Westy's Beer Distributor

RLaCoss

Pennsylvania

4.78/5  rDev +5.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

Service was excellent and selection incredible. We lived in PA from 2003 - 2006 and was really disappointed with the selection after moving from California. Just bought my husband a kegerater for his birthday and can't wait to try all the different beers Westy's offers.

03-21-2013 14:49:32 | More by RLaCoss

TheGreatGodGeb

3.58/5  rDev -21%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 5 | $$

I rated quality at 3.5 because some of the cases are randomly strewn about without pricing. If you do not ask for help it may take some time to find what you are looking for.

I rated the service at a low 2.5 because I was neither greeted nor treated any better than I would be at McDonald's. I tried to have a conversation while being checked out (90$ spent) and neither person seemed interested in talking to me. Now I know there could be different people working there at different times (and I only went once, just yesterday actually) but I would hope that workers would have a little interest in some conversation with a customer spending a little bit of coin. When I had asked the two people working if they knew anywhere I could get Russian River beers in the area (I know for certain they are obtainable in Philly and Pittsburgh, as I have had them there) they became offended and began speaking condescendingly that it was impossible to get in PA, completely. I told them that I have had it in PA and both workers looked at me like I had three heads. I did not mean any offense nor was I speaking pompously or pretentiously, I was asking very nicely about it. Although I may seem over-sensitive, I don't think anyone would enjoy being treated as such when spending near 100$ in any store.

The only reason to go here is, as you can gleam from the other reviews, is the incredible selection. Although only cases are available, I refuse to hold that against the store. The selection is the best I have ever seen. It is a shame, however, that there is no Founder's selection at all. The person working there told me it is impossible to get in the area blah blah blah. I know for certain you can get Founder's in the Drive Thru distributor next to the Walmart in Carlisle so if you don't mind going out of your way, it is in the area. Anyway, I do, overall, recommend going to this distributor. They could have trolls and ogres working there and I would still go for the selection alone and good pricing.

I don't know what to expect/look for in atmosphere beyond obvious qualities like well-lit, tolerable temperature, etc. so a 3 is fair. It's a big warehouse. Maybe they could play some music?

01-06-2013 22:15:31 | More by TheGreatGodGeb

bvdubn

Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +1.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

Westy's is the biggest beer store in the area in terms of volume of craft beer (that I know of). They are the distributor for North York Beverage as well as Wegman's (and probably a few other distributors that I am not aware of). I think the volume of beer that Wegman's sells has greatly helped Westy's ability to get other craft beers in their store. I think they could do a better job of organizing the store because there is beer all over the place and the craft beers are just mixed in with everything else. They have a section in the back of discount beer that is slightly older which I appreciate because it lets me know that they are keeping an eye on the dates. I have asked them numerous times to help me find beer or to look up prices and they are always willing to help. This isn’t the most distributor but they get my business because they have the biggest selection. I do wish they would get Founders and then I could pretty much stop shopping at other distributors.

04-11-2012 21:06:47 | More by bvdubn

bum732

Maryland

4.74/5  rDev +4.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

Second time i've been here, always blows me away. Pretty good sized warehouse, doesn't look like much from the outside. Upon entering, there is a couple pallets up front advertising craft beer, they were selling some oktoberfests and Sculpin. Multiple aisles with almost every beer you can imagine. Even those hard to find Belgians were in fairly unlabeled brown boxes, very impressive. The one that blew me away was the two cases of Fred from Hair of the Dog.

They have a back area with cases on clearance as well, if you're looking to score a cheap case of beer. Its like being a kid in a candy store, i can imagine buying cases and cases of their excellent selection. Definitely blows away any other distributor by a large margin. Check it out.

09-06-2011 16:15:27 | More by bum732

orangesol

Pennsylvania

4.51/5  rDev -0.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.25 | selection: 5 | $$

Since I have lived in the area my entire life I am very familiar with Westy's. Having just noticed that I hadn't yet reviewed them I set out to rectify that situation immediately.

I stopped in earlier today to pick up a case of beer for this weekends festivities and I spent a little extra time looking around. Simply put, you are not going to find a better selection of cases and kegs within an hour or so drive. Everything from Cigar City, Lost Abbey, The Bruery, and even a bunch of Belgians. They even offer quite a few "rarer" kegs for take out purchase. Not every day you see four different kinds of Bruery beers available in kegs to the general public.

