Your favourite retailer(s).

[r900p]

Theres so many to choose from now, and online ordering has really opened things up.

But which retailers still remain your favourites and for what reason?

[Muskrat Portage]

r900p:
Oh, my favorite is the government bootleggers, the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, followed closely by the Manitoba Liquor Control Commision.

I was very impressed with the Duty Free in Heathrow when I last went through, they had as good a selection as I have seen in many of the "flagship" stores I've frequented here in Canada. The RM selection was topnotch and unfortunately I didn't realise the other members of the family hadn't picked up any alcohol or I could have purchased several instead of the one I bought. The staff were also knowledgeable and as helpful as any I've met on this side of the Atlantic.
Muskrat

[vitara7]

the duty free at glasgow was not too bad last time i was through, but its not been as good as it has been in recent years though...

or maybe im jst getting to picky...

[Oliver]

Martin's in Old New Orleans was pretty good; now, I am not sure.
But back then, you could find some great deal, particularly on glenfarclas, the 21 for less then $60.00, etc, etc...
Another place in MEtaire was real cool -- since one could actually profit from the ignorance of the retailers, unlike most place in Manhattan where its the other way around -- the place was called Dorignac. I found two Macallan 18's there, one 1979, and one 1980 both for less than $60.00 each !!! I think they are probably worth five times that now. It was also the place where I found half a case of Springbank 21 lying around there, catching dust; the guy gave me a discount to moeve them off his shelves.... Also found some low priced pre-FWP Bowmores of all kind...
That was the good side of living in a boom and bust town...

[Aidan]

There's only two worth talking about here - The Celtic Whiskey Shop in Dublin and any Oddbins.

Of course, there are some good only merchants, too.

[Wave]

I love Binny's, great prices and selection though I wish I didn't live in the same state and have to pay taxes along with the shipping. Out of the state I like K&L Wine Merchants in San Francisco, Ca. They don't have a great big selection like Binny's but they seem to get new release whiskies in first and have some great deals from time to time. Internationally It's a toss-up between Loch Fyne Whiskies & Royal Mile Whiskies, both have comparable prices, shipping rates and not to mention great whiskies!


Cheers!

[TheLaddie]

Mainly Malts is my second home. Ron has only been open for about 18 months now but has been responsible for turning my love of SMW back into a passion. Regular tastings are enjoyable and well thought out with excellent visiting speakers. Good tasting stock and a warm welcome.

Outside of my locality I always check out The Whisky Shop and Royal Mile Whiskies when in Edinburgh. Online The Whisky Exchange, Royal Mile Whiskies, Loch Fyne, Whiskys.co.uk near York and Celtic Whisky Shop have never let me down. Am partial to the Bruichladdich online shop too...

[Paul A Jellis]

For me it's got to be Loch Fyne, it was the very first whisky shop I visited and have been back once or twice a year since. Plus it's great to walk in and get called by my first name.

[les taylor]

Loch Fyne for me its always malts with a smile. Also its not, but it just seems like an old fashioned grocers full of wonderful things. Sightly quirky but always has what you want.


I have had a little experience with Mackay's and Gauntley's as well and both have been excellent and will not hesitate to use them again.

[Bullie]

My favourites in no particular order:

Royal Mile Whiskies (UK)
The Whisky Exchange (UK)
Juul's (DK)
Whiskyhouse (DK)
Systembolaget (SE)

[Deactivated Member]

LFW & G&M in Scotland. Federal in Boston.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

Mine are

Obviously the Celtic Whiskey in Dublin... which has the best selection of WHiskey in Ireland

http://www.celticwhiskeyshop.com/

Also

https://www.lfw.co.uk/

http://www.royalmilewhiskies.com/

http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/

[Deactivated Member]

The Vineyard on the Ormeau in Belfast - for being an oasis of hope in a whisky desert.

Also, Royal Mile Whiskies, Cadenheads and The Whisky Shop for friendly service, excellent range and interesting, exclusive bottlings.

[fishboy]

I use either Luvians (in Cupar or St. Andrews in Fife) or Robertsons in Pitlochry. When I visit my parents I usually try to pop into The Wee Dram. For Mail order you can't beat Royal Mile and Loch Fyne.

Cheers

Fishboy

[Deactivated Member]

I have used both LFW and WhiskyExchange on various occasions and I have been delighted with their service each time.


