11 Grocery Store Chains With The Best Selection Of Alcohol

Shopping for groceries is always more fun when you can reward yourself with a little treat beyond the basic essentials. Sure, chocolate works, but there's something about grabbing a bottle of wine along with your dinner ingredientsthat makes your standard supermarket trip a little more fun.

Alcohol improves sales, and the truth is in the numbers. According to research conducted by Cornell University, a store doesn't boost its revenue by selling beer to customers. Instead, the fact that it sells beer incentivizes people to shop there more frequently, thereby increasing its overall sales in all food categories.

For discerning drinkers, choosing the right brand is essential. For example, if you know how to spot quality wine at a supermarket, you can likely make CVS work. Generally, it's best to look for DOC or DOCG on the back label of Italian wines, gravitate towards value wine regions (i.e., Portugal and Chile), avoid sweet wines, and skip big-name brands (save Sutter Home for the college kids).

Chances are, you don't have the time or energy to dig through the shelves for a quality option. For the frazzled who want to grab a refreshing sip of high-grade bubbly on their post-work grocery run, there are several supermarket chains with a quality selection of beer, wine, and spirits to elevate your evening.

Costco's prime competitor, Sam's Club, offers a one-stop wholesale shop for all your home necessities — alcohol included. Beyond the 24-packs of Bud Light lie tastier options at a value price point. We're talking about the members-only chain's biggest draw — its store brand, Member's Mark, which offers a premium-grade selection of wine, beer, and liquor with big bottles and low prices.

The selection of Member's Mark alcohol offers a drink for every occasion. There are generous middle-shelf whiskey options, along with varied spirits, including two tequilas, Irish cream liqueur, cinnamon churro cream liqueur, strawberry vodka lemonade, spiced Caribbean rum, and spiked seltzers. Meanwhile, wine aficionados will have a hard time choosing between whites, reds, rosés, and even a wine-based margarita mix.

Of course, Sam's Club isn't limited to its name brand. Loyalists can find their go-to bottles of Tito's, Malibu, and White Claw in bulk for a seamless shopping experience. If the selection isn't enough to excite you, the low price tags will seal the deal. Needless to say, at Sam's Club, you can easily stock your home bar cart without exceeding your budget.

No membership? No problem — at least in the select states that allow you to purchase liquor without a Sam's Club card. Don't forget your ID card, though.

While its home goods and clothing brands are often at the forefront of its fame, Target also hits the mark with its food and drink selection. Target's grocery section is full of secrets, mostly which consist of sneaky opportunities to save on its delicious and often discounted products. The endless array of choices that line its shelves is as appetizing as the savings you'll score. Next to the rows of fruity-flavored Smirnoffs and stately whiskeys are Knob Creek 12 bottles at competitive prices that would be a sin to pass up.

The big-box retailer often praised by millennials is renowned as much for its inviting shopping experience as it is for its selection of products. For years, customers famously pushed shopping carts in one hand while clutching a cup of Starbucks coffee in the other. Recently, a rumor pushed by a Men's Humor post on Threads claimed that Target would be elevating its game from caffeine kicks to alcohol buzzes with the introduction of an in-store bar selling "Targaritas." While the story is sadly false, you can still grab the store's highly ranked alcohol brand, Casa Cantina, which offers a ready-to-drink margarita mix in three luscious flavors.

Costco is known and loved as a discount store. One thing it's not acclaimed for is sophistication. However, a little-known Costco liquor fact is that it doesn't actually produce its name-brand drinks itself, but rather partners with popular booze companies before slapping a Kirkland label on it.

It's widely known that Kirkland coffee is made by Starbucks, but pinning down the exact companies that pour their liquor into Costco bottles is more challenging. It's rumored that Cruzan and LeVecke Corp. supply the store's rum, whereas Crown Royal provides the whisky, and Grey Goose supposedly offers the vodka. If you consider yourself a spirits expert, all it'll take is a whiff to notice the similarities in scents. If not, you can always consult the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau database. It won't be that easy to pin down the exact source, though, as popular alcohol companies often produce their products under private labels.

