It’s been a long time since I’ve traveled down Watson Road, it’s amazing to see some of the changes. There’s a whole new complex west of the Best Buy and Schnucks, Crestwood Mall is called Crestwood Court (also, it’s interesting that I remember when Crestwood was considered the “nice” mall and South County was the dirt mall, but it seems like they’ve swapped and South County is the nice one now) and the complex that houses Friar Tuck once held a Sport Authority and a Sears store. Anyway, enough of this Andy Rooney-esque rant.

Store: Friar Tuck Address: 9053 Watson Road, St. Louis, MO 63126 (Map it) Phone: 314-918-9230 Selection: “Everything that is offered in Missouri”

I’ll be perfectly honest, I was really impressed with Friar Tuck when I first walked in. It’s extremely well organized and very visually appealing. I probably should have snapped some photos of the wine section, but hey, this is a beer blog. After talking to a few to the store manager and assistant store manager, I quickly realized these guys were all about beer as well. They talked to me about what they had, what they’d like to see and even asked me what my dream list of breweries not distributed would be.

They claimed they have acquired every beer that’s currently being distributed in Missouri and after quickly looking over their selection, I’m prone to believe them. While the beer on the shelves is very impressive what also got my attention were the massive beer coolers. If I had to take a guess, about 60% of the beer on the shelves was also available cold.

Some other neat areas of mention was the large line of unbranded glassware they have to offer. Bill and I have discussed this quite a bit, and as we’ve gotten older, we’re not as interested in having advertisements on our beer glassware. I’d like to have glassware I can use for everyday use without looking like I’m still in college. Also mentioned was that they’re going to begin selling homebrewing equipment and ingredients as well.

Be sure to stop in and tell them what you think and what you’d like to see. It’s good to have another option in the excellent St. Louis beer retail scene.

Not unlike the Friday Round-Up, the Store Spotlight is hopefully going to be a regular feature on STL Hops. I’m going to give you a little information about beer stores in the area and a few pictures as well. Let me say a couple of things really quickly, I receive no money from running STL Hops, I do it for the love of the beer. By spotlighting these stores I hope to keep you informed about store owners that are just as passionate as the rest of us and keep you patronizing all of these locations.

Store: Piasa Winery Address: 211 W Main St, Grafton, IL 62037 (Map it) Selection: About 80 Beers

Tucked right next to the Mississippi River on the Great River Road in Grafton, Piasa Winery provides a selection of about 80 beers on average. I had a chance to talk to Jerad Gardner, the manager of Piasa Winery, he told me that he tries to specialize in beers that you can’t get in Missouri. Breweries such as Founders, Dogfish Head, Allagash, Lagunitas. He’s also more than happy to provide special orders as well. If he can get it, he’ll have it for you usually within two weeks.If you’ve got a trip planned to visit Grafton (or even if you just live in the area) make sure to stop by and visit Jerad and Piasa, show him how much you love beer too.