Whether to satisfy one's urge at home or bring to a friend's party, we often visit retail outlets to buy a good bottle of wine without breaking the bank. It is not unusual for restaurants and wine bars to charge 50% - 100% extra for the same bottle of wine, which is understandable as they need to cover for their resources, environment and others. When dining out, it is sometimes more cost-effective to bring our own bottle of wine and pay for the corkage. Doing so does not just limit us to the wine list, but we can enjoy our favorite wine as well. As such, where is a good place to get ourselves that bottle of wine? In no particular order...
Jaya Grocer, Gurney Paragon
Jaya Grocer opened their first outlet in Penang in October 2018. Their wine section named Hank's is located at the far end from Jaya Grocer's entrance. They have a wide range of wines, liquor and beer from various distributors including Asia Euro. The wines are arranged by their country of origin and their shelves are stacked high with reasonable selection from France, Italy, Chile, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. Spotted some decent whiskies as well from Islay, Kavalan and the Suntory labels. Away from the shelves, hidden behind the counter are some premium range cognacs such as Hennessy XO and Chile's superior carmenere Purple Angel. There are wine promoters over there but fortunately they are not the pushy type. Their stock mainly consists of wines above RM80 but they are very competitively priced.
Cold Storage, Gurney Plaza
Located on the ground floor of Gurney Plaza, Cold Storage provides one of the best ranges of wines and liquor for a grocery store before Jaya Grocer came in. Their wines are arranged by country of origin in vertical shelves within our line of sight. They offer competitive prices and supplied by Luen Heng, Mui Hua and others. They have 3 or 4 free-standing wine chillers to store white wines and champagne so you can buy them off the shelve chilled. Cold Storage also has a section for their lower priced wines below RM80 to cater to a wide range of consumers. Once in a while, they collaborate with their partners to provide free wine tastings to their customers.
The Wine Shop, Bayan Baru and Pulau Tikus
The Wine Shop Penang is operated and wholly owned by Giant Estates Sdn Bhd, which is subsidiary of Milawa (M) Sdn Bhd. Established in 2001, The Wine Shop Penang operates as a Retail & Wholesale shop that provides wines from all over the world for both private and corporate events as well as wholesale accounts both for stand alone outlets and hotels which are the key focus of the company. To date, The Wine Shop Penang has two outlets strategically located at Pulau Tikus (Maiden branch) and Bayan Lepas. The Wine Shop Penang currently carry over 900 wine labels from all over the world as well as host a number of key wine brands such as Pol Roger, Saint Claire, Wynns, Catena Zapata, Orenallaia, E Guigal, Luis Felipe Edwards and Beringer just to name a few.
With over a decade in operation, The Wine Shop Penang can be considered one of the most successful wine bar and retail outlet in Penang. They have well-trained staff who are well-versed at providing the best wine recommendation according to your taste profile. Over the years, they have established a huge following in Penang and continue to grow as one of the largest wine bars and retail outlets here. As they source most of their wines directly from wineries, they have been able sell wines at optimal pricing which is ideal to the consumers. They are also one of the leading suppliers of wine to hotels, restaurants and events in Penang.
Besides their wide range of wines, The Wine Shop Penang also serves some scrumptious meals which is great for wine pairing. Among their signature dishes are the popular Korean Fried Noodles with Roasted Pork, savory German sausages, cheese wheel pasta, pizzas, cheese and salami platters, cheese nachos and many more. If you opt for a casual dining affair with a great selection of wine at fair prices, this is the place to be.
As their outlets are not located inside shopping malls, you don't need to worry about the hassle of finding a car park. When in a hurry, just drop by to enjoy additional 20-30% off the listed price for take-away.
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