Torrence Liquors

Torrence LiquorsTorrence Liquors
Torrence LiquorsTorrence Liquors
Store

616 Torrence Ave
Calumet City, Illinois, 60409-3813
United States

(708) 862-3939 | map
torrenceliquorscalumetcity.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.23
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
17
pDev:
10.4%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by cretemixer:
Photo of cretemixer
Reviewed by cretemixer from Indiana

5/5  rDev +18.2%
The marquee on the side of the building boasts 600+ beers in stock. That says it all. A full service liquor store with one of the best beer selections I have seen in the Chicago area ( and in the south suburbs no less!). If you have a question, they will try their best to answer it & if Robin is working, it won't be a problem. He's made the beer selections his baby & it shows. Great selection and they are always willing to get you something they may not have. A beer advocate's dream come true. Keep up the great work.
Dec 26, 2002
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.38 by 30MinutesSouth from Indiana

Feb 19, 2015
 
Rated: 5 by Emtcraftbeerfan from Indiana

Oct 29, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by BUNZILLA from Indiana

Jul 23, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by Prager62 from Colorado

Jun 14, 2014
Photo of Dan1976
Reviewed by Dan1976 from Illinois

3.88/5  rDev -8.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Great south suburb place for craft beer. They do a nice job keeping great stuff in stock and are receptive to suggestions from core customers. Feel like it's MY place. For a while no one else had oskar blues dogfish head. They went above and beyond to find some clown shoes bombay berserker which I greatly appreciated.
Nov 26, 2013
Photo of JohnnyHopps
Reviewed by JohnnyHopps from Indiana

3.83/5  rDev -9.5%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4
I heard a rumor that this store had a solid supply of Dogfish Head. And since Indiana no longer receives DFH, I need to find a closer place to stock up. The store was busy at 11 am, and it was a few days before Christmas. The store has a good supply of 90 minute IPA. Needless to say I grabbed a few. Much to my suprise, the store also had DFH Bitches Brew. I snatched a bottle of that and went to pay. The employee asked me if I noticed the 120 minute IPA in the glass case. Virtually impossible to find, I had the employee grab the key because I was getting a bottle of that too.

The store is a little dirty mainly because it is not in the best of neighborhoods. However, they have an excellent supply of craft brews including Central Waters, Founders, O'Fallon, Dogfish Head, and a few I have seen before. I will be going back.

---

I am amending my review after the events of the day prior to Dark Lord Day2013 left a bad taste in my mouth. Staff were handing out bottles of Parabola to out of towners that were dropping three figures on beer. I visit Torrence Liquors regularly and did not get a bottle of Parabola. Watching this happen left a bad taste in my mouth. I will shop elsewhere.
Dec 22, 2011
Photo of Brian71
Reviewed by Brian71 from Illinois

4.7/5  rDev +11.1%
In the hood and beats Binny's and anyone else in the area hands down. Binny's because they seem to be all about the wine and this place focuses on the beer and the liquor. I'm biased because I grew up in the area, but they had four packs of Bitburger 1 liter cans fresher than what I've drank in Germany for five and a half bucks. Also, their specials rock! Anything from Germany they have or can get, which I am partial to. Chilling with some Spaten Optimator right now.

Cheers to Torrence liquors - good place to by lotto too.
Dec 23, 2010
Photo of antoines15
Reviewed by antoines15 from Indiana

4.35/5  rDev +2.8%
Located on the mean streets of Calumet City, once inside, you will instantly feel at home when you walk through the turnstile. A huge selection of various styles of beer greets you, along with post-it notes from the proprietors informing you about different kinds of beers. The notes usually provide great information, whether the beer is new or highly recommended, as well as who recommended it. Everything from 3Floyds, Bells, Tyranena, great lakes, lagunitas, founders, goose island, stone, avery, dogfish head, racer 5, flying dog, and a bunch of belgians including some great geuze and lambics. They have single bottles also available so that you can mix and match to make your own six pack. The prices are very reasonable and the staff is friendly and helpful. There are however, a few downsides. Occasionally, the lines are too long due to people buying lotto tickets and also some beer bottles have a little dust on them. Other than that, great place to sample beers from all over, as I try to buy a different brew every time I go there. Cal City's finest.
Apr 11, 2009
Photo of ManofMead
Reviewed by ManofMead from Illinois

