Booze mega-store Total Wine & More is making a big move on Austin this summer with the opening of two new stores. An Arboretum location opens to the public Thursday, July 13, and a Mueller district store is slated to open later this summer.
The brand, known as "America’s largest independently owned retailer of fine wine, beer, and spirits," entered the Austin market in 2015 with locations in Sunset Valley and Cedar Park.
Located at 10001 Research Blvd., Ste. 300, the 20,000-square-foot Arboretum location has a smaller footprint than its Sunset Valley and Cedar Park counterparts, but it will not skimp on offerings.
According to a release, the new store will carry more than 8,000 wines from every wine-producing region in the world, more than 3,000 spirits, and 2,500 beers. There will be a wine tasting station for oenophiles to sample vino, High-Tech Wine Education Center with classes and tastings, Brewery District featuring local and regional craft brews, and walk-in humidor with 300 fine cigars.
The Mueller outpost should open this summer (a hard date has not been announced). Clocking in at 26,000-square-feet it will boast many of the same features as the Arboretum store, including the Brewery District, humidor, and wine center.
Total Wine & More is owned by brothers David and Robert Trone, who began expanding the chain on the East Coast in the early '90s. The beverage giant rivals other big-name Texas-based chains like Spec's and Twin Liquors, but it positions itself as a destination shopping experience.
For the Arboretum opening, the store has partnered with Austin-based Communities In Schools of Central Texas. Ten percent of all wine sales from July 13-15 will be donated to the program.
