The new West-O Bottle Shop has grown from its former 2,200-square-foot, beer-and-wine operation to a brand new 7,000-square-foot, beer, wine and liquor store.
BERLIN — Re-branded and renovated, The West-O Bottle Shop, formerly The Green Room, now serves beer, wine and liquor. But the expanded selection is just part of the business’s major makeover in recent months, according to owners Sara and Dave Hambury.
Under its former name, the establishment served beer and wine with a focus on craft beers and in-store tastings for 13 years. It was a business that the Hamburys were proud of and one that may never have changed if not for a decision made by Worcester County to remove its liquor retail store next door. With the liquor operation gone and the space becoming vacant, the couple worried the customers might leave with it, prompting them to successfully petition for the right to operate their own private liquor retail outlet.
“We’re just exhausted from this process. Ever since I got that phone call at the end of January that the liquor store was leaving here, it’s been a fight for my life every day,” said Sara Hambury.
But the couple persisted, adopting a new approach and changing their name from The Green Room to West-O Bottle Shop to better define the store’s ties to the surrounding area.
Massive renovations followed, including expanding West-O from 2,200 square feet to the current 7,000 square feet. The business is located off westbound Route 50 just west of Route 611. There was a heavy reliance on recycled materials in the construction including tin chicken house roofs from the lower shore, wood salvaged from a West Ocean City bulkhead 20 years ago and rafters from the Hambury’s own home in Berlin.
“By using the recycled materials, we saved a tremendous amount of money on the build-out while also getting the warmth that we wanted,” said Sara Hambury. “Character is built in just through the process.”
The huge new space includes a small bar, which Hambury confirmed should be running at full speed by next month. All of the seating will better accommodate tastings and other events, which the Hamburys are excited about. One unique twist West-O will offer is an open video chat during particular tastings between customers and the beverage’s creator.
“We plan on using a large screen TV so the winemakers or the brew masters or the distillers can Skype in and be a part of the event,” said Hambury.
This will give the people trying the wine or craft beer an uncommon insight into the history of what they are drinking. It won’t just be for beer and wine but craft spirits as well, which Hambury feels is an under-observed market.
West-O Bottle Shop owners Dave and Sara Hambury stand in the new bar area where tastings will be offered routinely. Photos by Travis Brown
“Also, in that mind of craft beer, what we’re really hoping to do is explore the whole craft spirits world,” she said. “You’re got people making small batch bourbons in warehouses in Brooklyn. The same craft beer revolution that we’ve witnessed they’re doing it in the spirits world as well.”
Other tasting events will have specific themes, concentrating on a particular brewer, vineyard, ingredient or another common factor.
“Or we could also explore one winery and taste all of the different offerings that they make,” Hambury said. “So I strongly feel like we’re going to have lots of educational opportunities here.”
Besides the new bar area, West-O has a scattering of “villages” throughout the store. Each is built from reclaimed wood and tin and serves to lend the expansive store some division.
“We wanted it to be coastal and comfortable and we wanted to build a store that David and I wanted to be in for the next 20 years when we have to come in to work,” said Hambury.
A final plus of completely overhauling the store is that it has been modernized from a technology standpoint, with Hambury saying proudly she can run the entire space from her smartphone.