POLL: Which is the Best Place Liquor/Package Store in Brookline?
For those 21 and over, where is the best place to pick up a drink in town? Vote in the poll, defend your choice in the comments, and come back Friday at noon to find out the winner.
This week's poll is 21+ only, because we're looking for the best place to pick up wine or beer in town. Whether it's a six-pack for the big game or a bottle for a romantic evening, your place can be the best spot for a drink.
In the last few weeks, we set a few Brookline businesses against each other in a bit of friendly competition. If you need to do some research first, go ahead, then stop back here and leave your review and vote for your favorite in the poll below.
For a full set of rules, see the attached .pdf. Please remember one vote per person, per poll.
And now, the nominees, along with links to their Patch Places pages (presented in no particular order):
- Baystate Foods
- Bazaar International Gourmet
- Brookline Fine Wine & Gourmet
- Coolidge Corner Wine & Spirits
- Foley's Liquors
- Gimbels Liquors
- GPS Wine & Spirits
- Mall Discount Liquors & Wines
- TerraVino
- Trader Joe's
- Russian Village
- Village Liquor & Convenience
- Vinodivino
- Wine Gallery
- The Wine Press
- Winestone
As in past weeks, the poll closes at 9 a.m. on Friday. Because these polls aren't scientific, it isn't the sole consideration in choosing a winner. The winner will be determined by the Patch editor (that's me, Grahame Turner), based on the comments votes in the poll and reviews on Patch Places, with comments being taken under consideration. Please vote only once per survey. To leave a review, head to the Patch listing for the business and post your thoughts.
The winner gets bragging rights and a framed certificate from Patch. Let the voting, reviewing and commenting begin!
Bill Davidson
11:25 am on Monday, April 16, 2012
If you don't recognize "Baystate Foods," you might know this Beacon Street establishment by its colloquial name, "Liquors Foods."
dfl
4:33 pm on Monday, April 16, 2012
Terra vino wines! The owners are so nice! We tasted several wines out of their cool 'wine juke box' and ended up buying 6 bottles! The 'terra pack' is the way to go! Bonus points for the cool indie music playing in the background!
Jmlc
5:41 pm on Monday, April 16, 2012
Used to be Harvard wine & liquor, back in the day.
Ray
6:46 pm on Monday, April 16, 2012
With only 2weeks under their belt, Terra Vino seems to be doing the right thing. Great service and wonderful staff! All of their wines are natural too. I am looking forward to shopping there many more times.
Laura
10:01 pm on Monday, April 16, 2012
I went to Terra Vino last week and Chris was so welcoming and very knowledgable about his wine. I love Eco friendly environment. Great place and this is my new wine shop!
Eric
1:41 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
I have tried several local wine shops and the biggest standout for me is Vinodivino.
Finding wine you like isn't the hard part, getting the right service and knowledge go A LONG WAY. The staff actually cook and can always recommend something under $15 so I can enjoy my wine whenever...Keep up the great work and good luck!
Jeremy
1:41 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Happy to see some love for Baystate Foods! They have been offering some great craft beers with a focus on local offerings.
Jim Dyer
5:01 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Vinodivino - I've tried a few wine shops in my quest for such an accomodating, knowledgeable, articulate, value oriented folks as those at Vinodivino. Fun and satisfying! High fives all around.
Mary Lee
5:37 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Terra Vino is the best! They have the most amazing interesting wines and the staff is so friendly and helpful.
KD
7:44 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Terra Vino is a cut above the rest. It's just the perfect place to fully experience and enjoy wine. The owners make you feel like family. Great atmosphere, great people, great wine. Impressive!
NL
9:41 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
I know that I like wine. But I am not good at choosing wine, especially for a specific dish. That’s when I turn to vinodivino. They are great with their recommendations and have wonderful suggestions.
The staff is fantastic!
Thank you!
Brett
9:52 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
For reasonable prices, awesome "natural" wines, and an all "green" build out as well, Terra Vino is my choice hands down!!
jc
10:35 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Terror vino
Gretchen
10:53 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Terra Vino Wines is my new go to wine store. Great selection and wonderful customer service!
Jen
6:32 am on Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Vinodivino consistently provides a wonderfully curated selection of delicious high-value wines, with terrific customer service. I love that I can keep track of what I've bought before, and they can use that information to recommend a wine, in my price range, that I'll enjoy even more. Such a great addition to Brookline!
Todd
9:18 am on Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Vinodivino takes the cake in providing the best wine at the best prices. Not a single store comes close to their due diligence, knowledge, and customer service.
Bill Davidson
9:50 am on Wednesday, April 18, 2012
I call shenanigans on these poll results. 352 votes?!? Given the tepid response to the previous Reader's Choice polls, I don't believe that many people in the community care about this distinction, much less read Brookline Patch. (Sorry, Grahame.) Many of these so-called readers' only contribution to Patch is a vote in this poll. This is ballot stuffing, most likely generated solely by the owners of Vinodivino and Terra Vino. I'm curious as to the individual IP addresses for each vote for these two establishments. My guess is that there are only two.
Grahame Turner
9:02 am on Thursday, April 19, 2012
The Daycare poll was around 200 votes, as I recall, smoothies were around 150, I believe. We could have a lot of fans from out of town voting in for the stores (there are two VinoDivino stores I'm aware of), and a strong social media outreach on the part of at least one that I've seen.
On other sites where there has been cheating and ballot stuffing, it's been on the order of 10,000 votes for each, mostly overnight, which is part of the reason I'm not overly suspicious. This has been gradual growth.
That said, the poll results aren't the only way to choose the winner. The person who has more reviews has an edge, too.
Bill Davidson
1:33 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
Fair enough, Grahame. But I still think it's ballot stuffing. Then again, I realize the attention that this is receiving is good for Patch.
Grahame Turner
11:00 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
Having had a conversation with a couple of other editors, my suspicions are also aroused, although we don't really have any way to prove it.
Hayley
12:11 pm on Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Terra vino....
Travis Baker
5:38 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
VinoDivino and @Bill Davidson, Check my IP address!
Sue
11:57 am on Friday, April 20, 2012
Sue
Terra Vino Wines, a very welcoming place . Good service, knowledgeable about all the wines...very impressive..... thumbs up!!!!!
Andrea
4:36 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
Terra Vino is a great place and I really enjoyed the wine tasting and friendly atmosphere!
Justin Feller
5:43 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
I've been with vinodivino since their inception and to date, I've never had a bad bottle of wine. In my experience, there is no risk in grabbing a quick bottle or a gift with their friendly and informational staff.
AlanScott
8:10 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
Terra Vino is fantastic. I've definitely found my new favourite wine store. Chris is friendly, knowledgeable and passionate about his store!
APRIL MCCORMICK
9:27 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
TERRA VINO. It's my new place to get wine.