There are countless liquor stores in Amherst. But Spirit Haus stands out for its welcoming…read moreambiance and--what puts it in the no. 1 spot for me--the extensive selection of wines, from modest to ... daunting (!) prices. I also enjoy the Saturday winetasting, conducted by the owner, Gary--who selects the wines and provides excellent recommendations.

@@ road trip review @@…read more Pros: * Local beer! We got recommended Spirit Haus specifically when we asked a friend where we could get some local brews to take home. * Good selection overall. They had a good selection of beer from real close, from Massachusetts, and of course from the rest of the country/world. * Walk in cold storage in the back. * Didn't partake since we were on the way out of town, but there was wine tasting going on. The store carries liquor, wine, and beer. * Friendly staff. Cons: * I do wish local stuff had been a little better designated. There was local and local-ish kind of all over the cold storage room, so it was a little hard to figure out at first for us out of towners.

I left a Christmas purchase behind. I called and the woman who answered my call went and over…read morebeyond to help me out. She listened to my hysterical call ( my opinion) she checked the camera's ,took the time to call me back!!! We set up a time to pick up my purchase. She set my mind at ease. Holiday shopping in itself is stressful ....never mind leaving a purchase behind!!! They are located in the heart of 5 Colleges and I was treated with so much RESPECT. Thank you LIQUORS 44!!!!!

Worst customer service I've encountered in a long time. This evening they were offering free…read moresamples of various beverages at four stations. Two of the servers ignored me. Another one asked if she was in my way, but didn't offer me any sample. I took care of some other business and then went back to them: "Are you offering samples?" "Yes." "Well, may I try something?" It was like pulling teeth. The fourth server had four bottles of wine to sample. When I approached, she was talking with two young adults. When she finished speaking, I asked her what she was offering. She said something like, "I'll get to you next." Then she made me STAND THERE while she served another variety of wine to the two young women and told them all about it. Well, I did not stand there for long. What kind of a server can't give samples to more than one party at a time? The only explanation I can think of is that they had been instructed to target younger customers and ignore older ones like me. In which case I'll be happy to take my business elsewhere.

This place has an incredible wine selection AND they have Sharon who is the most knowledgeable and…read morehelpful wine expert. She suggested a Cabernet Sauvignon from Lodi that knocked my socks off! This little gem of a wine place is easily overlooked but if you don't go to check it out, you are missing out!!!

Don't be fooled by the small size. They have perhaps the best rum and tequila selection in Western…read moreMass (and maybe northern CT too). Much better variety than stores several times their size. If you want 7 bottles of the same mass-produced stuff, they may not be your place, but if you want to sample variety, they are amazing! I always find something I want, and have never been disappointed with the new-to-me varieties I have tried from here.

It's a small store so the selection is naturally limited. The owner gave me top notch…read morerecommendations. Love this kind of local store and am happy to support them!

So, I'm pretty sure this place is designed to keep the riff-raff out. And by riff-raff I mean,…read morecollege students, aannnddd that's the point of view you're getting from my review. Maybe a more seasoned consumer would rate Russell's more highly, but that's not me. This place is a little larger than my college dorm room with crates and shelves of alcohol stacked waist high. I get super nervous turning around in this store for fear of knocking lots of things over. It's impossible to see the bottom two shelves of liquor against the wall, and the labels are hard to read from the distance, and because they're crammed so closely together. I don't remember ever seeing a price sticker unless something was clearly marked off on sale. There's a pretty good wine selection-- the liquor selection is pretty basic; very well stocked but not very varied. Not a great beer selection in my opinion. For service-- I generally get ignored by the staff unless the proprietor is there. He's really helpful and sweet, and saved me $7 but telling me I should get a magnum instead of two standard size bottles. If only he were there all the time!

If you want to get rousted, go to University Liquors. Been twice a both had a bad experience…read more Please, take your business elsewhere.

