Friday 10th of July 2009 09:44:55 AM

link
Archer has a few things going for it...near Midway airport, online ordering, frequent freshness & stock updates, the entire selection is available as singles, odds & ends homebrew equipment, and the occasional surprise rarity.

Yes, it's dingy and they move tons of swill on a daily basis. But what liquor store doesn't? The counter staff may not be the friendliest, but they will answer questions if you have them. Randy the beer guy works during the day, so if you need advanced beer assistance, daytime is best, or contact via email. To me, the real service level is online, and is demonstrated by their frequently updated website.

Selection is all handpicked with some interesting options, lots of Belgians, trappists, Cantillon, De Ranke, and others. Assortment of Haand & Mikkeller that you won't find elsewhere on this side of town. Lots of eastern Euro stuff, Kozlak, Ococim, Zywiec Porter, etc. Quite a few germans too, like Hopf and Uerige. They have some open cases on the floor you can grab from, as well as a fine selection of craft bombers with emphasis on midwest quality such as Jolly Pumpkin, Founders and Three Floyds. Also Moylans, Tyranena, Bells, Southern Tier, many others, the stock list is online and current. Some WI singles were in the cooler I hadn't seen before, so that was a nice surprise. All in all, you can't walk out without at least a mixed sixer, which says something about the quality of selection. Prices here are good, and there is a small discount on cash purchases.

Wednesday 21st of May 2008 04:04:57 PM

link
Nondescript looking liquor store from the street, but inside is probably the best craft beer selection in 10-15 miles - you either have to head well into the city, or run to the nicer 'burbs to beat the selection. Good selection of midwest craft brews, plus an increasing selection of West coast items. Website makes it easy to figure out what's fresh or not, and Randy (who runs the beer operation) is more than happy to look into picking things up when placing orders (provided of course there's a distributor in the area). If Randy's not working, no reason to stay here any longer than you need to, as there's not much else going on here. And if the wife/girlfriend/whomever asks you to pick up a bottle of wine while you're out, good luck as they don't have much in the way of other quality liquor here (although the Polish vodka selection is pretty extensive).

Sunday 6th of January 2008 11:48:01 PM

link
Welcome to archer... home of the strangest mixed bag of craft quality, polish and other big cheap beer craft and an assload of miller/bud/coors which pays the bills.

Beer selection is good here because the place is all single beers. You pay for the privelege of that... 1.90ish per single based on six pack... They have all the fair available to the chicago markets, and an excellent website with status updates on freshness and availability...

One turn off for me but is worth reporting as far as things go is the label things as "Rare" here... with a slight to significant upcharge. From the pink behemoth (+$7) to Trappist Rochefort 2001 (extra 1.50) to trader joes 04 vintage ale... Things show up here that are old and interesting and unexpected. Look carefully, but shop with reservation.

This place is a hole... It's a dirty tiled neon piece of crap. Don't expect much, except for a decent craft beer section.

Service depends on whom you get... most of the cashiers are there to work their shift. There's a beer guy on ba who works there and is the driving force behind the craft selection. Pivodemo is there (JB avatar) he's good to talk to about beer... otherwise, get in, shop and begone.