SAQ Depot

The Costco of alcohol. The more you buy, the cheaper it becomes! They give rebates based on how many bottles you buy (3÷6÷12), and it doesn’t all have to be the same thing. Not only wine either, spirits as well. Expensive, cheap, and everything in between! Whenever I go, I never end up seeing the whole store, as I always end up filling my quota before I’ve visited the whole store.
Something I like is that its a very different atmosphere than a traditional SAQ store. While it isn’t luxurious in the least, sometimes a change of scenery is good while shopping, as I’ve discovered wines I wouldn’t have otherwise. I tend to know my local SAQ pretty well, and can walk in and go right to the various sections of wines I know and like. At the SAQ depot, since I go there much less often, I don’t have that familiarity, and that’s a good thing (because I’m not running in to pick up something on my way out the door, I’m going SHOPPING!).
I made the mistake of going one of the weekends leading up to Christmas. Yikes! That was pretty crazy! But it was still a good experience, just much more hectic than usual.

Je n’ai pas tendance à ’ tripper ’ sur la SAQ, notamment à cause de son monopole quasi-​gênant au Québec. Par contre, la SAQ dépôt marque quelques points en se distinguant.
1. C’est énorme
2. Ils vendent d’énormes formats de votre alcool fort préféré
3. Possibilité de se faire des caisses de vin de 12 bouteilles — soit pêle-​mêle ou bien de la même sorte. Tu sauves aussi de l’argent en faisant ça (rabais d’environ 3 $ la bouteille)
Ce que j’aime moins :
1. C’est au marché central, c’est pas la joie se rendre là.
2. Ils ont peu de variété surtout dans l’alcool fort (par exemple, aucune téquila brune)
Mais en gros, c’est parfait pour organiser un party !

I hate how in Montréal the SAQ, the alcohol control of Quebec, has the gambit on many alcoholic beverages. For example, although you can buy bottles of wine in the grocery store, they are generic reds or whites with no year. However, only at the SAQ can you buy good wine. Only at the SAQ can you buy microbrew beer from the US. Only at the SAQ can you buy liquor.
Nevertheless, I can’t let this bullshit control board cloud the review of the SAQ itself. I like that the SAQ depot exists because the more you buy, the more you save. For instance, if you buy 3 bottles of wine, you save 3%, if you buy 6 bottles you save 10% and if you buy 12 bottles you save 15%. Saving money is always good!
While they may not have the best of selections, like other SAQs (e.g. SAQ Selection), they do have a fair representation of each region. Also you can achieve the same savings on liquor, which is nice… you can even mix and match, with 3 bottles of liquor and 9 bottles of wine and still save 15%.
IMHO, this is the best place to buy proper alcohol in Quebec at a decent savings.

The SAQ Depot concept – a bulk warehouse full of booze – could probably only fly in free-​drinking Quebec. For years, I had wanted to visit the SAQ Depot in Montréal, but, living downtown and not owning a car, I never got around to it. But when I drove to Montréal with a couple of buddies for New Year’s, we made a point of going first thing. It did not disappoint.
Imagine the last scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark, only with crates full of bottles instead of mystical relics. There is a so-​so selection of beers, as with most SAQs. The back wall has spigots of wine, so you can bring your own jugs and fill ‘er up if you’re a wino throwing a party. When we went, we got enough beer and liquor to last five hard-​drinking guys four days for around $ 150; that’s about as economical as you can get. Just don’t tell that to your liver.