Sahara Mart

October 6, 2008
Very nice find while in Bloomington visiting Upland Brewing. Very nice store that also carries Wine and Beer. Separate room in the back for the beer, but had a very good selection. All the Indiana local beer, all the major craft beers and a very nice selction of imports. They also had a wall of singles where you could build your own six packs. Some glassware was available as well. Most of the beer was very reasonably priced, while I noticed a couple that were high. Easily the best beer store in Bloomington.

February 12, 2008
Excellent selection of beer and a strong wine list make this place the best place in Bloomington for micro brewed delights from around the world. The beer range is very dynamic. Perennial favorites and local brews are always available, but there is always something new and unusual there too. Over the last few weeks i have samples a Helles fron Schlenkerla Brewery, a beer iI didn’t think was available outside Bamburg, Germany and Monkmans Slaughter, a classic bottle conditioned strong ale from the tiny Cropton Brewery in North Yorkshire - a tad over 4000 miles away. Gerald the self appointed brew-guru is very knowledgeable on all things beer related. Beats the competition (Big Red) hands down and doesn’t sell Bud Light (although the famous cousin from Ceske Budjovice lurks on the shelves!

February 7, 2008
I cannot believe I haven’t rated the place yet. Used to have an OK selection of beer, but too much emphasis on the Eastern European lagers. Man have times changed. The best selection and prices in town! Not to mention, they actually don’t seem to run out of special resleases on the day they come out like the Big Red does! All the selection claimed by others, most of the Left Hand lineup, along with a rather nice selection of Belgians, though nothing super obscure. Great chocolate/coffee/tea/cheese selection as well. I should also mention that they’ll split a sixer of the good stuff most of the time. I spend a lot of money here and don’t see that stopping any time soon.

December 10, 2007 [ Updated December 25, 2008 ]
Store on E 3rd Street: An incredible selection of just about every beer available in the state! No real service or help though. They stack em deep, so beware of freshness of the hoppier beers. Store on 2nd street: Service is mediocre, but The collection is growing / improving daily. Clearly the best in bloomington, I believe the new store will allow them to be among the best in IN!!! The grocery’s not bad either. Update to EithCubes... FFF a plenty

June 25, 2007
Really good beer selection that has improved quite a lot over the last few months. Very good selection of Belgians that changes every so often, lots of Midwest micros and an impressive selection of Czech beers that I’ve never seen anywhere else. Lots of good bulk food and a large selection of some really good olives.

January 15, 2007
A grocery store with a spectacular selection of beer and wine. Prices are decent with a very helpful staff. In non-beer related qualities, they have an excellent varieity of chocolates, coffees, and teas. As well as a completely organic produce section!

August 25, 2006 [ Updated June 18, 2007 ]
Store is strong in many areas - lots of organic food, ethnic food, cheese, gourmet coffee and tee, healthy wine selection… and a thoughtfully chosen beer section. One of the emerging ’hip’ food markets, they’ve just gone to mix-a-sixer. Pretty much all the stuff found in the region is here: Rogue, GD, Founders, DFH, DH, Bell’s, Stone, Sprecher, Thirsty Dog, Allagash, Upland, and Cali and Colo brews, but, strangely, no FFF. The Euro section is pretty darn good for its size! Often find things here that can’t be found in the much larger Big Red in town.

June 2007: This place has really come around! In addition to the beer, I now count 23 brands of sake!