4.45/5  rDev +5.2%
Stopped here today and wished this place was in my hood!! Large selection of beer warm. Biggest bomber selection Ive ever seen,,Belgiums,Germans,typical macro, Many micros,Abita,Rogue,Southern Tier,3F,Avery,etc,etc

As i was perused One of the employees stopped me and asked was I doing ok? Did I need help? The place was somewhat busy with a full line at checkout and many buying in the Lotto line. Yet Matt who I believe was the Mgr bothered to help me and spent probably 10 mins or so discussing beer. He's very knowledgeable and gave me a discount upon my $ 60+ dollar purchase of Bell's hopslam,Bell's Best Brown Ale, Allagash,Youngs Double Chocolate Stout ,and a good handful of bombers. He can get things not displayed and while his cooler selection is much smaller than his display shelf(probably reflecting the clientele of the neighborhood a bit more) he will work with you.

Great place great selection and not far off of I-80.
Feb 14, 2009
Photo of emerge077
Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

3.9/5  rDev -7.8%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 3.75 | selection: 4
Heyy, don't knock it til you try it. This is not a bad shop. The parking lot can be a bit of a demo-derby, lots of movement in small confines...be careful.

Stopped in here after DLD and was pleasantly surprised. Sort of typical liquor store layout, run the gauntlet, all ye alcohol seeking gerbils. Luckily beer comes up first, US micros on the left, imports on the right. Strong representation of micros: FFF, Founders, New Holland, Southern Tier, etc. Strong German and Belgian selection as well. Some handwritten notes on the shelves for markdowns and beer opinions. Watch out for dust on some of the imports, micros seem to move faster. Spotted a small glassware cache towards the end of the shelving in the far corner. A desk sits awkwardly opposite a cooler with bombers in it. On this desk, employee favorites reside. Reminds me of New Beer Dist. in NYC.

Checkout was friendly, constant lotto ticket business. Resisted the urge to buy psychic lotto tipsheets for $1...was in line behind a dude with a red pimp/cowboy hat. How's that for atmosphere?
Apr 29, 2007
Photo of rhoadsrage
Reviewed by rhoadsrage from Illinois

3.15/5  rDev -25.5%
This place is in a small strip mall and it looks like your run of the mill BMC pick up joint and for the most part that is what keeps the business alive. When I pulled up they were wheeling out kegs and cases of cans for Memorial Day by the truck loads. When you walk inside the craft beer isle is the first isle closest to the windows. There are coolers against the opposite wall but they don't offer a lot of craft beer.

I was hoping to find some winter seasonal gems that they were trying to dump for cheap but no such luck. They did have some Christmas beers but nothing worth writing about. The do have a nice splattering of beers from around the world as well as the big east and west coast beers. I was really surprised to find some 6-packs of Oscar's Chocolate Oatmeal Stout. I didn't know they sold that is IL.

I did grab a few singles on the discount rack but I was confused about the 6 singles discount. Does that mean everything is available as singles or the 7 beers in the singles rack are available to mix as a 6-pack?

It was nice that they had hand written signs showing which beers were new and which ones were on sale. When I got to the register it was the fastest checkout I have ever had. They were rolling people out the door and kept the lines very short.

If you are in the neighborhood it is worth it to check for good deals but it is worth it to jump across the border to look for some nice IN stuff instead.
May 27, 2006
Photo of livin4jc
Reviewed by livin4jc from New York

4.1/5  rDev -3.1%
A bad neighborhood? I have been in this area at night (11:00pm/12:00am) and wouldn't have a problem getting out to go to the store. The store is at the end of a strip mall facing BUSY Torrence Avenue. The lot is very well lit!

The store is nothing special to look at. Actually, it was the junkiest store in the strip mall! But it was very busy and the staff was exceptionally friendly and the store was quite busy. I went there today (7/25/05) about 4:30 p.m. and was pleasantly suprized. There were beers I had not seen anywhere else plus a good representation of the Binnys/Sam's Wine selection. I did notice that a lot of the bottles were dusty, including the Great Lakes Beer I purchases (which ironically had a January 11, 2006 expiration). Overall, the beer with the dust seemed to be the newest as I was about to buy the Great Lakes assortment pack only to find it's freshness date was 6/1/05! Yet, they did seem to have fresh beer overall (Yep, I look for dates on everything so I could confidently say that here - how pathetic is that!)

