October 2, 2009
Downer Wine and Spirits rocks. It is, without a doubt, true that they don’t have the biggest selection; the place is ridiculously cramped. The reason you come here is because 1) It’s on Downder Ave. and you like being there; 2) The small but well selected beer (and wine); and 3) Especially the knowledgeable staff. The workers/owners here always steer me to good drinks, and it’s just fun talking to them about beer and wine. It’s a treat to visit.

July 11, 2008
Dingy liquor store on Milwaukee’s east side. Pretty cramped quarters with one whole wall dedicated to beer, mostly decent stuff. Bells, Victory, Founders, Allagash, etc. I was happy to find one lone bottle of Bells Batch 8000 and that made the trip worth it. Some domestics available as singles though you have to ask for prices on lots of them. Belgian 750s and domestic bombers share the coolers with six packs. Service was friendly and answered my pricing questions.

February 3, 2008
Since Murray’s closed, Northside Milwaukee has been in serious need of a worthy successor... Unfortunately, Downer Wine & Spirits isn’t it. I had heard good things by word-of-mouth, but something about this place left me slightly underwhelmed. Located across from the Sendik’s on Downer, this small shop manages to stock quite a few beers, in the little space available (much of the space is devoted to wine an spirits). There are about 8 cooler doors worth of craft six-packs and large singles, and a very small shelf for mix-and-match singles, plus a few 12-packs stacked in the aisles. The selection was pretty good, and I did find Lagunitas’s Lumpy Gravy (which I hadn’t seen anywhere else up to that point), but the selection was far from exemplary. In addition, I just didn’t get the feeling that this place would stock something new the minute it came out, the way that Murray’s did. So, although Downer Spirits offers some nice beers, it certainly isn’t a destination to travel to.