorry our bottle return closes at 4:30". "But I just drove half an hour out of my way". "no, sorry we had sooo many today". "Well, I won't be buying anything then" And I walked out.

I get rules. But they _weren't doing anything_ and the store didn't close for over an hour. I wasn't asking them to cut a certified check for the returned deposit or to write Title insurance for my house. Just take a couple of cases of returns and make a sale (i usually spend $150+growlers). It really makes me pause to think if I'll ever go back.

So, the service was awful. And the place was even more expensive than usual because I just wasted time and gas for nothing.

11-12-2010 22:15:05 | More by rokosz

DoubleSimcoe

New York

3.38/5  rDev -27.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 2 | selection: 3.5 | $$$$

I've stopped here many times on my travels across the Hudson Valley. Used to think highly of this store, until my last visit this past weekend.

Sure, Half Time is a huge store. A veritable supermarket of all things beer. But guess what? There is only ONE aisle for American craft. That ONE aisle is neatly arranged and colorful and has some (few) brands I cannot get downstate in NYC like Great Lakes, Clown Shoes and Three Heads from Rochester, but it still is only ONE aisle. World's largest selection of beer? I doubt it.

A good variety of Alesmith and Bruery bombers, plus more Elysian than I have ever seen. The excitement ends there, though. No rarities, no barreled brews, no "oh-my-god-gotta-have-that" bottles. Yes, they got a lot of beer, but nothing really that you will not see in your local shelves. Stone, Sierra, Dogfish, Weyerbacher, Jolly Pumpkin... whatever.

The only exciting brews were BEHIND the counter (as if they were afraid they'll get stolen or something?). There they had the barrel-aged Mikkeller Black Hole series, priced at $15.99!!

Indeed, the price is perhaps the worst thing about Half Time. Everything here is two-to-three dollars more expensive than in Manhattan. Why?

One thing I did like is the reduced-price beers upfront by the entrance, including Hoppin' Frog Black&Tan and a bunch of seasonal/Christmas beers. I also like the fact that you can get tap beer to go in containers as small as a pint (16 oz). How cool is that!

There is not much service to speak of here... no beer nerd cruising the aisles offering help. A lil' cold but just fine at the registers. Sorry, Half Time, but you are just not for me.

10-05-2011 15:55:00 | More by DoubleSimcoe

fadein34

Indiana

3.54/5  rDev -24.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$

I ordered a case from the online store.

First and foremost the opportunity to order beer I wouldn't otherwise be able to get in Indiana (e.g., Dogfish Head, Cigar City) is a huge plus.

Additional pluses are being able to order a case of singles. I'm only a year or so into being a craft beer lover so I want to try as much variety as possible. The ordering process and shipping was all good.

So what's the rub? Well I had an Abita Jockamo IPA that was either terrible or skunked or I guess maybe both. One bad bottle in the bunch wasn't too much of a concern though. Then comes the Cigar City Jai Alai. A beer I know and love. I had one from a stash my dad brought me recently followed by the one I purchased from Half Time. The latter didn't even taste like it was from the same planet. That worries me because if this is my first taste of a beer I may write it off when in fact I may not be getting the "real deal".

Overall I love the opportunity. I'm just concerned about the quality.

07-05-2011 02:28:18 | More by fadein34

jmz62565

Connecticut

3.85/5  rDev -17.9%
quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | $$

I decided to stop by after reading some reviews and advice from a friend. Half Time was easy to find and I was surprised at how small the building was. Don't get me wrong, Half Time is in a good sized building,but most wharehouse liquor stores are bigger than this place. As a CT. native,I had to get used to the fact that Half Time just sells beer, no wine or hard liquor. I went in looking for West Coast beers and I found Stone and Anderson Valley right away. They had 4 or 5 beers from each brewery and I quickly picked them up. I was surprised at how many Rogues there were here. At least 6 that I never tried or saw in CT. Weyerbacher beers were also displayed here so I grabbed a few. After this my shopping cart was almost filled so I decided to check out.
The service was almost non-existant,but they did help pick out growlers. Speaking of which, They offer growlers in different sizes and styles. When I was ther I got a 1/2 gallon of Big Bear Black Stout from Bear Republic.
I spent $192,but I did buy ALOT of beer ,so I would say the prices are fair.
I was excited to go to Half Time and can't wait to go back. You will too.

09-23-2006 21:40:17 | More by jmz62565

r0nyn

New York

3.9/5  rDev -16.8%
quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $$

Nestled right in The-Middle-of-Nowhere, New York, Half Time is most definitively a beer store, in every sense of the word. With aisles and coolers full of brews from all over the world, it is a veritable treasure trove in a place that likely needs the distraction.

The selection of beers is quite good, especially for the area. Lots of the usual suspects like Stone, Southern Tier, Troegs, and Ommegang, with quite a few other breweries represented from all over the world, so much so that they were separated by nationality. Chances are whatever you're looking for will be here, within reason of course. They even feature a rotating selection of growler taps.

Quality is pretty good, as everything I checked was within reasonable freshness. There were a few older bottles floating around, like a Stone Vertical Epic from '07 and some Great Divide brews with the older labels, but those kinds of beers benefit from a little age anyway. All the stuff that's supposed to be fresh were fresh and that's what counts.