As I also operate within a trade environment, I would like to add that conversely, instead of offering praise, I would like to post a vote of no confidence and absolute negativity for one specific company: LVMH.

MT

[Deactivated Member]

No brainer for me. LFW whenever I can.

[vitara7]

im quite lucky, in my job i travel all over scotland so i visit many diffrent shops and distilleries themselfs. there are a lot of wine shops that have a good selection of whisky in smaller towns etc

but my fav shop just purly for banter is whisky castle in toumintoul, the chap that owns is is a bloody funny guy, and cracks me up everytime i go.

[Ardbeg311]

I would say:

Achilli Enoteca al Parlamento (top notch)
Enoteca Chirra
Enoteca Per Bacco (not a wide selection, but the store owner is quite pleasant and he has good prices on Ardbeg and Highland Park)

[Deactivated Member]

For me it's got to be Loch Fyne, it was the very first whisky shop I visited and have been back once or twice a year since. Plus it's great to walk in and get called by my first name.

I was in Inverary at the weekend with Calliope and called into LFW. I was happily looking at bottles behind the counter with every intention of buying something. Then this man asked Calliope whether she wanted to try a liqueur - she declined (it was before lunch). He then offered it to me, and I also declined politely. He just sneered at us and said "you're not whisky drinkers, then". I turned on my heel and left. What a shame we didn't get the great service other people talk about. If shopkeepers are rude to me, I make a point of leaving and not going back.

[Deactivated Member]

RMW and Oddbins in Clarkston (better stocked than the bigger one in the centre of Glasgow!).

[Gov]

Locally,

Binnys
Armanettis
Teddy's
Cardinal

[Mr Fjeld]

Not that there is an option but I can honestly say it's very good;well educated staff, great selection of wine, beer, whisky, rum etc and the availability is also excellent. They also have an enormous selection - the Norwegian Wine Monopoly: http://www.vinmonopolet.no

The prices are definately not a reason to go there but an interesting selection and excellent service far outweigh any downside: http://www.kratochvilovci.cz/

[Mr Fjeld]

Oops, the last link is for a spirit specialist in the old town of Prague.....

[les taylor]

For me it's got to be Loch Fyne, it was the very first whisky shop I visited and have been back once or twice a year since. Plus it's great to walk in and get called by my first name.

I was in Inverary at the weekend with Calliope and called into LFW. I was happily looking at bottles behind the counter with every intention of buying something. Then this man asked Calliope whether she wanted to try a liqueur - she declined (it was before lunch). He then offered it to me, and I also declined politely. He just sneered at us and said "you're not whisky drinkers, then". I turned on my heel and left. What a shame we didn't get the great service other people talk about. If shopkeepers are rude to me, I make a point of leaving and not going back.

You know what Nick we all have an off day. My experience of LFW has always been good. When I ring them, they always have time for a chat. And say your Les from Caddington. Which makes you feel valued. When I've been in the shop it's always been a good experience.

So my advice and it's up to you whether you take it or not is give them another chance. But I don't need to tell that really.

[Deactivated Member]

You know what Nick we all have an off day. My experience of LFW has always been good. When I ring them, they always have time for a chat. And say your Les from Caddington. Which makes you feel valued. When I've been in the shop it's always been a good experience.

Perhaps. Maybe their the guy's style works better on the phone when he knows someone is going to buy. But I did get the impression he was scaring people out of the shop.

[Deactivated Member]

Please, Matt, can we have our edit button back...

[Jimmy321]

LFW for me,

I like to take a drive up when they have something in stock i want and they often give me a sample of something they have open.

Nick, they do get a lot of tourists visiting the shop and don't buy anything but i think that comment made to you was unjustified.

I do order from TWE, but only use them as a last resort and make sure before i order that they are sending me what i want, i ordered the PE 4th and they sent me the 5th (which i kept) then when i ordered PE 7th they sent me the 6th, when i phoned to complain they tried to get me to keep the 6th (which was my least liked PE OB), also i bought Lombards Brora Jewels of Scotland 50% which was advertised as 'Lombard Jewels 50%' thinking i was getting the current bottle at the time 1982 aged 22 years 50%, instead i was sent 1981 17yo 50% without a box which cost me £80 and is still unopened.

