Oliver’s Beverage - The Brew Crew

About us

In 1934, a young man named John J. Oliver became one the first New Yorkers after the repeal of prohibition to obtain a beer license. He eventually became the wholesale distributor for Hedrick Beer for the area outside of the Albany city limits. With his son, Tom Smith, he ran for many years a wholesale/retail beer outlet at 1143 Central Ave in Colonie. Mr. Oliver was a very respected man within the beer community. In 1986, at the age of 78, he decided to retire. He was approached by us, two young brothers, and a deal was struck. We decided to shift the focus of the business to a decidedly more retail friendly atmosphere and "Oliver’s Beverage Center" was born. In August of 1987, we moved the business to the present location on Colvin Ave in Albany. In 1989, Westmere Beverage was acquired and "The Brew Crew" was complete. We were small but ambitious. We were determined to grow the business on a few basic principles called the 3 S’s.....Service, Selection and Savings. We wanted to have the best prices, friendly convenient service, and a selection that this area had never seen. We set out to buy every beer that was available to us. Before we knew it, we had 300 different beers! And people responded. Over the years the inventory continued to grow to 700.. 800... until it’s present day total of 1500 different brands of beer. We’ve been very fortunate to have developed great relationships with our employees and customers over the years. Many of the "Bobble Heads" have been part of the Brew Crew for years and we look out for each other like a family does. We’ve met some great customers over the years (one of us married one)., Albany is a great place to live and we hope that our store makes it that much better.

-Mark and Joe Crisafulli