This liquor store-slash-bodega offers curated snacks, wine, beer and spirits with a focus on high-quality items at an approachable price. "We want to have a little bit for everyone," notes Michael, who is a self-taught wine hobbyist and oversees the wine and liquor purchasing for the store.
Most of the wine on the shelves comes from smaller vineyards and Michael looks for options that have compelling stories. "This makes you do your research," he says. Many of the wines are organic and none are mass-produced. This may sound pretentious on paper, but what Michael really wants to provide is an opportunity for people to try new wines and learn about the process and vineyards behind the labels. "I'd rather sell twenty bottles of $20 wine than a $400 bottle," he adds.
Wine is shelved according to cost with a large selection priced under $25, so customers can easily pick an option within their budget.
The shop's liquor follows similar lines, with many local options as well as small labels like Derrumbes mezcal from Oaxaca, which is sold in various colored bottles that denote which region it was made in. There are some old familiars like Tincup Whiskey, and less common choices like Smoke Wagon Bourbon Whiskey from Las Vegas-based Nevada H&C Distilling Co.
David manages the beer inventory. Post-brewing school, he apprenticed at Left Hand and worked at a small microbrewery and a brewpub in Florida. The Grog Shop's beer cases are stocked with tons of local choices, including brews from Lady Justice and Cerebral. One beer fridge is dedicated to international and seasonal offerings, and there are ciders, canned mixed drinks, seltzers and N/A options along with cases of PBR, Coors Banquet and Modelo.
The bodega side of the business, tucked into a corner of the shop, has a funky range of choices — there are small bags of Doritos next to canned octopus in olive oil, and snack-sized Babybel cheese in the fridge next to fixings for a charcuterie board. The addition of food was a must for the brothers, who are native to New York and miss the bodegas that are common there.
Just weeks after opening, the shelves are purposefully sparse to leave room for new items based on requests from the neighborhood. Michael worked at Baker Wine & Spirits during the pandemic and says that the community he saw around that shop impressed him. "It was really inspiring," he recalls, adding that he hopes to recreate the same feeling at this new venture.
There are also plans to host a grand opening party soon as well as tastings and pop-up events on the patio adjacent to the store.
We asked Michael and David to run down some of their favorite Gorg Shop picks for Westword readers. Here are their recommendations:
- Beiras Brut Rosé 3B by Filipa Pato from Portugal ($20). “She puts her own little spin on it,” Michael says of the product.
- Dominio IV ($34), a pinot noir from an Oregon vineyard that Michael visited with his wife
- Chosen Family ESB from Lady Justice, which is aged seven months in a rye whiskey barrel from Law's.
- Berthoud Blue ($30), a blue corn vodka made by KJ Wood Distillers in Ouray.
- Locally made Kettle Head Popcorn, which David says always pops perfectly.
- Rushtichella D'Abruzzo rigatoni from Italy with marinara from New York-based Victoria.
