I like Corky. The guy is pleasant and I doubt that is his name. Probably the name of the guy he…read morebought this place from - but he will still answer to it. What a guy. You are chucking yourself into the wild west to get here. But if you are in the area, it is the best of the lot. This guy has gone out of way to locate some lovely beers. I used to wander down here on a Friday night to get ready for the weekend. I would choose this guy over the convenience store next door.

Maxwell's is an off licence with a difference. It lets you sit in to enjoy a beer, wine, gin or…read moreanything! Only 50p corkage for each beer too. Give it a try! Dog friendly and kids allowed too.

I'm not sure how long The Cave has been about, I'm sure its at least 10 - 15 years. I remember…read moregoing way back and if im honest not being that impressed really. Back then I probably thought "bloody hell this is expensive" and left to get a cheap 6 pack of beers somewhere else. How times have changed! These days I would rather buy 3 expensive nice beers than get 6 crappy bottles, so this time when I walked in last Saturday I was very very impressed. It seems to do a mixture of beers, wines and spirits, but focuses more on the first two. The range is very good and on the beers I noticed several interesting cans and bottles that I have never seen before. There were all sorts of obscure American breweries and also some better known ones like Rogue and Stone. I liked the fact they also seem to have lots of different beers from each brewery, rather than just the odd one. I can see myself making my way through a whole brand range to see what I like best. For those not into beer they had some crazy Rogue alco-pops drink that was bright pink and claimed to be donut vodka. Pricing looks on a par with Hippo and VG, so it can be expensive, but worth it in my opinion when you manage to search out that sweet hoppy IPA you have been looking for all your life. Cool wee shop. I will be back.

You know the story. Heading somewhere for prenight out drinks, but wait, you're low on cash, and…read moredon't want to end up drinking paintstripper or vinegar from the offy round the corner, so, the Cave is where you go. They have a massive selection of beers, spirits and wines that can cater to any need. Personally, I think the staff love a challenge, so go in and try my personal tip: say you have X amount to spend, and they're to find you a decent wine. They will never fail. I have walked away with a decent bottle of white wine on more than one occassion, for under £4-5. Score! Watch out though, as I think for a lot of the stuff, it can be quite pricey, however, imported specialities are never going to be cheap, so I can assume that you will expect to pay a bit more for the rarer species of beer/wine/spirits.

This is a lovely little shop in The Avenue which I've been to a couple of times now. Yesterday, I…read morewas looking for a birthday present for my father-in-law so popped in here to see what they had. The front of the shop is a gift shop, and then at the back they have a booze section so it's easy to find what you're looking for. My father-in-law is a rum drinker and sadly on this visit, they were all out of rum. Their selection is mainly whisky so that's totally fine - they do have some bottles of other spirits though, like Pickering's Gin, New Amsterdam Vodka and Sambuca. I can't say much about the prices as I didn't end up buying anything but I like that they have some unusual offerings you might not find elsewhere. So all up, a nice wee shop to pop into if you're looking for a present for a whisky drinker!

From the owner: Specialist whiskies, Specialist spirits, unusual giftsread more

I actually quite like Oddbins, actually. I mean, it's never going to be a destination wine shop for…read moreme but if I'm in the area, I would definitely go here to get a bottle of wine over the nearby supermarket, that's for sure. This Oddbins is on the fabulous Skirving Street and generally has a pretty good range for whatever you're looking for. We didn't want anything specific, just some "weekend alcohol" - I went for wine whereas Graeme had a look around the beer section. At the moment they have quite a few January offers and I was happy with their offerings around the £5 mark per bottle. I'm not sure what beers Graeme got but they looked like hipster craft ones so he seemed happy. Service is nice and friendly, and I'm sure if you needed help they could give it. On this occasion I was happy just to pick something and give it a shot but if it was a special occasion or a gift I'd definitely ask for help. They'll wrap your wine up nicely in paper too, which I always like as it makes me feel that bit more fancy.

