50th Anniversary: Cheers to Boulder’s Liquor Mart
10 Sep 2018
Not just a traditional liquor store, Liquor Mart also offers event planning, online sales, delivery services
By Amanda Miller After dark in Boulder, Liquor Mart is a bright beacon of beer. Inside, Colorado labels alone pack 12 cooler-front doors, five shelves high. When Boulder native Sue Zorichak first started shopping at Liquor Mart at age 21, she went there for the beer. “Now I’m a wine drinker, and they’ve got great wine specials,” says Zorichak, a home-based writer and editor for a financial services company who lives nearby and makes a point of patronizing local businesses.
50 Years Strong
This year, Liquor Mart celebrates its 50th anniversary. In addition to alcohol and sundries, it also provides event planning and online sales and delivery services. During the busy April-to-October wedding season, event planner Kevin Downs supplies beverages to as many as eight weddings per week. Other events Liquor Mart serves include university and business functions. Downs is also wine manager and sommelier, and works directly with marrying couples to help with their choices and keep them in budget. “Then we tweak it until it’s perfect,” he says. His tip: If you’re going to serve a signature drink at a wedding, pick something that’s easy for the bartenders: Mules, Manhattans and Old Fashioneds are popular right now, he says. As for wine, “Make sure you do something everyone likes,” Downs says. Avoid a very dry Malbec, for example.
