Emma M.
Yelp
5 Stars for Good Booze and Super-Friendliness
I live right above a Discount Liquor store which has a perfectly acceptable selection of cheap wines, and yet I will go 5 blocks out of the way in the cold and/or rain to Gnarly Vines, because their selection is just SO DAMN GOOD!!
I love them because they have a pretty extensive selection of under $10 wines that are really really delicious, not just mediocre.
The owner Brian is extremely helpful if you are looking for something in particular. I'm a classy gal, so of course I asked him right off the bat what kind of schwill I could get for close to 6 bucks. He recommended a delicious red for around $7, the name of which escapes me right now, but it's a mostly white label with a few leaves of grass and a little bug - and it's AWESOME!
My other favorite bottle that I've gotten there, and continue to get over and over again because I love it, was another recommendation, and it's $8 or $9... once again, can't remember the name, but the label has a picture of 4 little girls crowded onto a Vespa. Delicioso.
You will not be sorry if you go and purchase either one of the aforementioned bottles (which I have been unable to find at the other wine shops I've checked, in both Chelsea and Park Slope). Or let Brian know what you like and I guarantee he'll give you a fabulous recommendation.
Another reason to love Gnarly Vines - their weekly (and sometimes bi-weekly) wine tastings!! The people who have done the tastings the past few times that I went were really really sweet and informative and non-snooty. And generous pourers. Oh and if you give them your email address they will update you on store events about once a week. Which is great for us aspiring winos.
And if you need more convincing for some bizarre reason, they also can keep track of your past purchases (although I'm sure if you'd like to remain an anonymous alcoholic, they would be cool with it). My sister and I share an account, so if she brings home a bottle of wine that I end up loving but then recycles the bottle too quick for me to take note of the name, they can look it up in the system and tell me which one it was. This little dealy does not make or break my love for Gnarly's, but it's a nice bonus feature that I do utilize and enjoy.
Brian is actually so kind and friendly that I end up getting flustered and saying mundane things before giggling and running away, instead of being my normal longwinded chatty self. So I can say nice things about him behind his back on Yelp, but not when I'm in his shop. He's lovely.