Came to this establishment specifically for a whiskey tasting event that I was lured into by Facebook when I was looking at things near me. Not having been familiar with the area I didn't know what to expect. The store is rather large they had about nine tables set up for their whiskey tastings each with maybe 3 or so "samples" each available to be tried of the various vendors. The benefits also gave away so much free stuff, that was ace. They did a very good job of ensuring there was water, cheese, and fruit to snack on so people weren't falling all over each other and the vibe was very friendly. The event was run very smoothly and I really hope to go to another one again. As for the store itself, it was a lot larger than I thought it would be. I did notice some beers not having prices. I don't know if it was due to the hustle and bustle of the event and they'd fallen off but if you're the type to buy craft beer I don't think you have an issue with asking for a price anyways common. read more

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I went inside to make a purchase and I noticed they had a mini fridge on display as part of a promotion for a beverage. When I got to the register I asked the woman if she was selling the mini fridge in the future because I thought it was so cute. She snapped at me and yelled "No!!" I mean it was a simple question no need to get angry. Have a nice night and I'll never be back. read more

Forgot ID, go home, get ID, Show ID don't get served. I know it's mass but when your in your thirties, still shocking.

Pros: Its local, and there's more than one Cons: Management is lazy, they literally could care less about their business Lots of beers are simply not priced. They sit on shelves and in the cooler with no price. Why buy a beer to be surprised by the price when you try to buy it? Wine selection is done by someone who doesn't know or care about wine. Its as if the wine company salemen dump their crappy wine in Austin's hoping it will sell. Beers are sold but they aren't accepted by the recycling machines. Wake up Austin! Lazy businesses die to inattention. A wide selection of crap is still crap. read more

Pro's- large selection of beer. Cons- Checkout is a rousing game of 20 questions. At almost 30 years old I feel like I do not need to be grilled by a condecending young lady who is approximately 10 years younger than myself. "What's your birthday?", "how old are you?", "what year did you graduate high school?". It is obvious they simply enjoy giving customers a difficult time. read more

Decent selection of beer. Like a warehouse. Good selection of imports and some craft beers too. I think the 6 for $10 deal of single craft bottles is pretty sweet. Prices are on par with most other liquor stores. Fullers, Magners, Sam Smiths, Troegs Mad Elf, etc. For a big box store, I would rate it 5 stars if it weren't for the checkout process. "what's your date of birth? Okay. What's your age? Okay. I'm going to scan you ID now and stare at you since you might not really be over 21." slip up on any question, since you probably aren't expecting them and who knows what happens. Some of the staff is nice, but most is pretty rude from my experience. At least there is usually a police officer in the store to make you feel safer when certain people frequent the store. On another note, I like their Shrewsbury store much better. The people at the counter make me take my business to better places like Mass Liquor Corp by Chandler street for better customer service. Support the smaller stores nearby. read more

They have an incredibly large selection, and by far the best quality alcohol in town, except for a specialty store. They had brands of hard alcohol that places like the state liquor store on Park Ave and most of the smaller stores don't have. The employees were helpful. The best in the area is still, of course, Yankee Spirits in Sturbridge, or a small specialty store if you are looking for something in particular, but if you are looking for a large selection and decent prices, this is a great choice. Also in response to another reviewer, they do take passports. My bf is from NY and no one accepts his state ID so he uses his passport everywhere and they accepted it. read more

Huge warehouse type place. Liquor and wine selection is fine--you'll get what you're looking for, if only because the store is so big. They usually feature new stuff and do promotions, which is nice. Beer selection deserves +1 star...there's tons of eccentric stuff for geeks to drool over. But I refuse to shop here because I think they are jerks. Most annoyingly, they reject out-of-state ID's and *passports* as valid forms of ID, as the checkout lady will gleefully inform you. I understand needing to cover your ass for the liquor board...but here it's to the point where one employee actually told me to go shop somewhere else if I wasn't from MA. Ridiculous and infuriating. If you really want to get technical about it you could argue that this practice goes against the US Constitution...YO AUSTIN LIQUORS GO READ THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT. Even if you have a Mass ID, the checkout people will grill you about it like you just got caught trying to sneak out of East Berlin. Then they'll scowl when they find nothing wrong. A bored cop eyes you like a hawk the whole time, deepening the whole "Secret Soviet Police Station Filled with Alcohol" vibe the place has. This happened all four times I've been here. Look at the cool vintage sign and then go shop elsewhere. read more