[OKDiver1]

I recently bought a bottle from RMW, and received it 5 days later here in the USA. Very courteous, and excellent email follow-up. Whenever the budget allows, I will place another order with them.

The local prices are outrageous in the state where I live (Ohio) -- prices and availability are set by a liquor board, politburo style. As a result, I do most of my shopping online, with domestic retailers such as Beltramo's, Binny's, Sam's Wine, Wine & Liquor Depot and Shopper's Vineyard. Even when the shipping is factored in, the average price difference for 2 bottles justifies it. For 6 bottles, which is what I usually order, I actually "make" money by getting at least one free bottle, if not two out of the lot when compared to local prices (and taxes).

[Di Blasi]

For me it's got to be Loch Fyne, it was the very first whisky shop I visited and have been back once or twice a year since. Plus it's great to walk in and get called by my first name.

I was in Inverary at the weekend with Calliope and called into LFW. I was happily looking at bottles behind the counter with every intention of buying something. Then this man asked Calliope whether she wanted to try a liqueur - she declined (it was before lunch). He then offered it to me, and I also declined politely. He just sneered at us and said "you're not whisky drinkers, then". I turned on my heel and left. What a shame we didn't get the great service other people talk about. If shopkeepers are rude to me, I make a point of leaving and not going back.

Maybe the guy was just having a bit of fun, very British to poke and tease people isn't it? Especially before lunch to push alcohol, doesn't sound very serious to me. Thought you were the types that could take a laugh maybe.

[Calliope]

Maybe the guy was just having a bit of fun, very British to poke and tease people isn't it? Especially before lunch to push alcohol, doesn't sound very serious to me. Thought you were the types that could take a laugh maybe.

He would have been right, but that wasn't what he thought. He actually sounded a little frustrated. It wasn't a welcoming experience at all.

[Spirit of Islay]

The two i always recommend are LFW , always get a great welcome off Andy and Richard , Andys always got some great recommendations and Richards Humour and knowledge is Outstanding .
RMW are also superb , both are very competitive .
I would also say The Whisky Shop but i think they seriously need to look at their pricing not competitive at all !

[jmrl]

The boys at RMW know and care about whisky, LFW give you a real laugh and TWE has a range I can't compare. The Cadenheads Shop in Edinburgh always let me try as much of anything I want but then again I work there.

[Deactivated Member]

The Cadenheads Shop in Edinburgh always let me try as much of anything I want but then again I work there.

I always get a warm welcome in Cadenheads . And RMW seems to have got the balance right between serving regular customers and welcoming in the tourists - who always seem to leave with a smile on their faces and bottles under their arms.

[zippy]

I know RMW has a great reputation but I always find going in there a slightly frustrating experience. The shop is always rammed with people, mostly tourists picking up a nice souvenier (for a whisky shop, a large amount of shelf space seems to be given over to shortbread and marmalades) The temperature in the shop tends to be verging towards oven-like. Most of the interesting whiskies seem to be stashed away behind the counter so you can't really see what they have got and the staff always seem to be busy with all the customers so it's hard to get to talk to them much.

Maybe I just need to avoid going there at the weekend!

There are two branches of The Whisky Shop in Edinburgh with a decent selection but they tend to be a little expensive. Cadenheads has lots of interesting stuff.

[TheTross]

RMW is a firm favourite, as too is TWE - never had a bad experience with either of them. LFW has also served me well whenever I've ordered from them, and I really should have visited them whilst I was staying near Oban last Summer - didn't get round to it in the end

Zippy, I know what you mean about RMW's Edinburgh shop. It was much smaller than I was expecting for such a reputable retailer and 'rammed' is a good way of describing it. I also found it a little cramped and yes, they do keep a lot of the special bottlings behind the counter. However, I did manage to talk briefly to the two lads behind the counter and ended up talking a bit about St Magdalene (RMW had their own 32yo bottling of St Magdalene at that time, which I'm sure I mentioned at some point because I'd bought a bottle previously). I also mentioned I was looking to buy a MM Mission Gold bottling of the same distillery, which I knew they carried, but one of the blokes said they had none left. A quick scan on one of the top shelves behind the counter showed one, and I'm pretty sure he said that he forgot which bottles were there! So it's definitely worthwhile looking at those shelves.