Besides being in a loyaslist area I stop here for my UK beers. They carry Bucky and the shop owner…read morelooks at you odd when you add it to the pile of craft beers you have at the till. Some of us like to live dangerously...

Generally Off Licenses are Off licenses - nothing interesting or new to report, they sell alcohol,…read morecigarettes and the obligatory mixers and odd few nibbles - this one is slightly different. As mentioned by other people, this is more of a wine merchant. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful, and even stop for a chat with you if you know what you want and don't need any assistance, however if you are going to a party, special dinner, or want to gift a bottle of wine to someone who knows considerably more about fine wines than you do, this is the place to go. The wines are reasonably priced for the quality (quite frankly if you want a cheapo bottle of plonk, then there's always Tesco or Sainsburys!) but they do have a number of offers on any time I have been in, where you can get a few bottles for a reduced price!

Whenever I see the brand Curley's all I can ever think about is the episode of Father Ted where the…read moreauthor lady he takes a shine to signs his book as and continually refers to him as Father Ted Curley! In my book it is good that this sense of mirth goes on to an off licence, the cause of many laughs ( but also much hurt and pain.....Il try to avoid this reality!). This curley's is a pretty good off license, and it needs to be because the Asda is only about 2 minutes away and has the lure of sensational offers to bring customers in through the doors. The store has a good range of special offers and a wide range of spirit. Most goods in here are also chilled which is such a good thing as it means you can get stuff here and be ready to go rather than having to wait to booze or stain your drinks with ice! I hate ice, your beverage should already be cold, it doesn't need diluted!

Most off licenses these days have trouble competing with the deals the larger Supermarkets are able…read moreto offer, but The Wine Company are certainly able to do so (This makes me a Happy Suzi!) The Wine Co. stock a great range of wines, beers, spirits etc. Basically I've never come here and not found what I'm looking for. They cater for Corporate Events, Weddings, Christenings, Anniversaries & offer Corporate Gifts / Hampers (See more about this on their website) Plus as a very added bonus they sell the most beautifully decorated drinking glasses. These make GREAT presents, if you've resorted to the old bottle of drink as a token gift, then let your wander to to these and voila, problem solved! The glasses come in different shapes, sizes and decorations so you can even start your own collection! (Then have to buy some tasty wine to put christen it... oh no!)

The Light House is the baby sister of the Bureau shortly further on down the village. Owned by the…read moresame man, yet they're very different places. To compare, the service in the Bureau is attentive and high quality. In The Light House its slow and boring. Plus, the prices were a rip off. Last time I visited we ordered some nearly nice white wine, now I know for a fact it is sold downstairs in the companies off licence for £5 bottle, so why were we charged £17.00, just to come up a flight of stairs? Sorry, I don't think so. The Bureau may be more expensive but at least you get a good deal. To go on, the seats aren't comfy, there's creepy old men lechin about and the toilets ...*shudder* Why slum it ? OK there's the price difference, maybe. But for the sake of a couple of quid? Maybe the Bureau is just more my scene. For one there's a way better smoking area, plus you won't get your drink spilt over you by the hallions at the bar who've just been turned away from the Bureau. It isn't my cuppa tea but it'd be boring if we were all the same.

Off licence does a fantastic range of craft beers from small manufacturers giving a better variety…read moreof flavours than you get in most places. I didn't know so many types of beers existed before a visit here. Well worth a look for something different and makes great gifts

This shop has everything: hot food, all the brands I love AND they have an award-winning…read moreOff-licence.

Curley's is a huge off sales on the Whitewell Road, crammed to the rafters full of cheap produce…read more You'll be pretty surprised at how cheap everything is, in fact. I don't drink beer, but should I have friends round for dinner and need to buy a case, I'll drive past three other off sales to go here. Whilst I don't drink beer, I do however go through an absolutely astonishing amount of red wine, a lot of which I purchase in Curley's. The selection is quite good, and even though major supermarkets have been criticised recently for selling booze at below cost price, Curley's reds are always cheaper, often by a couple of quid a bottle. You won't find anything weird or wonderful here, but when you need to get stuff in, you'll save yourself a ton of money.

The local Rathcoole off license is a small, popular business where locals can come and buy their…read morefavourite bevvies for the weekend. The premises are small though they're under construction, I believe to build a bar adjoining the property. The prices aren't great, neither is their selection, but the service is quick and efficient and it saves going further than you need for your weekend carry out. Their opening hours are also later than most places so I would say this makes them quite popular!

I can honestly say I didn't have any great expectations of this Ballyclare off license. It doesn't…read morelook like much from the outside, but as always, appearances can be deceiving. As you walk in, the shop looks so much bigger than what you would ever have imagined, its brilliantly laid out, all the drinks are set out in their different sections; red/white wine/beer/liqueur/spirits/Alcopops etc. The deals of the week on offer are clearly marked with a sample of each beside the label, the beer is stocked at the back and is all kept cool (Yay!) the prices weren't great I must say, for some reason I expected them to be cheaper, but as all we were looking was some chilled wine to enjoy when we got home it wasn't really a problem. We decided to take advantage of the special offer on white wine (£4 off a particularly nice looking wine, memory escapes me as to the name but it wasn't that great in the end ...boo!) but I was pleased with the experience of calling in here. They sold some very lovely looking wine (I nearly fainted when I saw the price, but that's vintage for you!) I wouldn't be calling in here every weekend for my wine but as is often the case the local Asda or Tesco probably do much better deals. The service was very pleasant though, the lady pointed us to our next stop which was down some strange side alley so brownie points for the helpfulness of staff and presentation of the shop. I also learnt that Grape Expectations stock over 760 wines, and they have one of the largest walk in coolers in Northern Ireland! There you go now, the things you learn ey!