January 3, 2010 [ Updated September 28, 2010 ]
I figured it was time to add my local grocery store. They’ve always had a large wine selection, but they’ve been steadily improving their craft beer selection over the past couple years, and it’s pretty impressive now. Lots of local stuff and a strong selection of national and import craft beers, alongside the usual grocery store selections. One and a half end-of-aisle coolers are now dedicated to craft beer along with maybe a quarter of an aisle plus a large end-of-aisle display unrefrigerated. They seem to get a lot of special beers I wouldn’t have expected (like Bell’s The Oracle), sometimes seeming to outdo the dedicated beer stores in that respect, perhaps just because there are fewer people looking for that stuff here. They’ve done a great job and they just keep getting better. Doesn’t replace a dedicated beer store, but they’re good enough to be pretty much my only local stop for beer.