Spec’s Wines, Spirits, and Finer Foods

Gift cards are processed as credit. Since they already have the cash, seems like using the card should be processed as cash instead of the higher credit price. Won’t buy their gift cards again.

I needed to buy a large amount of alcohol for a cookout at my house and a friend suggested Specs. I had heard of it but never been in. I’m glad I finally walked in the doors. This places has an amazing selection of beer, wine and liquor as well as specialty foods. I will be coming back for sure.

As busy as this place is they sure don’t need my business nor Unilocal review. But I’ve found a way of shopping here that should be a no brainer, and didn’t quite realize I was doing this until the last few visits.
See, Specs can be an overwhelming, even daunting chore when it comes to picking a wine that you will enjoy and that is caused by the overwhelming, huge selection. You can really feel lost. Even with formal wine tasting and rating experience to the point of being able to blind taste and nail a Cab, Merlot or Shiraz over 90% over the time, I spend a good bit of time scratching my head in here.
Tip: Get the last of what everyone else bought. Look for the gaping holes on the shelves and racks. If you see a wine that has their hand written card on there saying «Specs pick», well, Specs is for profit last time I checked… Go for the customer picks where there’s only 1 – 2 bottles of something left.
Using that mentality I picked a 2006 Shiraz from the California Sierra Nevada foothills at $ 8 and it was a powerhouse. The 2^nd bottle that was there was gone the next day and they never restocked (it’s all been drank apparently).
Today I found a curious bottle of 100% NV Bonarda (Reserve) by Cruz Alta of Mendoza, Argentina at $ 9 with only one bottle left. No rave reviews, just one left. It’s a masterpiece of fresh sliced strawberry on the nose with violet petals and roasted macadamia nuts where the dual barrel aging (French and American) picked up a toasted leather finish. 9 bucks. A local high end restaurant could sell it for $ 15 a glass and no one would ever think twice about it. The bummer is that there’s none left as I got the last one. But picking the last of what other people nearly bought out is a good way of using the trends of others to help pick what they liked.

Specs has everything you need for a large party to a small get together. The prices are the best I’ve found.

LOVE the selection of beer and alcohol. They do not carry EVERYTHING for a great party, but almost everything. No chocolate fondue (blasphemy!) but YES on Banana Bread Beer. I am from Houston so Specs is always my first choice!

Could use some improvement in special orders.
I usually order wine by the case, but I nearly always have problems with my order.
First off, Specs’ website is the worst I’ve seen for searching. Foreign names for varietals, chateaus and production companies are totally «foreign» to their system. When I finally locate what I want then I call the College Station store. The clerk then goes to their inventory and has the same problems locating the wine. Then I typically find that it’s not in stock and am told that it will have to be ordered from another store. Nothing too bad yet.
It usually takes several days to a week to get the supply in the store. The clerk takes my name and number and says I’ll be called when it comes in. I rarely get a call back because I suspect that the local store has no system to call the customer when the shipment arrives.
After a reasonable time I call the store to ask where my shipment is and am told that they will check to see if it has come in. I wait about five minutes while they check.
If the clerk tells me that the wine has arrived then I have to ask if they have enough to fill my order. Another five minutes elapses while the clerk physically checks the inventory. Sometimes the order is several bottles short of a case and I have to wait longer until more supply comes in. Sometimes they ordered the wrong wine and have to order all over again.
I put up with this hassle because of my many years dealing with Specs in Houston, their great inventory and the fact that other dealers in the area are actually worse as far as special orders are concerned.
On the good side, the clerks are friendly and usually try their best.
The store has plenty of goodies to buy in stock and is well located.
If they could just get a better special ordering system, even a mediocre one, I’d give them at least four stars.

I love the fact that I now truly have a good place to go to for a wide selection of wine in College Station. The shop on Texas is very large, and every time I go I have people who offer to help me find what I’m looking for… It doesn’t have to be «I’m looking for wine X…» — typically it is a discussion on «I’m interested in a wine with these characteristics…» or «I’m looking for something to complement this dinner…» Their knowledge does seem to fall short when it comes to port wines, or going outside the more mainstream wines (national or international doesn’t matter, but it a little unusual for College Station then I’m never sure what I’ll hear).
Specs has the widest range of wine in town at good prices. Yes, occasionally I can find the same wine at another location for «slightly» cheaper — but I don’t always trust how that wine has been stored.
Yes, as others have mentioned they do charge more for using your credit card. I’m not a fan of that approach, but I just plan on paying with my debit card.

They have a big store, yes. I’ve never had anyone ask if I needed help or pay me any attention to me in the store. For such a large store they don’t have the newest products as quick as some of the local stores. Great wine selection but I don’t drink wine so no points there :)

Best selection of beer and wine in town! Prices are OK if you use cash or debit. They will custom order things for you if you ask… LOVE THIS PLACE!
ETA: They also have a great selection of kegs! And like everything else they will also special order those for you!

I love specs

Can’t explain how much I love this place. They have the best beer selection that one could reasonably hope for in a small city like College Station, and a fairly good selections of sakes.
The staff have always been extremely friendly and helpful when I’m trying to select (or find) a wine. Though their grocery section isn’t as large as those in some of the Houston stores, it’s respectable.
The only trouble I’ve had here is finding a couple of brands of scotch that I’m particularly fond of, which I’m usually able to find at larger Specs locations in Houston.

For a large liquor store with helpful, knowledgeable staff in the main portion of the store, the cashiers and managers seem pretty clueless.
I was rejected from buying some rum due to my Illinois drivers license (and state I.D.) because it didn’t look like their single picture of an Illinois license on hand. What’s worse is that they don’t even have the current Illinois license picture, which has been around since 2007 (I have the older version still).
I understand it’s probably rare to get a customer from that far out of state and they have to be careful of fakes, but it’s disappointing because of the good things I’ve heard about Specs.

I don’t think I could make it in BCS without Specs :-)
My wife lovingly calls this places the Alci-​Mart. It is the destination for all your alcohol needs.
The best thing about Spec’s is the 5% discount for cash or debit. Also, they have decent savings if buy by the case. For example, I end up saving about $ 20 by buying my favorite scotch (Highland Park 12 years) by the case (6 bottles). Not bad!
Unlike their larger stores in Houston and Austin, this location has a very limited grocery section and does not have a deli. Still, they have excellent selection of liquors, wines and beers. Of course, they will get you whatever you want if they don’t have it in stock.
I am not much of cigar aficionado and so I can’t say how good their selection is.