Headed down there for a week, looking to stock up. Got any recommendations for good wine shops?
Did a search for Bereche and Agrapart on wine-searcher, nothing coming up from the Austin, TX area. Austin Wine Merchant comes up on a few other searchers, as does Davenport Wines. Otherwise, seems like a bit like purgatory…
Austin Wine Merchant is a very good shop.
AWM is as good as it gets. Very heavy in Burgundy if that is your thing- and about the best Riesling selection in the state. Good coverage overall, though. Note that they close at 6:30 every day- they are a true wine store and do not maintain the 10-9 hours of most liquor/wine stores. Disclosure- I used to work there from time to time and am a long-time customer (since college)- so while I stand by my opinion, it is not unbiased.
If time allows, also check out the Twin Liquors locations in Hancock Center and Westlake (at 360 and Bee Caves Road.) Twin is the biggest operation in Austin and there are some very solid wine people at the helm in those two locations.
Wiggy’s is worth a look too- on 6th Street just south of Lamar (and 3 doors down from Sweetish Hill which is an incredible bakery and good place for a light casual lunch.) I worked at Wiggy’s in college. The big changes in the wine markets hit them pretty hard- mostly a liquor store these days- but back in my time we had DRC, Petrus and all the greats. They still get some good stuff in there, but they do not dabble much in high dollar wines. More of a CA focus when it comes to the higher end these days.
Note- none of the better Austin wine stores are geared toward online sales, and a lot of the rarest stuff never makes it to websites. Expect in general to find a lot more in person than any online listings suggest.
Thanks Tom & Jeremy!
AWM tends to be very cold - always bring a sweater with you.
Also, they are one of the last of the old school stores which doggedly refuses to post their inventory on their website.
So [as far as I know] you pretty much have to physically walk into the store to learn what they might [or might not] have in stock.
Not sure your criteria for best but AWM is a good bet as mentioned. Also, Whole Foods is about two blocks from AWM. Erika and her team have gone out of their way to increase selection quality.
If you want Bereche NV (to consume), your best best is to go to Bufalina for half off bottles under $100 during happy hour. Tons of great values to be had.
Another source to pick up bottles although no storefront is Estate Wine Brokers (http://estatewinebrokers.com/).
Gentlemen:
Thanks for the great recommendations in this timely thread. I’m in Austin for the holiday and have purchased more wine than I should have between Austin Wine Merchant, Whole Foods downtown, Central Market, and the flagship Twin Liquors at 71 and Bee Cave. There’s some interesting wine to be found in these shops. Thanks for the tips!
Curious if anyone has further thoughts on Austin (preferably South Austin). I stopped at the Specs in New Braunfels last time and the selection was ok at best. Some of the Italian wines were sitting for so long in the store that their labels were faded, and the glue dried out to where the label was only partially affixed to the bottle…
Austin Wine Merchant is as good as it gets. Would highly recommend and would put it up against just about any wine-focuses store out there
Not sure if you are so inclined or if you want to deal with putting added wine bottles in checked luggage but wine shops in Austin if they follow the legal rules cannot ship outside of city limits. At least that’s what AWM has told me in the past. If any of your wine buddies want something off their Burgundy list you could sherpa it back home for them since it generally isn’t possible for the shop to ship bottles. I’ve had an Austin contact purchase and mail for me before. AWM folks due to first rate business with awesome customer service from my perspective.
I agree about the Austin Wine Merchant. When did you work at Wiggy’s? I worked there in the early nineties when I was studying at UT Austin. Back then, John Roenigk of the Austin Wine Merchant would come into the shop to buy Rothman cigarettes.