Chuck's Fine Wines

Eastside151

Ohio

3.99/5  rDev -12.9%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3 | $$$

After reading about Chuck's on here decided to make the drive down to check it out. I have never been to Chagrin Falls and have to say it is a really nice area. Bring the wife (or husband) and send them off shopping while you visit Chuck's. Atmosphere is really nice in the store, staff is friendly and helpful. Was a little disappointed with the selection of singles. Expected a bit more than what they had. Prices on a singles are a bit marked up compared to other shops. Imports are the draw for Chuck's, unfortunately I didn't get to check out the vault and will have to do that on another visit.

10-01-2012 04:24:55 | More by Eastside151

Manos

Ohio

4.15/5  rDev -9.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5

A great find on the east side of Cleveland, in a pretty little town called Chagrin Falls (lots of rich people here, kind of reflects, the style and prices at the local stores). They carried anything I could think of looking for at the time. Lots of glassware, as well as Belgian, and domestic micros as well. Picked up: Two Hearted, Stone 7th Anniversary, Great Lakes Anniversary, Buckeye76(!), Delirium Tremens, and a nice Duvel Tulip in one stop. Great selection and they carry your stuff out to your car for ya. Lots of wine too (for those who care).

08-07-2004 16:12:38 | More by Manos

blackie

Virginia

4.15/5  rDev -9.4%
quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Chuck's is just a couple miles from my aunt and uncle's house in Novelty, set just off the main square in downtown Chagrin Falls in a building with the look and feel of an old general store

it's absolutely essential to gain access to the storage area behind the display coolers - my first couple visits were underwhelming and didn't inspire any purchase (well, there was the legendary Siletz Spruce a few years ago...Siletz closed? nooo), this visit I merely expressed interest in Midwestern stuff unavailable to me at home and was pointed towards the cooler door

on open display was some adequate but pretty widespread (in Ohio) stuff - a range of Great Lakes, a Dark Horse, Erie, New Holland, Thirsty Dog, Bells, and many other common but quality selections to include a nice range of imports and Belgians, though nothing worth lugging home; things looked much better in the back room - Hoppin' Frog, Buckeye, Jolly Pumpkin, Two Brothers, The Bruery, Brew Kettle, more Dark Horse, AleSmith 750s, Clipper City bombers, Penn St. Nikolaus, actually had to limit myself to in-state breweries to keep from going overboard, keep a sharp eye out as there were more than a few not on display, requiring a peek into a few boxes to weasel out

the service was friendly and helpful, though I didn't have the "above-and-beyond" experience that others did

encountered a few dusty six-packs, and the warm ambient temp may or may not be a concern for those beers not in the cooler, but quality seemed to be generally in order

11-28-2009 18:02:05 | More by blackie

ike4tay45

Ohio

4.2/5  rDev -8.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Located in a beautiful area of Chagrin Falls. Very friendly staff with a great knowlege of beer. You can head into the back into the cooler and take a peak at things that may not be out on the shelves. Prices are what you would expect. Very good selection. Have been able to find a few gems every now and then. One of the few locations in Ohio where I was able to find Terrapin Brewing beers. My wife and I make an evening of it, by heading to Chucks, then enjoying dinner at one of Chagrins cozy little spots.

09-13-2011 01:02:47 | More by ike4tay45

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

4.25/5  rDev -7.2%
quality: 3.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Chuck's Fine Wines is located just off Main Street in quaint little Chagrin Falls. The white clapboard building backs onto the Chagrin River, within sight of a portion of the Falls, where dozens of ducks paddle placidly along, unaware of their proximity to great beer. There's plenty of parking beside the store and along the street, most of which was empty since I got there before the opening time of 10:00 AM.

The interior is quaint as well, made even more so by the extremely creaky hardwood floors. Some beer is present on the right hand wall; German imports on shelves and a pretty good selection in an old cooler. The really good stuff is in the center of the store near the cash register and on tables, shelves and a cooler to the left. The *really* good stuff is in The Vault, the walk-in portion of the cooler.

All in all, I'd say the selection is similar to some of the best of Ohio's beer stores. I did see some things here that I hadn't seen anywhere else though. American micros were pretty well represented (more singles would have been nice), but I would have liked to have seen a bigger selection of top shelf Belgians. I guess John's Grocery in Iowa City has spoiled me in that regard. Prices seemed a little on the high side, but not so much that I wouldn't shop here if I lived in the area.

The biggest negative for me was some less than fresh beer that was still sitting on the shelves. I'm talking 'best by' dates of 2002-2003 for pales ales and pilseners. Completely unacceptable. In fact, I put about half a dozen bottles back since I was leery about their age. Faded labels and floating junk is not something that I want to see when I go beer shopping. Overall quality is great, but the score will have to be knocked back a notch to reflect the need to weed out the oldies. [Edit: I'm going to decrease the quality score another half-point since I've had to drainpour two bombers that were extremely old; total cost was more than $10.]

The biggest positive was the service. Mike was a tremendous help and took me into the cooler where the quality beer lives. Needless to say, if one doesn't know about that cache, one doesn't have any idea of what riches await at Chuck's. He even broke a 4-pack for me 'since you're here all the way from Iowa'. He also offered to mail me beer (Stone Oaked Arrogant Bastard) that hadn't come in yet. Even without the great selection, this is a place that I'd come back to just to hang out and talk beer.

It was a little out of my way, but I'm glad that I stopped at Chuck's Fine Wines on my most recent trip home. The BAs of Northeastern Ohio are lucky to have a place like this and I'll be sure to stop in again if I'm in the area.