Regardless, everyone agrees on one thing — =Kirkland booze goes down smoothly. You'll be missing out on the prestige of the classic flashy bottles when buying alcohol at Costco, but your tastebuds will notice little change in the quality. Your wallet, on the other hand, will see a notable difference, considering a bottle of Cruzan costs about $24 compared to Kirkland's $14 bottle. Next time you pull out a Kirkland bottle at your dinner party, be sure to pull out the fun fact as well.

If you're not from the South, you might not understand the hype around Publix. To give you an idea, just know that the beloved chain allows you to drink as you shop, thanks to its Publix Pours program. The reasons this is good are twofold — it makes a basic errand more fun, and you get to test your products before buying them. When it comes to Publix, the products are good.

Consider the pina colada lemonade spritz to sip on as you stock up on your other wines, beers, and spirits. Along with famous labels, the store sells its private brand that's just as good as its more popular competition. Among its best contenders are the Russian River Valley chardonnay and pinot. The only downside is the unreasonable price. A bottle of Eagle Rare will set you back $32, while Henry McKenna bourbon will cost about $62.

Trader Joe's boasts some of the best-ranked grocery store wines in the U.S. If you are fortunate enough to live in a state with looser liquor laws, you can throw some low-cost, high-value wine into your cart on your weekly trip to TJs. Options like the Charles Shaw Shiraz, Caretaker Pinot Noir 2022, and Casone Toscana Vermentino are all under $10 and make a distinguished addition to your meal. Its store-brand liquor is also decent, with a full stock of options from tequila and Old Fashioned to Panama rum and mezcal.

The retailer's beer and cocktails will give you a run for your money, too. You'll find great Mexican beers to make authentic cheladas (don't forget to grab some limes while you're at it). If you prefer cocktails, you can opt for margaritas or cosmopolitans ready to be chilled and cracked open.

All in all, it's clear why Trader Joe's is a GOAT among grocery stores. It has healthy yet tasty snacks, plenty of prepped food to make your cooking easier, great international and seasonal products, and an unmatched alcohol collection.

The standard grocery store chain doesn't skimp on luxury goods, whether that be gourmet coffee served fresh out of a Starbucks nestled in some of its store's corners or fine wines. The retailer has always had abundant wines in stock. However, Vine & Cellar partnered with Safeway and Albertsons (Safeway's parent company) in 2023 to make its collection of high-end domestic and imported wines more accessible to customers via direct shipping. Still, you'll be sure to find a classy bottle of red, white, or bubbly on the shelves any time you swing by.

According to Consumers' Checkbook, Safeway is one of the priciest supermarkets in the nation. However, the chain sells products at all price points, regardless, and you can count on finding a low-cost bottle of Barefoot or Woodbridge that will get the job done. The same goes for beer — the store provides everything from craft IPAs to Natural Light.

When you need to restock your liquor cabinet, look no further than Safeway. There's no lack of spirits in its alcohol section, where you'll find the perfect tequila to pair with your steak, along with vodka, rum, gin, and all the other classics that will keep your party flowing. If the celebration is running dry, you can even order them to be delivered straight to your house, along with some extra snacks, of course.

Combining alcohol with your meal may not be healthy, but it certainly is thirst-quenching and fun. Whole Foods knows this, which is why it doesn't deprive its customers of booze as they shop for their groceries. The store, despite being deemed overpriced and over-hyped, has an above-average variety of wine, beer, and liquor, often regionally produced and always of quality.

Here, you won't need to level up your mediocre vodka because you can pull a high-grade one straight off the shelf. Options like the Midwestern-based Switch Vodka pass Whole Foods' tough vetting process by being ethically sourced and containing all-natural ingredients without sacrificing taste. The store keeps beer lovers satiated, too, selling hazy and American IPAs, pilsners, lagers, wheats, and more. If you're grabbing a sushi lunch, consider the crowd favorite Dreaming Clouds sake to wash it down. With all these choices, it might be tempting to fill up your cart, but in true Whole Foods fashion, you can count on racking up a bill at the checkout line.