Service was okay, there wasn't really anyone around to help with recommendations and whatnot, but they were cordial and polite enough when checking out. Pricing is generally in line with what I'm used to paying, with certain brews having a bit of a bump in price.

On the whole, Half Time is a great beer store. Certainly one of the most unique beer establishments I've ever visited.

01-22-2010 07:14:35 | More by r0nyn

Erdinger2003

Iowa

4/5  rDev -14.7%
quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | $$

Coming from Iowa, this is an amazing selection for me to see. I just wish I had $3000 so I could get all I want. I walked in to a general Belgian selection on the clearance table right at the door and originally spent 5 minutes alone just gazing at the selection there....until I realized there was so much more stuff. From Dogfish Head to Victory to Brooklyn Brewery and Flying Dog and Weyerbacher and STONE!!! It just boggles my mind in the middle of nowhere is such an amazing selection that doesn't have most of it's selection out. Most of the great beers in Wisconsin are taken by the locals and closer byers within a few weeks. It was hard to get myself to realize I was coming back and didn't need to spend $1000 I didn't have on the initial purchase. Just amazing to me that I could pick and choose and come back another day. Nobody came to help, but I already knew what I was looking at like a kid in the only candy store in the country with only 10 cents to spend. Kind of a torture for me, but still appreciated. The Stone beers had a slight off flavor like the hop chemicals had been broken down somehow, but still enjoyed. Other than that the Belgians are in great shape, just had my first glass of Tripel Karmeliet in 3 years....the whole bottle to myself actually. :)

07-23-2009 04:27:18 | More by Erdinger2003

infi

New York

4/5  rDev -14.7%
quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

An hour's travel from Rockland, Half Time is essentially a supermarket for beer and beverages and is easily identifiable by its huge red crown cap logo and large windowed facade.

The place has around 4 or 5 aisles of beers all separated by country with numerous cooler doors around the back end of the store. Adjacent to the coolers are 8-10 taps for growler fills, of different sizes. And around the growler area is a section of some branded glasses, gift and value packs, non-alcoholic beverages and newly arrived beers.

Quality is mostly on-point, with all the aisles housing numerous bottles and sixers. Mostly all products seemed to be rotated fairly well. The only qualm is that the coolers were incredibly brightly lit, so I'm not sure if some of the beers in there are fresh as intended. Service was mostly self-serve in terms of choosing with no one lurking around watching you decide on what to buy. I'm pretty sure they'll do the growler fills for you if you wanted one.

Selection was incredibly varied, especially for the European countries. The Belgian aisle was stacked full of pale ales, BDSA's, krieks, lambics, guezues and the like, with most of the top brand names. My favorite aisle of the store for sure. Germany was really represented well too with most of the major breweries all in attendance. The UK section was average with a couple Ola Dubh, Brewdog, Young's, Nogne-Ø, etc. I was a bit disappointed with the US aisle to be honest. I was thinking there would be more quality and variety, not so much quantity. I was hoping to find some Founders, AleSmith, Bells, Russian River and others, but to no avail. Although to its credit, they did have some beers not found in my area, such as the GI BCS and Ten FIDY.

Prices were reasonable to a bit pricey for some items. They encourage to break packs if you want to buy singles or make your own sixer. All-in-all, Half Time is a nice place but a little disappointing. Maybe I had too big of expectations in hoping it was a beer mecca, but it's not that big of a step higher than say, DeCicco's in Ardsley. Worth a view, but not a frequent visit for me.

11-12-2009 19:08:55 | More by infi

tjd112

New Jersey

4/5  rDev -14.7%
quality: 4 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | $$$

This place is one of the best beer stores in the United States, and it was natural that this would be found in New York State. Allow me to explain.

New York state law provides for only 2 types of package licenses. The wine and spirits shop license is designated for stand alone liquor stores which can sell little else but wine and spirits. Beer is sold on a separate license, which is pretty much handed out like candy to every place that even remotely resembles a grocery or drug store. Combined with a good selection of brews authorized for sale in the state and an established beer culture, New York is one of the only states where an establishment like this could exist.

Anyway, the selection is amazing and pretty much any pack can be broken (with very few exceptions, they do not allow certain 12 packs with various brews from a brewery to be broken, I learned that when I tried to buy an Odd Notion single. However, I do however wish they would give a percentage discount for each sixer made.

There is a good selection of growler taps and the clerk was helpful enough to get me a sturdier cap for my growler as I filled it with Troegenator. There are also a lot of gift packs, though I did not partake in any of them.

This place is well worth the
trip though, although some improvements could be made.

01-26-2010 22:09:28 | More by tjd112

drawbackwards

New York

4.1/5  rDev -12.6%
quality: 5 | service: 2 | selection: 5 | $$

Half Time has an unbelievable selection of beer. The store is extremely clean and organized. They have a lot of cold beer also which is great if you want to drink it right away. The BEST thing about Half Time is that you can make your own 6 packs. Once you do this you will be paying a bit more for your purchase, but it's worth it if you may buy an expensive 4 or 6 pack and not like it. The only drawback that I have found about Half Time is the staff is pretty unapproachable. It is fine if you know what you want, but when I was a noob, they don't make you feel welcome. I had to rely on the good folks at BA to point me in the right direction.

02-21-2010 21:55:13 | More by drawbackwards