My first visit to a bottle shop was in college, right after I turned 21, with a friend who had the beer bug as bad as me. The rows of bottles behind the frosted glass, the hum of the refrigeration, the watchful eye of the owner — all together, it cast a spell on us. We were suddenly giddy, like kids in a beer-filled candy shop.
Then we were overwhelmed. This is the problem with the best bottle shops: you’re spoiled for choice. But it’s better than what you’ll sometimes find elsewhere: overpriced beer, old bottles (so-called “shelf turds”), asshole patrons or, worse, asshole owners. Oftentimes, it’s enough to drive you to the corner store, where the selections might suck, but at least you’re not harried about beer, of all things.
A better solution: find the right bottle shop, and go from there.
ABC Beer Co., in Manhattan, has been open for seven years. It’s one of the best beer stores in New York City, replete with well-stocked coolers, a small bar, communal seating and tasty bites. Zach Mack, its cofounder, says things have only changed for the better since they opened. “Seven years ago, there were fewer beer options out there, and people considered themselves a lot less knowledgeable,” he says. “Now, people who didn’t drink beer back then are drinking sours, saisons, all sorts of stuff. It’s widened the market.” We asked him how to navigate the craft bottle shop scene. Here are some of his tips.
Don’t Be Crippled by Indecision, Embrace It
The reality is, at a good bottle shop, there’s too much to choose from. “Sometimes I get FOMO standing in front of my own refrigerators,” Mack says. “I sit there for upwards of 25 minutes. People are like, ‘don’t you own this place?’”
It’s fun to take your time. “When I was growing up,” Mack says, “I loved walking around record stores, and bookstores, spending time perusing shelves and seeing what jumped out. The act of standing in front of products is quickly vanishing from lives. I revel in doing that with beer. And the same path to discovery can happen at a bottle shop. Sometimes, if I stand there long enough, I end up picking something I never knew I wanted.”
