Wine Time

I love Wine Time. Not only are the owners great and kind, but they sell Evian by the box and the deli sandwiches are the best in La Jolla. I like the wine selection and the craft beers as well.

I have been in this store perhaps ten times over the past three years. The owner seems half hearted and is more interested in hustling people than offering fine wines at a reasonable price. My last experience was very disappointing… The little review above wine I selected was false… wrong vintage and overstated the points given by a leading wine rating group. I should have looked the wine up on my phone… paid 20.00 over the market rate. Bottom line DON’T trust this place.

I had the worst experience here. I stopped to get a few things before traveling down to Pacific Beach to pick up my dinner to go. I paid with my debit card which requires me to hand it to cashier. He did not hand me my card back. I drove all the way down to PB to get my dinner when I realized that he still had my card. I had to drive all the way back to the store to get my card. When I told the clerk my disappointment that he failed to give back my card and that my dinner would certainly be cold, he got indigent and yelled at my «Thank you». Just rude.

Best made to order deli sandwiches in la Jolla! Also have an enormous wine selection to choose from.

Fantastic wine shop especially for Pinot Noir. Great selection includes Burgundies, Sonoma Co., Central Coast, and Oregon. I always enjoy discussing my purchases with the owner while I’m there. One of the few places I’ve found to get Premier Cru Burgundies in San Diego.
Kid in a candy-​store.

Billed as a wine retailer, it’s more of a convenience store with a good wine selection. Set your expectations accordingly.
I was kind of hoping to pick up an amazing syrah from California or Washington, but they only carried two: the ubiquitous Qupe and a way overpriced mediocre offering from a boutique winery. In the end, I chose something from their rather large Pinot Noir selection. I estimated about a 25% mark-​up from MSRP.
They show the store owner’s rating system on the shelves, which is clearly suffering from grade inflation.
Like most convenience stores, you should ask yourself if the convenience is worth sacrificing on something else. Sometimes yes, other times no.

This place allowed $ 66.00 charge on my stolen credit card at 2:45 in the morning. When I called and asked about it I was told that they do not have to check ID for a credit card purchase then I was hung up on. HOW DO YOU NOT ID FOR ALCOHOL PURCHASES?! A place that does not ID check at 3AM should not be allowed to sale alcohol or even napkins. Terrible business practice and employee that will hang up on a customer enquiring about FRAUD in their business.

Over-​priced, but the real reason to avoid is the typical LJ clientele.

Great little liquor store. very convenient in the heart of La Jolla. Been a locals little treasure for years. Has all the neat little bottles and things you won’t find in grocery stores as well as the rare stuff! You’ll find yourself looking for a scotch and spending a lot of time trying to figure out which one because they have so many different types which makes it fun to try something new. only — is sometimes hard to park in the small lot because people park stupid here.

I called from SF to have a bottle of wine and tequila delivered and Kay executed flawlessly. He gave me recommendations and fair prices and followed directions perfectly. Awesome customer service, they know how to put you first.

Great wine selection and delicious fresh deli sandwiches. A great place to stop on your way to the beach :)

I needed several tiny bottles of booze to fill a unicorn piñata…
My original thought was to go to BevMo, but I wanted to pay as little as possible. It might sound arbitrary, but I used Unilocal to rate other liquor stores in La Jolla on the basis of… dollar signs.
Since Wine Time was rated as «$» and BevMo as «$$» I decided to check out Wine Time. I’m very glad that I did because when the owner saw that I needed about 60 bottles, he gave me great discounts! Volume volume volume!
I realize that this review is based on a very narrow purchase (it’s not often you need many little bottles of liquor), but based solely on the customer service, I’ve become a fan of this place!
Oh, and I also really like jerky, and they sell it right at the register! Nom nom nom!

Considering the fact that I didn’t get to experience much of what this shop had to offer, my review is based on the customer service.
I am taking a wine class and I was assigned to visit a wine shop or bar, and ask some questions about the type of wines they sell. We were given a list to choose from, but after reading some great reviews about Wine Time, I decided to drive to La Jolla and visit this place!
***Side Note*** I was sick with a cold and not feeling the best, but this assignment needed to get done. I was REALLY dreading the 30 minute drive.
So I walked in and started looking around the shop. It was a mini mart/​wine shop/​deli. No doubt, they had a great selection of wine (on the store alone, I would’ve given this place 4 stars).
I noticed a man standing by the counter (I think he was the owner) and he asked me if I needed any help. I briefly told him about my assignment and I asked him if he was available for some questions and he said yes.
After reading how «knowledgeable» this guy was, I was hoping to carry on a conversation with him and actually learn something. But I could tell from the look on his face and the one-​word answers he gave me, that he was not interested in anything I had to ask/​say. I was planning on purchasing a few items, but I didn’t feel welcome and he was not helpful so I just left.
I got my sneezing/​coughing/​congested butt out of bed, for nothing. Not only did I waste gas (gas that I would’ve rather used on a drive to Hazard Center for some Yogurtland) but now I have to visit another wine shop/​bar so I can finish my assignment.

Wonderful place. For a novice wine drinker, it’s nice to be able to find an oenophile (Kay) so enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge. He makes me want to savor the experience! Will be back.

Support Local! Kai has the best selection of oregon pinot noirs, sandwiches are great, and there avacado is actually worth putting on the sandwich! Again very good wine selection and Kai knows something about all of them, great place.

I always just get drinks or candy here but I just had my first sandwich (turkey) from Wine Time and it was pretty good. This is a great place if you want to get food and to the beach since it’s right by the coast.
Whenever I walk into this place it ALWAYS has this awful odor! The smell is manageable but it still stinks… they really need to do something about that!

Great place for wine. I always trust the Kay ratings on wine and have not been disappointed yet. They also make great sandwiches that you can take to the beach nearby.

Okay, so I will admit that this is a bit of a biased review considering it is my dear Aunt & Uncle that own this place. But I was very excited to see all the 5 star reviews that it has received so far.
When Kay & Theresa took over this spot years ago (when it was a basic liquor store), it was dark and dingy and dirty. They remodeled it, started serving yummy sandwiches and stocked the best wine that they could get. Kay is sometimes able to get specialty wines that are only sold at certain restaurants and that no other wine shops in the area have. He will spend the time with you to help you choose the right wine for your dinner that night or for a large party. The beach is right down the street so you can just grab a sandwich and beverage and have a lovely picnic on the lawn or sand.
These people work hard. They are open 365 days a year and my uncle is there at least 364 of those days. He loves his customers and really appreciates the regulars. When I am there, I notice that he knows many people that come in by name. Support your local mom and pop shops, it’s what makes the town so great!

Love this place. The owners are so helpful, knowledgeable about wine and have an amazing selection. I so miss AJ’s in Scottsdale, Wine Time is my place in La Jolla to walk in an buy one of my favortie chilled wines. Chalk Hill, Cake Bread, it is there!
What nice people that own this establishment, eager to help and my new favorite place to find a great bottle of wine quickly and chilled, that is what I am talking bout!!!

I remember watching the movie «Sideways» and it being similar to torture. I wanted a glass of wine so bad the entire two hours. Instead, I had to sit there watching two ugly, middle-​aged guys drink wine, sniff wine and poor wine all over their bodies.
I liked the movie, but I like wine more. Wine Time has one of the best selections in La Jolla (if not the best). They also have an excellent rice wine selection — sake that is.