Need to upgrade the import wine list a bit more. More of a beer stop for the college kids

This is one of the best liquor stores in town. It looks a bit sketchy from the outside but they have an incredible beer and hard cider selection for all you craft beer snobs out there! read more

It's a dump and smells like spilled beer. There are handwritten cardboard signs pointing the way to the various types of wine. The customer service is non-existent. I wouldn't go back. read more

I visited Austin specifically for a free whiskey tasting event. Nine different tables with 2-3 choices of samples, as well as ample water and snacks made for an excellent tasting experience. Austin's selection is very impressive, one of the largest in the Worcester area. Plenty of different breweries and distilleries are represented, though the only minus being that there might be only one option from some companies. A few times the sole option wasn't even the most common/popular choice for that brand, which can be frustrating. Definitely well worth the stop still, and make sure to ask when their next event is! read more

This place has a great selection and is very reasonably priced. However, as others have stated, they make you feel like a criminal when you check out. I've had my ID swiped multiple times, asked 20 questions, had the ID held against my face, its way over the top. Furthermore, sometimes they are rude. I didn't realize Trappist ales and hefeweissbier were so popular with the kids nowadays. read more

This is my parents' go-to liquor store, so I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to send them a bottle of champagne for their anniversary from Austin's via Drizly. I called the store today to ask them to put in a note card with a message from me in with my order and they were so kind and accommodating! Awesome to have this option to send a gift as I now live in California, especially at such a reasonable price point. Thanks Austin Liquors! read more

This used to be my go-to place, for beer and wine but since the store has changed hands, there are more beers to choose from than ever, but none of my many favorites are stocked any longer or they're only available in cans. Nope. No can do. read more

After thirty years as a customer at Austin's, I'm done. I've lived across the lake from the Shrewsbury store for twelve years, and was a customer at Gold Star for 17 - 18 years before that. Went into Shrews store about a month ago, 8:30 at night. Had one box of Sam's empties for recycling, and bought a 30-pack of Miller Light. The door to the recycle room was closed. I tried the door, it was unlocked. Went in, and put my twelve bottles into the machine. In the middle of this, one of the employees comes in to see what was going on in the recycle room. Nothing was said, but he was clearly not pleased that I am getting rid of my dozen bottles. Guess they don't deal with bottles at 8:30. So one time isn't enough to make an issue over. But there was history... Two or three years ago, I go into the Shrews store, the guy running the register is telling some story to the girl at the next register. I drop my purchases on the counter. He rings up my stuff, runs my credit card, gets the signature, never missing a beat on telling his story to girl next door. Never speaks a word to me. So, as I head to the door, I offer a louder than normal "THANK YOU". Finally, from him: "thank you". So, I'm not particularly thin skinned. and I'm not looking for a deep relationship with the folks at the packy. But, if I'm paying with my money, you're going to be polite. Or I'm going to walk. And I have. Most of the people there are fine, a couple of my friends worked at Austin's - Gold Star for a lot of years. The prices are reasonable, and the selection is pretty good. But, current management does not seem interested enough in decent customer service. If they did, these two nitwits wouldn't work there, Sorry guys, you lose... read more

My family has been going to Austin Liquors for years. None of us have ever had a problem with anyone that works there. The help is always helpful when looking for something not on the shelf. I am a senior and they even offer to help me to the car with my purchase. I got a phone call that I won a tee shirt in a promotion that I had entered. Don't go anywhere else. read more