I may not know the first thing about how to pick a good bottle of wine (sad but true), but I do know where to get a good bottle of wine in Georgetown.
Below, I’ve given local stores a ranking based on price of select bottles available at most stores, selection and convenience, with 1 being the best and 5 the worst. In the final tally, I’ve doubled the score for price to reflect that price is, in my opinion, twice as important in determining where to buy wine as selection and convenience. Lowest score wins!
5. Wisemiller’s Grocery & Deli
Photo by Xinwei Zeng
Price: Wisey’s ranked last for every bottle of wine compared. You’ll end up paying several dollars more here for any bottle than anywhere else. But at least eating a fresh-baked oreo cookie may make you feel less bitter about getting ripped off.
Alamos 750ml bottle: $14.29
Clos du Bois 750ml bottle: $17.59
Cupcake 750ml bottle: Not sold
Frontera 1.5l bottle: Not sold
Woodbridge 1.5l bottle: $17.59
Selection: There are only about ten different bottles of wine available at Wisey’s. If you have a specific wine brand or type of grape in mind, it’s safe to say you probably won’t find it here.
Convenience: 0.2 miles – Convenience is really the only thing Wisey’s has going for it. Unless you’re really in a bind, there is no good reason to go to Wisey’s for wine.
Price: 5 (x2)
Selection: 5
Convenience: 1
Overall: 16/20
4. Dixie Liquor
Photo by Xinwei Zeng
Price: While Dixie isn’t much more expensive than Safeway, Towne and Potomac, it is consistently so. You’re paying a premium for convenience.
Alamos 750ml bottle: $12.99
Clos du Bois 750ml bottle: $13.99
Cupcake 750ml bottle: $11.99
Frontera 1.5l bottle: $11.99
Woodbridge 1.5l bottle: $11.99
Selection: Dixie isn’t known for its wine selection, and it’s a pretty small liquor store overall, but it has several shelves of it and you should easily be able to find something you like.
Convenience: Dixie is 0.5 miles from the front gate, but for some West Georgetown residents, Dixie is even closer than Wisey’s. (This can also be a bad thing, as it’s usually crowded with drunk Georgetown students, which doesn’t make for the best shopping experience.)
Price: 4 (x2)
Selection: 4
Convenience: 3
Overall: 15/20
3. Towne Wine & Liquors
Price: Prices at Towne are quite similar to prices at Dixie – not a rip-off, but certainly not the best deals you can find.
Alamos 750ml bottle: $10.99
Clos du Bois 750ml bottle: $12.99
Cupcake 750ml bottle: $10.99
Frontera 1.5l bottle: $11.99
Woodbridge 1.5l bottle: $13.99
Selection: An entire wall of Towne is devoted to wine. You should easily be able to find what you’re looking for here.
Convenience: Towne is 0.5 miles from the front gates, or about a ten minute walk.
Price: 3 (x2)
Selection: 2
Convenience: 3
Overall: 11/20
2. Safeway
Courtesy of Minyoung Choi
Price: Safeway prices for wine are better than those in most liquor stores as long as you have your club card! These prices reflect club card discounts.
Alamos 750ml bottle: $9.99
Clos du Bois 750ml bottle: $12.99
Cupcake 750ml bottle: $9.99
Frontera 1.5l bottle: $9.99
Woodbridge 1.5l bottle: $12.99
Selection: With several hundred different bottles of wine, Safeway’s selection can’t be beat. The organization of the bottles isn’t the most intuitive (the whites are organized by type and the reds by place of origin) but it isn’t too difficult to figure out either.
Convenience: At 0.8 miles from the front gates, it might not be worth a trip to Safeway for alcohol alone, but it’s definitely worth picking up a bottle on your weekly grocery run.
Price: 2 (x2)
Selection: 1
Convenience: 5
Overall: 10/20
1. Potomac Wines and Spirits
Price: For every compared bottle that Potomac Wines and Spirits stocked, it was the cheapest or tied for the cheapest. The place has great prices on liquor as well as friendly service. It’s definitely a hidden gem.
Alamos 750ml bottle: Not sold
Clos du Bois 750ml bottle: Not sold
Cupcake 750ml bottle: $9.99
Frontera 1.5l bottle: $ 9.99
Woodbridge 1.5l bottle: $11.99
Selection: Potomac Wine and Spirits contains a similar selection to Towne but seems to include slightly fewer bargain wines and a greater variety of higher-end wines.
Convenience: Potomac Wine and Spirits is 0.7 miles from the front gates. While not the most convenient option, Potomac Wines and Spirits is still less than a fifteen minute walk from the front gates and just one block past Wisconsin on M Street.
Price: 1 (x2)
Selection: 3
Convenience: 4
Overall: 9/20
Now stop reading and start drinking. Cheers!