Tom's Liquor Merchants

On Fitzroy Street in St Kilda, this independent liquor merchant has built its range around natural and low-intervention wine alongside a rotating craft beer selection, the kind of stock list assembled by people who drink the category rather than merely sell it. It sits close to the neighbourhood's bar strip, and the crossover shows in a shop that feels closer to a considered cellar than a standard bottle-o: staff who can talk through a producer's approach, and a spirits wall that goes beyond the predictable. St Kilda's stretch of Fitzroy Street has no shortage of liquor retailers, but this one has carved out a following among natural-wine drinkers specifically. Open seven days, from midday through to 8 or 9pm depending on the night, it suits both a pre-dinner grab and a slower browse. For anyone staying near the beach end of St Kilda and wanting something beyond the mainstream label, it is a dependable stop.