Lush Wine and Spirits - Roscoe Village

Stopped by here to pick up my bottle of Twisted Spoke. Really cool that you can order it over the phone and pay, then just come in and pick it up. Its right around the corner from West Lakeview Liquors and being so close no reason to ever come to this unless you literally are within talking distance. Not saying this place is terrible but WLV is a whole other level and being so close, there is no choice. I actually like the location, in the middle of a nice neighborhood, off the beaten path. Inside is nice and new looking, slightly modern. The beer is against the back wall in 3 coolers. Amazingly they have Boulevard, first time I have seem that at any bottle store in the city. The quality is above average, but the quality is pretty average. About 50-60 bottles, but outside of the Boulevard nothing you can't get anywhere else. Wine dominates most of the store. I didn't really check it out, but this is probably a better stop for that instead of beer.

re-review- Upon stopping by a second time came across all the bottles on their counter, which are much more rare. They have some really unique brews (nemesis, imperial brown goose) that you can't get anywhere else.

 

 

 

 

Dropped in here for a small tasting. It's a seemingly wine-centric little establishment, but with beer geeks kept in mind. The beers are kept in a cooler in the back, as well as along a bar-like front desk. The selection is by no means the largest around, but it's all quality stuff, much of which we can't get out here in the 'Burbs. The prices are a touch steep for my tastes, but I mostly attribute that to geography (this is not only a major city, but also Cook County, after all). The employees are all rather amiable and pretty knowledgeable about the beer. The attached cafe/bar/whatever-you-wanna-call-that-space is a nice touch as well (I wish some place 'round here had such a room...). Overall, a nice spot for the area, but I'm not entirely certain I'd visit again just to pick up some beers.

met a BA here yesterday for a bottle share!

Atmosphere: Nice little wine shop with asmall cooler in the back with lots of great beer options in the fridge. Its located in a part of chicag that is a nice quiet town that reminds you of small town living.

Quality: nice wine display and its a nice looking shop.

Service: staff were attentive to our needs and friendly.

Selection: better than average beers are here. Finally a beer store that has no BMC! Its like the beer choices are hand picked because no full line of breweries are carried, just a nice assortment of FFF, Boulevard, several sours, and grand cru beers. Not to mention...got my hands on my first daisy cutter!

Value: Little bit more expensive to buy beer here, but hey...i am in chicago. Its to be expected!

Lush is a very unique store, in that they truly focus on keeping quality products on the shelves regardless of the price.

They (almost certainly) have a good number of long-retired beers hiding in the basement, only to emerge at some grotesque price level later on. If you are after one of these beers and have no real other choices of a place to obtain it, Lush is your best bet.

The staff is always quite friendly, and I like how they set up the store. Everyone here is pretty relaxed and will talk beer or wine with you for a while. They primarily focus on wine, with a smallish craft beer cooler in the back. The selection focuses on some 'premium' craft beer offerings and some aged rarities, but they do not have much in the way of regular craft beer.

For anything that is available at Binny's or West Lakeview, you are going to pay a hefty premium at Lush. Every once in a while I am looking for something crazy, they come through in the clutch, and that is what I come here for.

Each Lush has a nice little cooler filled with craft beer. The best part about this place is that they sell singles. I was able to pick up a Founders Double Trouble without buying the whole 4-pack. They had Boulevard Imperial Stout for $20 which I thought was way overpriced. The employee seemed to know what he was talking about as he complemented me on my choices. I asked about a few particular beers and the employee pulled one from under the desk and said it was a 1 bottle limit. I was glad to get the beer but a little turned off that I had to ask. I guess that's not just a Binny's thing. Overall, a nice vibe and a different way to buy beer.

I wish there was an 'overall' category for place ratings, so I coulkd give this store a 1 -- for beer prices alone. And this rating only will deal with beer, not the wine, which is most of the store.

It's a handsome store, lots of dark wood and wine racks with beer on the counter and in a couple small coolers in the back. Super nice woman at the counter. A few items you don't see anywhere else: Raison D'Extra (last brewed in 2006?), 2007 Bourbon County Stout 12oz come to mind. They don't waste their time selling marcos, or six packs at all. Everything is by-the-bottle.

But the prices are OUTRAGEOUS. If you want to pay restaurant prices to take a bottle home, this is your place. I'd just as soon go to West Lakeview or Armanetti's, where the prices are 80 PERCENT LESS FOR THE SAME THING. Example: New Belgium Super Cru, just over $10 at Lush, $6 at West Lakeview. Boulevard 750s are $20, $12 at Armanetti's. That 2007 GI BCBS? $9 per 12oz. I just can't support anyone who wants to so brazenly rip me off like that.

I did complain about the prices, very nice woman at the counter was surprised and possibly offended, said they just use their standard markup. So they are either getting ripped off from the distributors, or their standard markup is about 100%, in contrast to the average 25% at most stores.

To sum up: Great selection. A few very rare/unique beers they put out on occasion. If you can find the same thing anywhere else, you will save tons of money. I won't be back.