11-18-2006 12:28:29 | More by BuckeyeNation

JackStraw22

Virginia

4.3/5  rDev -6.1%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Funny, I grew up near Chagrin Falls, but never went to Chuck's until I moved away. I always knew it as a wine and cheese store and it was only on a visit back home that I found out they had a ton of good beer too.

The selection is very good. The stock was a little scattered, there didn't seem to be any system to how the beer was arranged. This actually made it fun to dig around the store, though. I found almost everything I could think of, so it's a great place to start if you're looking for something obscure. The wine selection is great too.

The building is old and right near the falls which gives it a nice atmosphere to dig around for some good brews.

04-25-2005 14:39:31 | More by JackStraw22

Morey

Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev -6.1%
quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I'm from Erie, Pa...but I was in Cleveland, so I decided to take a trip over to Chagrin Falls. Man was I glad that I did!

I was like a kid in a candy store in Chuck's. They had plenty of English beers including...Sam Smith's entire lineup, Young's, Belhaven, Murphy's...and many more.

They had plenty of American craft as well...Bell's, Founders, Flying Dog, Stone, Rogue, Clipper City, Troegs, Victory, Anchor, Sierra Nevada, Penn, Weyerbacher, Boulder, Great Lakes, and even Erie Brewing Co. beers.

As for the prices....this was the most impressive part of the experience for me. In PA we have all kinds of crazy alcohol taxes and what not. In Erie we pay an average of 11 or 12 bucks for a six pack of craft beer. At Chuck's the same sixers were $899 or so.

The only downside is that some of the beers were past their prime. I guess that this is almost unavoidable. But I personally would run specials on beer when it's getting close to it's best buy date.

Morey's Bottom Line: I would go back just to get beer there and I'm about an hour and 45 minutes away. Very nice atmosphere, very nice people, very nice town (starbucks, old fashion popcorn and ice cream shops, bagel shop...etc).

11-15-2008 13:07:13 | More by Morey

output01x

Ohio

4.34/5  rDev -5.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$$

Date visited: 1/31/12
Number of previous visits: multiple
Likelihood of revisit: definite

Chuck's Fine Wines is located in the heart of Chagrin Falls right off of Main Street. Because of this, finding the store without a GPS may be a bit difficult for those unfamiliar with the area as it is located quite a distance from the closest highways. There is not a lot of room for parking which can be a little problematic during peak hours or when there are multiple deliveries.

The store itself is rather quaint and has a rather rustic, welcoming feel to it. The creaky hardwood floors and ambient lighting definitely make it feel more like a mom 'n pop store rather than a money-grubbing company. The beer section is a bit chaotic with a well organized self-feed cooler, a large wall with a great selection of imports, and lines of table displays showing off random products. Books and glassware are also littered throughout the store and displayed in random areas with little recognizable reasoning.

The selection is pretty good. Given the size of the store, the lack of some staples is understandable. However, this isn't the kind of store that stocks every Founders and Great Lakes product available (although they do have the majority of their catalogs). The real appeal lies in the store's great selection of imports (La Chouffe, Orkney, Hitachino, etc.) as well as the vault.

The vault is located inside the self-feeding cooler and is accessed from the backroom. Please note that it is normally best to ask to see the vault as opposed to walking back there on your own. The vault is where beers are kept that aren't supposed to be sold at this location (beers not distributed here and beers with ABVs above the 12% state maximum). Entering the vault is usually a random experience. Sometimes you can find Oskar Blues Ten Fidy, other times you find some New Belgium Fat Tire. But the not knowing is what makes it so fun (like opening Christmas presents).

The prices of the six-packs is about on par with similar stores. However, the prices on the import singles is a bit marked up. Also, the prices on any of the specially available items in the vault are marked up a bit (and understandably so).

The products available are usually within date (except for some of the items in the vault) and are maintained well despite the seemingly chaotic organization. Little dust can be noticed on the products (even the ones that probably aren't the best sellers).

The workers are always warm and friendly and will always greet a customer as he/she walks through the door. They will usually allow an appropriate amount of time before asking if you need help and are always willing to offer recomendations when asked. They do not get caught up in long conversations but are obviously happy to help and converse briefly.

02-01-2012 06:18:29 | More by output01x

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

4.35/5  rDev -5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Fate was with me on the trip to Chuck's. I pleasantly found it to be on the street that is on the 271 express (chagrin), it was in a nice small town, and it was near the off-the-wall Buckeye's. More than 400 beers, at fair prices, with a very knowledgeable and involved owner and backup. Lots of hard-to-finds. Bonus points for throwing in a glass and other freebies, telling me about future brewery beer tastings, and breaking up some 4-and 6-packs which was a pure pleasure for my ability to import despite being a bit of hardship to them. (NOte: return trip 14 months later, staff did not break up like the owner did)The Bell's(and other Michigan brews) distributor in Ohio strongly urged me to go there "These guys take a bit of everything" Worth the trip.

04-23-2004 20:05:24 | More by northyorksammy

neenerzig

Ohio

4.35/5  rDev -5%
quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

This store is an excellent place for any wine or beer lover. They have more wines than beers available (hence the name Chuck's Fine Wines). But they have more beer than some other stores around the area I have seen. Great Lakes, Bell's Unibroue, Corsendonk, Stone, Dogfish Head, Flying Dog, Sam Adams, Konningshoeven, Victory, and Rogue can all be found here, among tons of lesser known, but just as tasty, brews. Mike, one of the employees certainly knows his stuff when it comes to beer. I was blown away by the selection and knowledge of the employees of beer. Worth a trip for sure if you live in the greater Cleveland area or are passing through.

Eric

10-30-2006 22:20:47 | More by neenerzig