They did have some odd-ball things such as Christmas brew. How wierd is that. (It is good, since it seems like Binny's runs out before Christmas!!) They seemed to have a good selection of liquor as well. The quick look at prices were fairly competitive. The wines and spirits I priced were very competitive, as was the big-beer items. However, the microbrews and imported beers were slightly more expensive (50c on most everything) than Binny's.

Was it worth the trip? Certainly. I was already in Lansing for another reason, but I would venture out there from Lockport where I live (a thirty minute trip) to visit.
Jul 26, 2005
Photo of orbitalr0x
Reviewed by orbitalr0x from Illinois

4.35/5  rDev +2.8%
I stopped here after some good recommendations from fellow BA's. The outside looks like your typical neighborhood liquor store, however once you walk in and go to the back beer section, you realize that it's much more than your average store. A very nice singles wall with European & Belgian brews along with American micros such as Dogfish, 3F's and more. They have a wide variety of six packs as well...even spotted some '03 Bigfoot. Interior is nice and the prices were good. Overall this is a great place to stop and offers many hidden treasures that you probably won't find anywhere else. Check it out if you are in the area.
Nov 13, 2004
Photo of jackndan
Reviewed by jackndan from Illinois

3.95/5  rDev -6.6%
Wow, a little gem hidden behind a bad facade in Cal City Illinois. I was extremely impressed with the range of beers sold by this smallish liquor store on Torrence between Pulaski and Sibley in the far south suburbs. They had an extremely impressive selection of singles, and bombers, so many that it warmed the heart of this BA, looking to try lots of beers while keeping to a relatively tight budget. Lots of Belgian, lots of singles, lots of rare micro's, and a few that you will not find elsewhere in Illinois. Great stop, and next time you are in the area, stop in, you'll be pleased that you did.
Mar 14, 2004
Photo of BuckeyeNation
Reviewed by BuckeyeNation from Iowa

4.35/5  rDev +2.8%
Thanks to a heads up from Cretemixer I stopped by here after going to 3 Floyd's to get my share of Dark Lord. This store is easily accessible to anyone going by on I-80. It's no more than 2.5 miles north of the highway and is situated at the end of a strip mall with a decent amount of parking in front. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside it's a little slice of 'beer heaven'.

There's large cooler on the back wall, sixers on the righthand wall and singles on the front wall. They also have at least two separate racks of (quality) singles next to the wall shelves. What an incredible selection! I won't be able to do it justice, but here is just some of what's available: Stone, Rogue, Anderson Valley, Bell's, Great Lakes, Dogfish Head, Speakeasy, Goose Island (of course), 3 Floyd's (of course), Unibroue, dozens of Germans, dozens upon dozens of Belgians, etc. Unquestionably the best selection that I've ever seen. If I hadn't just laid down major cash at 3F I would have walked out with 2-3 times what I did get. Notable absences (and I know that this has to do with distribution) were Alesmith, Bear Republic and Victory. Prices seemed reasonable as well.

I can believe that this place has the best beer selection of anyone in the Chicago area, it has to be seen to be believed. I plan to stop by here whenever I'm traveling past on I-80.
Mar 14, 2004
Photo of CRJMellor
Reviewed by CRJMellor from Arkansas

4.35/5  rDev +2.8%
Based on reviews form Cretemixer and trbeer, I stopped by on a recent foray into Chicago. Very easy to find and right off the highway. No muss, no fuss. Very nicely organized and very good selection. Decent amount of Belgians, (a good score was Affilgem Noel and Westvletern) some interesting beers from eastern europe (scored a few Estonian porters) and a very good selection of mainly mid-western micros. Prices for Bell's were cheaper than they were in Michigan (that was somewhat annoying for me but no fault of the store. Stone and Rogue were also represented very well.
Dec 29, 2003
Torrence Liquors in Calumet City, IL
Place rating: 4.23 out of 5 with 17 ratings