The quality has been greatly improved over the last few years. I remember when I first got into craft beer I bought a case of 90min. from Westy's and it was four months past its "Best By" date. I understand it is my bad for not noticing when I bought it but at least check them every three months. Swing back to today and I noticed none of those problems. Everything was fresh and well within its "Best By" dates so kudo's to them for stepping it up.

As far as the atmosphere and the service go, it is pretty good. On one occasion you may seem them act like total jerks to people and on the next they are the nicest guys on the planet. I have always had good experiences with them but I know a few others who would say otherwise. Overall Westy's is a great beer distributor with one of the best selections I have come across. I am glad they are so close by, even tho I don't buy very much beer by the case.

07-14-2011 21:00:25 | More by orangesol

VikeMan

Pennsylvania

4.94/5  rDev +9.1%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

IMO, Westy's is clearly the best case distributor in the area. I can't think of another distributor on the West Shore that I would even consider going to. Selection is amazing... from BMC's (if you like that sort of thing) to the most outrageously expensive Belgians, and everything in between. The only 'problem,' and it's a Pennsylvania distributor problem, not unique to Westy's, is that of course you can only buy cases. The prices are quite reasonable.

About that case problem...in the area... for a great selection of 4's/6's, there's Wegmnan's (Mechanicsburg). For great taps, singles, and mixed sizes, there's Al's of Hampden (Enola).

07-01-2011 13:20:17 | More by VikeMan

prdstmnky

Pennsylvania

4.65/5  rDev +2.6%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$$

Westy's is has always been a go-to spot for locals, and seems to have quite the reputation for those beer geeks traveling through the area as well. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but once you step inside, your opinion will be quickly changed.

It is a warehouse style shop, with a vast array of just about anything available in PA. They carry your typical macros, a nice selection of imports, and tons of craft brews. Everything from locals like Troegs & Victory, to popular breweries like Bells, Terrapin, DFH, and even some harder to find brands from all over. There is a nice turnover, as it is a popular place, so you are generally getting really fresh beer.

I do find that Im able to find better prices on popular brands (just as fresh) if I shop around the area. However, there is alot of stuff that I just cant find elsewhere, so don't mind paying a couple extra dollars at Westy's for those cases.

Ive been shopping for cases at Westy's for over 10 years, and as long as the selection remains top notch, I dont see that changing anytime soon.

11-23-2010 22:47:10 | More by prdstmnky

philbe311

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev -0.7%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | $$

Q - Unassuming and easy to miss from the street... Stellar establishment... Clean and well organized... Not everything is clearly priced, but more than most... Loaded to the gills with mostly craft beer...

S - Nice folks that seem more than willing to help... Loads of hand trucks by the door... Also great service and rapid response via facebook...

S - Wow... Arguably the best selection that I've ever encountered at a PA distributor... In addition, they don't have one or two cases of everything but rather a full supply to keep all of their customers happy...

Now that I live in the area, I will be a regular customer...

11-13-2010 14:03:48 | More by philbe311

bigfnjoe

Pennsylvania

4.85/5  rDev +7.1%
quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$

Made my first trip to Westy's today since I was in the area...it blew my mind. All of your macro junk is put in an aisle near the front of the store, and the rest of the place is a beer mecca. They had nearly everything I could ever imagine...west coast brews like Stone, Rogue, Bear Republic...east coast beers like DFH, Victory, Heavy Seas...even some from the southeast, like Duck Rabbit and Terrapin. And then the imports...Samuel Smith among tons of others was the highlights, as was a case of ROCHEFORT 10 if you're really loaded. I ended up with a case of Bells Two Hearted dated 2 weeks ago for around 40 bucks after tax...more than reasonable IMO. Will definitely be back when I need to purchase cases in the future.

10-01-2010 19:32:26 | More by bigfnjoe

gator0877

Pennsylvania

4.7/5  rDev +3.8%
quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | $$

This is the place to get beer in Central PA. It really doesn't look like much from the outside but it is what is inside that counts (my mom taught me that). It is just a big ol warehouse of great beer inside. There aren't too many place in PA where the the craft beer section it 2-3 times larger than the BMC side. If you can't find it in Westy's (with the exception of Founders) it probably isn't worth looking for. George, the General Manager, really knows his stuff. He is very personable and takes time to answer any questions you might have. He has spent alot of time and energy bringing breweries like Terrapin, Duck Rabbit and Bear Republic to Central PA. This is an outstanding beer distributor.

09-09-2010 17:37:33 | More by gator0877