I find the store to be a completely different experience depending on who is working. I believe the…read morestore is owned by a husband and wife (I'm not positive on this but for the sake of the review I'll refer to them as such). Whenever the husband is working, the store is an awesome experience. He's super friendly, sociable, and gives great recommendations if asked. Unfortunately, my only experience with the wife working was not so great. I apparently took too long browsing (given their stock I really wasn't in there long). She started interrogating me about my business there so I told her I was looking at whiskey but unfamiliar with the brands, and asked if she had any input. She said no, so I made a decision on my own and went to to register. At the register, she continued to hassle me about spending time in the store and questioning me for being there. Every time I tried to answer one of her questions, she cut me off with something else to say. I understand being cautious but there's a difference between that and being rude to a customer. I'd rate a 4 for the husband and 2 for the wife so settled for 3 stars!

I went to Watroba's Liquors regularly from 1992 - 1997. Does "Best Packy Ever" describe it well…read moreenough? At first glance, it's a regular packy. But once you frequent the store as often as I did, you quickly realize the special nature of this place. Mr. Watroba helped fuel countless crazy parties. For every major bender, guaranteed we were stocking up at Watroba's Liquors. That guy was prepared for anything! 10 cases of Genny 30-packs? Anytime at Watroba's Liquors. At Watroba's Liquors, the Customer is King. Visit today to find out why Watroba's Liquors has been voted "Best Local Liquor Store" for decades.

Just your average neighborhood packy. They do have a decent selection of wines, beer and liquor…read more You can also get your scratch ticket fix taken care of while you're here. Just try to wait until you get to your car to scratch your ticket.

This is my local beer store, living in South Amherst, but I used to avoid it years ago due to the…read moreunfriendly dudes and weird vibe. It's so much better now. I can chat with the register folks a but and don't feel creeped out anymore. So that's a win

I've never cared much for reviews but honestly, the old man who works there specifically is so rude…read moreand unkind that if I ever walk in and see him behind the counter again I'm walking right back out the door. I've worked in customer service for years and always take care to be polite when speaking with employees. That man can never be bothered to do the same to me. I'm not sure if he's just permanently having a bad day or what but I don't appreciate being belittled at the register. I'm a college student but I'm also a year-round local; this place is just lucky that Amherst is full of party people for 9 months a year.

Aster + Pine is the best thing that's happened to downtown Amherst in a while, IMHO. It's a small…read moremarketplace with more offerings (at better prices) than I ever imagined would be tucked in there. I'd wandered in just to check it out, all set not to buy anything because it would have to sit in my closed car for too many hot hours, but ended up with a delicious loaf of bread from Easthampton, almond cookies from Italy, a tin of trout pate, and numerous other well-priced offerings. Welcome to Amherst!

A little of everything, from carefully curated wines to locally produced milk, fresh vegetables,…read moreand artisan bread. Ingredients for your dinner, specialty foods, cheeses, various cuisines represented. Don't expect Costco prices in a small independent store. With that in mind, it's a great addition to downtown.

Nice staff for over 6 years. Beer and wine only. Small but stock moves fast so fresh beer…read more Hours are Sunday 11-9 Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday 10-10:30 Thursday, Friday, Saturday 10 -11

The owners of this establishment are very kind. Although it's a smaller-sized liquor store, they…read moretruly accommodate to their patrons' needs (they even notified me when the bottle I was looking for would be back in stock). I have never had a bad experience here.

Zero stars? I have seen this family run the store for years and things took a turn today. I am a…read morephysician (who happens to be a small black woman).Today I went in and the storeowner and myself were alone in the store (he was behind the counter when I went it) and I was bending down to look at the large vodka bottles for a tincture formula across the store. I turned around to see him hovering over me suddenly. I was of course nervous and weirded out so for safety reasons tried to lighten the vibe and said, "do you really think I am going to steal this huge bottle of vodka?" (I was only wearing scrubs, no bag). The storeowner rather than chuckling became seethingly defensive and angry. It was scary and I think actually he did feel like he needed to stand over me to make sure I wasn't going to steal simply because of the body I am in. When I called him out he could not handle it and had no idea how his actions as a large man would land for a small woman alone with him in the store. NOT WORTH IT. SHAME. Now I see in the other reviews that this is the norm here. SAD.