Alas, Oddbins. For a while I loved you, cherished you, and now... You're a shadow of your former…read moreself. Woe is me. Seriously, Oddbins used to be GREAT. AMAZING, EXCELLENT. All of those things, and more. It wasn't cheap (well, it was sometimes, but not usually), but I liked it. What happened? Oddbin's parent company more or less went to the wall, and all the stores shut with the exception of the most profitable ones who were taken over by new owners. The new owners appear intent on driving this place into the ground. £9.49 for a bottle of (yuck) Blossom Hill? Check. £9.99 for a bottle of Isla Negra? Check. Not only have this new mob stocked up on the most bland, generic, pointless examples of mass-market crap to ever blight the face of the earth, but they have then decided to overprice them to oblivion. Gone are the days of picking up a cheeky Bordeaux, loving it, popping in the next week to find that;" there's no more, but how about this one instead?!" Gone are the days of Schneider Weisse Adventinus (even better at 4 for £8) or a cheeky case of Schofferhofer Hefe. Gone are the days of those wee orange spicy thai ricecakes in a green paper bag that were horrendously overpriced. Even gone are the days of asking the staff for recommendations. Imagine - "what would go with the roast I'm cooking tonight, the JP Chenet or the Jacobs Creek" - two years ago you'd have been laughed out of the place! Also gone is the excitement of walking in, not quite expecting what you were going to come out with - THAT was the magic of Oddbins. The new owners have ripped the heart of of this place. Generic crap like Carling (who deliberately drinks this?!), white Zinfandel and Bells whisky. I feel sorry for the workers, It's a shadow of its former self and it will NOT survive lest it's brought back to its former glories post-haste. SHAWLANDS DOES NOT NEED ANOTHER HADDOWS/THRESHERS (why do you think they all closed?) Shawlands needs its old Oddbins back. Run well, it would thrive.

Often overpriced and unfortunately staffed by an unusual mix of (very welcome) knowledgeable and…read morefriendly chaps alongside a few who are defensive and entitled.

I have never seen such a selection of independent craft ales in one place before. The choice is…read moresimply fantastic. I went in to buy a selection of ales for a gift; you can do a 'pick-and-mix' to suit your tastes, and I easily filled a six-pack with Scottish ales that I'd never even heard of. I now want to go back and do the same as a gift for myself! Not just beer either - the wine selection is pretty inspiring too. Incidentally, the name 'Valhalla's Goat' refers to the Norse legend of Heiðrún, a goat who stands on her hind legs in Valhalla eating the leaves of the tree Lærað. From her udders flow the finest mead that fill a cauldron so large that all can drink from it. So now you don't have to look it up.... :-)

Bath street is like a room at your favourite Grandma's house. Tucked away in corners are always…read moretreasures. Old coins, your grandfather's medals, maps of countries that no longer exist. Inverarity One to One is tucked away in a Bath Street basement and filled with bottled treasures. It is well known to those who know their wines and spirits. These guys have all of the elements that make up a great place to shop. Knowledgable staff who love their products and want to talk about them, a great inventory of wines and whisky that can get you excited again, and choice. I know of this place due to Andy. Born in Islay (true Ileach) this guy is a wealth of whisky and wine knowledge and is very active in the whisky community. I would go here just for his advice. The other three members of the Inverarity team are all wine lovers and have a true understanding of their products, something you cannot find in a supermarket.

I was looking for some wines for Aussie Christmas and headed to Inverarity for some advice. I…read moredidn't really have any preconceived ideas about what I wanted, so I was happy to leave my decision making up to Pete. I told him what we were having to eat and what kinds of wines we'd normally drink, and he picked out a couple of delicious bottles for us - a prosecco to start, and then a rosé to go with our main of a leg of ham. I ended up getting two bottles of each as I was so confident in Pete's choices. The idea of wine matching makes me a little nervous and it's not something I'd even normally bother attempting, but I was so glad to have the advice of Pete as the drinks went with our meal perfectly. The wines he suggested weren't pricey either, they were all under £10 a bottle. They've also got a supply of Stroh rum and the other spirits we sampled at Yelp Shops Local Party at The Raven (thanks to Sarah H!) - I'll be back for those another time. If you're looking for someone to get some Christmas wines, I can't recommend Inverarity highly enough. There's no wine wankery here, just friendly guys with great banter, an excellent range, helpful advice and very reasonable prices. And you're guaranteed to leave with a massive smile on your face. Win!