Total Wine & More

First time ever here and I loved it. They have tons of items to enter for a chance to win. They even have the mini champagne bottles!!! Very cute! Can’t wait to come in the fall for pumpkin beers!

Even though the TV news show aired twice they did have two bottles of the wine to sell me. Bravo! Wanna live to 100 do what the blue zone people do. Cannonau wine. From Greece, Sardegna and
Italy. We were able to get Dolls Cannonau de Sardegna. Total is now selling half cases for 15% off. Just have to place my order and pick up at the store.

They have a great wine selection and an amazing beer selection. Helen is so helpful and always has a smile on her face. They’re classes are great too!

I’ve decided to update my review after having two great staff experiences here. Both were very helpful.

Okay, I still love the whole concept to this place and have spent a little (cough) money here… can’t bring myself to drop it a star level, however I have to say I love it based on prices for wines I already know about. Period.
What I’m not as happy about is they have been out of my two favorite wines on a regular basis recently. And when I’ve tried their suggestions for wine (either by the descriptions posted under or by personal recommendation from staff) I have been disappointed 99.9% of the time. The wines I have brought home have not matched the descriptions.
Just the other day, one of the employees professed a chardonnay to be his personal favorite, most buttery. I love buttery, and bought it on the spot despite it being a little higher in price than I normally buy. Buttery was the LAST WORD I would have used to describe it.
That being said, I dare you to find your favorite wine less expensive somewhere else in town. But you darn sure better know what that wine is before you walk in here.

This is a favorite mega Wind store. They have most everything in the middle of the road including high end wines and Champagne. Like a supermarket of Wines, it is in fact. They host wine tastings and events.
The one thing I find very helpful is the notes they put on the bottles of wine. One may have 96 points, the other may be a favorite of an employee. They are helpful if you do not know what to get.
They do carry energy drinks, and accessories, wine bottle wraps for gifts.
Easy in and out, next to Best Buy and Panera Bread across from Triangle Town.

For beer or wine, one typically can’t go wrong here. Call me a wine snob, or better yet, a sparkling wine snob.
The thing with champagne, or sparkling wine (if it’s not from the Champagne region of France), though, is the majority of it is Brut or Extra Dry. Many of the people buying it for New Year’s Eve just grab something cheap — Brut is readily available and cheap. Not all Brut selections are cheap though, and I would venture a guess that those who buy the more expensive Brut’s have acquired the taste for them. To me, Brut champagnes are so dry I cannot get them past my lips.
Give me Sec or Demi Sec any day and I’m much happier. I found only 3 selections in Demi Sec, and nothing in Sec. I would like to give another star, and I will when the selection of Demi Sec (and the addition of Sec) varieties improves considerably.
Next year I may have to try to remember to order online.

Being from MD where we have liquor stores with beer and wine it’s nice to see stores down here dedicated to strictly beer and wine (albeit, by law, but whatever).
My recent trip was unsuccessful (due to fault of my favorite wine manufacture, not the store) but usually I walk out of there with a big smile on my face. And no, not just from the wine tastings!
Last month I visited the store in search of cherry flavored products. I explained it was for my dad’s surprise Michigan themed birthday party and the friendly associate took me around the entire store showcasing all cherry and Michigan products.
I was more than impressed for that individualized attention to say the least, especially since it was 20 minutes before closing time (as one who’s worked retail before I know those last few minutes before closing are crucial for the success of a life after work).
I was quite grateful and will return for all my wine needs.

Great classes! Great samples! Give me alcohol, and well, you’re gonna get a nice review ;)
I went to the Total Wine on Capital for a beer tasting class. Yeah, who knew? Apparently the Total Wine stores around the Triangle are THE place to get good craft beer. (Shameless plug: Learn more about craft beer in the Triangle by checking out my posts on
) Anyhoo — the wine guys, er, BEER guys, here know their stuff!
If you don’t know what you want ask an employee! Unlike the grocery store or ABC store, these folks know what to drink. They’ll help you pair your dinner with a great bottle of wine. Read the fine print men: If you’re woman’s cooking dinner or you’re on one of «those» dates — stop by Total Wine and ask them what the hell to bring! Don’t show up empty handed, that’s just rude. :)
And, if you call ahead, they’ll start chilling your beverages before you get there. Again, this is a great gift idea when you’re invited somewhere and you don’t know what to bring. What’s better than an already chilled white wine? Everyone can start drinking earlier, making you the man of the hour!
Seriously though, great store. Great folks. There’s a tasting almost every Friday & Saturday at all the locations, call ahead for what’s available. And get on the list for these tasting classes — $ 25 for wine classes, and $ 15 for beer. You get beverages, history and food.
Love this place. Love it.

I visited Total Wine again today for a nice red to go with dinner, but also to find a wine which a Facebook friend was raving about — Cakebread. Alas, did I get sticker shock! The cab runs about $ 90. An employee here (unsure if it was the manager) was extremely helpful in finding a suitable, and more wallet-​palatable, alternative… also from Napa Valley like Cakebread. Apparently with Cakebread, about half the price is paying for the name.
Anyway, I bought two other wines from Napa Valley and will be giving them a try. Big kudos to the store employee for spending time with me to understand my wine taste likes and dislikes, and keeping my wallet in check.

Total Wine does wine right by going direct to the wineries, cutting out the middleman (distributors)! I stopped by the other night for a Wines of the Southern Hemisphere class and it was really impressive! Thirty-​six eager wine-​drinkers were sheparded into a classroom in the back of the store. Each student had a packet of materials for the presentation and wine notes. Also at each seat were some Reidel wine glasses to maximize the tasting!
After some brief snacks (cheeses, pepperoni, crackers, tres leches cake), the manager Glenn introduced himself and we were off. We ran through a large variety of wines (10 total) that included some really interesting varietals like Pinotage and Tannat. For each tasting they told us a bit about the vintner, history and philosophy for each winery, very cool. And while all the wines were pretty good, they were also really affordable, bonus! You’ll definitely get a happy buzz going with the number of selections they go through. (¹⁄₃ to ½ pours)
The classes are really popular and given regularly, $ 25 for a single class, $ 20 if you buy a package. Well-​worth the money and time, our sampling took over 2 hours and was a great virtual wine trip around the globe. And as the earlier reviews mention, Total Wines has a huge selection at great prices so you don’t have to splurge like crazy. So, if you’re a big fan of wines and civilized adult beverages, stop on by Total Wines for a class or just to browse through the place. I guarantee you won’t be disappointed!

Total Wine is one of my favorite places to buy wine. Think of it like Wal-​Mart with low prices, and craploads of items… but only wine. I think their sign says something about having 10,000 kinds of wine and 1,000 kinds of beer. The staff here usually knows what they’re taking about and can make recommendations for great bottles to go with meals or just sit around and drink. They also have a pretty substantial collection of wines under $ 10 as well as a few that clear the $ 500 mark, so there’s something for everyone.

Every town needs one of these. In Chicago we have Binny’s and Sam’s, which also feature liquor. Total Wine does not sell liquor and devotes about 75% of their space to wine. However, we were here for beer and were not disappointed. Some friends and I were visiting a college buddy with the intention of tailgating at the Northwestern-​Duke football game. We wanted some local beers and found plenty. There was Carolina Pale Ale, Saranac summer variety pack, and a few varieties of Duck-​Rabbit (we chose amber ale).
We also found Iron City, which I bought for my Pittsburgh-​born friend, and many imports. Overall, the selection and prices were entirely reasonable.