The Carolinas are gatekeeping a supermarket with spunk. Lowes offers more than delicious and quality products — it provides a full experience that's convenient and gratifying. Sure, its Pick & Prep section where chefs slice your fruits and veggies as you shop is helpful, but it doesn't outshine the Beer Den. This is where full cups of craft brews are provided for you to sip while you grab your groceries.

Don't expect to find generic, economical beers here. Lowes' Beer Den sells an inventory of bottles and cans that come from 70+ craft breweries. Not every Lowes location has a Beer Den, but those that do all serve beers on tap. You can expect to find luscious ciders, wheat beers, IPAs, pale ales, and more — some from major brands like Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (which has a major brewery in the region) and others from microbreweries with big taste.

Lowes elevates its game a step further in Five Forks, featuring The Cavern, the first of its kind in the Carolinas as a complete brewpub within a grocery store. Here, you can taste small batches and limited releases unique to and fresh out of Lowe's.

It's easy to love Wegmans. The unique grocery store offers the best of both worlds, selling a lot of well-made prepared foods akin to Trader Joe's while offering a spacious suburban-style store layout. If you're thirsty, you'll appreciate the supermarket even more because its shelves are stocked with a vast variety of liquors with frequent jaw-dropping discounts. We're talking about every beer variety under the sun and wines from all over the world. There's no shortage of spirits at Wegman's, either, with the company boasting a particularly interesting variety of flavored vodka seltzers and other creative canned cocktails.

Unfortunately, not every Wegmans is made equally. Because of law restrictions, some only sell beer and wine, while others don't sell any alcohol at all. In New York, for example, the grocery store chain is at the forefront of the legalization of wine sales in supermarkets. Despite the fact that you can buy beer at the grocery shop, wholesale distributors and liquor stores have blocked establishments like Wegman's from selling wine because they see it as a threat. Up until now, they've been successful. In the meantime, you can head to Washington D.C. and some Massachusetts and New Jersey locations to enjoy the Wegman's experience to the fullest.

East Coasters swear by Wegmans, but Texans affirm that Central Market is better. The gourmet supermarket chain is the state's best-kept secret, offering everything from high-quality grab-and-go food to virtual cooking classes. Just taking a stroll through the libations section at Central Market will have you confirming that everything is, indeed, bigger in Texas.

Don't expect to find liquor in this upscale grocery store. Do, however, count on finding an amazing array of wine and beer to the likes of a specialty retailer. The store provides an impressive selection of imports, but it also promotes locally sourced products straight out of Texan vineyards and breweries.

Lost among the vast selection? Central Market's wine experts are always on hand to guide you in picking the best red wine to pair with your duck dinner or an aromatic white wine to complement the fish you'll be cooking later. While the store may be fancy, its prices aren't outlandish. Wine expert Darrell Gibson explained in an interview with the Dallas Observer that cheaper wines aren't necessarily bad — they are simply different from more expensive varieties.

You don't need to be a sommelier to appreciate the decadent wines at Gelson's. The high-end grocery chain based out of Southern California does everything in an elevated style, and its wine might be its most impressive product of all. Along with a world-class array of imported and local brands, Gelson's launched its own private label, Pasqua Wines, in 2024, which earned recognition from Wine Enthusiast. What makes this West Coast grocery store truly unique is its wine bar, which offers customers a full glass before committing to a bottle. It even features a wine club for its biggest loyalists.

About 65% of Gelson's alcohol sales are in wine, leaving another 20% in spirits and 15% in beer. The supermarket chain boasts a vast collection of popular name-brand spirits from St. Remy French brandy to Don Julio tequila and even Aperol. Plus, its wide variety of crisp beers and ciders, including IPAs, lagers, ales, stouts, and specialty options will keep you refreshed under the California sun for days. The selection is equivalent to that of a big liquor store, except you get to grab fresh poke bowls and your favorite cereal all under the same roof.