Stopped in here after a quick visit to West Lakeview Liquors. Walking in on a dismal, thunder storming spring/summer day, there were still a few people milling about in the store. I immediately could tell this was a "hip" place, and was greeted by numerous people when I walked in. The service was great, only women at the time, and they knew their beer (woot woot!). The selection was small, but good. Only three small coolers of beer and then some beers lined up behind the main counter. However, the selection was pretty good. There was an Abacus just sitting there and at first I thought it was only for purchase at the bar but no, it was indeed for sale. How funny that I had to drive ALL over LA to find this beer, yet I come to Chicago weeks later and find it reasonably priced just chilling behind the bar. Of course I bought it. The prices were a hint expensive, but hey, it's Chicago and as stated, despite the small selection it was a solid selection. I live about an hour away in the "burbs" but if I am ever back in that area I will for sure stop by.

I stopped at this location after hearing about it on BA. It was well worth the stop. I was able to grab a BCBVS, a DFH Namaste (not available in Indiana yet), a Mikkeller Beer Geek Bacon, a 2010 DFH Olde School Barleywine and my girlfriend bought their last Imperial Brown Goose for my birthday. They have a very, very small selection. What they do have is top notch. They feature two small, sliding door coolers that contain only high grade choices. They even had a few retired beers. Aside from that they had a lineup of pretty solid bombers and singles on the counter. The clerks were also very kind and helpful. I feel that this location is a hidden gem.

Been meaning to stop in here for awhile based on recommendations on BA, just got around to it the other day.

It is indeed primarily a wine store (great and unique selection by the way), but I was pleased to find some unique offerings in the back on the counter.

The beer selection is quite small but I love it when a store will break some beers out into singles so that you can try them out. You end up paying a bit more for a single, but without having to invest in a whole 4 or 6 pack.

Staff was very helpful and offered some nice suggestions for wine/beer based on what I like.

Overall. a nice place that I will continue to stop in every once in awhile when I'm feeling like stumbling on some unique/harder to find items (2007 BCBS and Imperial Brown Goose this past time around).

This store is great place to find new and exciting beers from all over the world. They have everything from Belgian sours to American rarities with several other countries also well-represented. Everything in this store is from the craft side of beer...you won't find any BMC here.

There are always knowledgeable staff who know both what is new and the "classics" and are comfortable with recommending anything.

The selection is very small, but very quality oriented. I consider it a plus that all sales are by the bottle, so you can build your own six pack and not have to commit to more than one bottle of anything. They also get most allocated items, so if there is a limited release rarity, I always stop by to see if I can grab some.

Lush Wine & Spirits is more of a beer boutique than anything else. this is first and foremost a wine cellar, with a couple coolers of single bottles in the back of the store. lots of rarities here, with a Sam Adams Utopias, a few Triple Bocks, some Flossmoor, Three Floyd's, Ommegang, among others.

the quality is great. very clean conditions with no dusty bottles or old-looking labels.

service is hit-or-miss. three women were working upon this BA's arrival, and not one of them knew about the beer. they said the beer-centric staff was not working at the time, so expect to be on your own unless these people are opening.

selection is good. there is not a huge variety here, but the 75-100 or so bottles are all high quality craft brews, most of them not very common.

this place is worth a stop for any BA in the area, but expect to pay for it. prices here are quite high, but the offerings might make up for this in rarity.

2017: The beer selection has languished here, unfortunately. Stopped in after Village Tap recently and there wasn't much to hold interest. Maybe 30 random singles. I'm not sure if they don't have a dedicated beer buyer anymore or what, but it's not really worth a stop anymore.

2012: Selection hasn't been rotating much lately... haven't been any mailing list emails about beer lately either.
2 years later, still a fairly static selection and dwindling. Maybe 30-40 singles and a couple drafts next door.

2011: Bar side and kitchen is open, the idea is to buy bottles to drink in the bar with food, but BYOB is cool. Snacks have been great, Kelly is in charge of the kitchen, and she turns out some tasty bar snacks and sandwiches. Prices range from $2-$20, mainly cheese, charcuterie, seasonal sandwiches and a pasta dish. They're still waiting for the liquor license to go through, but plan to have a few taps like the location on Chicago Ave. currently does.

2010: No more Flossmoor, more Half Acre these days. Telegraph & Boulevard ($10 Saison-Brett, not $20. No surprise someone's exaggerating prices to pimp another store on here). Generally higher prices than WLV nearby, but in the same ballpark. Selections overlap, but they both have different stuff. I've had great service experiences here, Carrie and Jane have been really helpful and informative. Lately it's pretty hands off service, but they are friendly if you have questions.

2008:
They are primarily a wine shop, but have devoted shelves for spirits towards the back, and a double sliding door beer cooler, with giant letters spelling out "B-E-E-R" floating above it.

Selection focuses on American craft slightly more than the imports, plenty from Flossmoor, DFH, Ommegang, FFF, Founders, Bells, etc. It's more of a boutique hand-picked selection, instead of carrying full lines from any one brewer. Everything is sold as singles, which is cost effective in some cases, just trying out a new beer for example, but not really for a six-pack of your favorite. Alpha King is something like $3, which would make for an $18 sixer. So you pay a premium, and there are a few gems here and there. Overall a good variety, and prime quality stuff. High-end Bourbon, and spirits/wine selection is also top notch.

They host tasting events, and have a mailing list and blog with the details. Staff is friendly here, Jane is the manager/beer buyer. Worth a look if you're in Roscoe Village.