Monarch Liquor's Lakeway store at 1700 Ranch Road 620 N has a walk-in beer cave and a 17-door cooler, the biggest cold beer selection of our two Austin locations. Every case, six-pack, and seltzer is kept refrigerated from delivery to checkout, with Texas breweries like Austin Beerworks, Live Oak, Real Ale, Saint Arnold, and Shiner alongside lake-ready seltzers and canned cocktails.
If you've been to our Lakeway store on a Saturday in July, you've seen the beer cave door swing open and a wave of cold air roll out into the aisle. It's the most popular spot in the building for a reason. This is a guide to what's in there, why we built it that way, and how to fill a cooler for Lake Travis without overthinking it.
What Is a Walk-In Beer Cave?
A beer cave is a refrigerated room you walk into, rather than a glass-door case you reach into. Ours is kept cold around the clock, and cases, 12-packs, and singles all live inside at fridge temperature. Alongside the cave, the Lakeway store runs a 17-door cooler for six-packs, seltzers, canned cocktails, and the rotating singles wall, so the grab-and-go stuff is just as cold as the bulk stuff.
Why cold-chain matters
Beer is perishable. Heat and light are its enemies, and hoppy beers in particular lose their aroma fast when they sit warm. A case that rode in a hot truck, sat on a warm loading dock, and then got chilled in your fridge has already lost something. Our beer comes off the distributor's refrigerated truck and goes straight into the cave, and it stays cold until it's in your hands. That's the whole idea: an IPA tastes the way the brewer intended when it's been cold the entire way.
Texas Breweries to Know
Texas makes a lot of great beer, and we lean local. Here's a lap around the cave:
| Brewery | Where | Start with |
|---|---|---|
| Austin Beerworks | Austin | Pearl Snap pilsner, Fire Eagle IPA |
| Live Oak | Austin | HefeWeizen (a Texas classic), Pilz |
| Real Ale | Blanco | Fireman's #4 blonde, Hans' Pils |
| Saint Arnold | Houston | Art Car IPA, Fancy Lawnmower |
| Karbach | Houston | Hopadillo IPA, Love Street |
| Shiner (Spoetzl) | Shiner | Shiner Bock; you know the drill |
| Pinthouse | Austin | Electric Jellyfish IPA |
| Meanwhile | Austin | Secret Beach IPA, Sunny Days lager |
| Zilker | Austin | Marco IPA, Parks & Rec pale |
| Lazarus | Austin | Prodigal pilsner, IPAs from the east side |
| Hi Sign | Austin | Lagers and pale ales in tallboy cans |
A few staff notes
- Live Oak HefeWeizen is the beer we'd hand a visitor to prove Austin has a beer scene. Banana and clove, unfiltered, unfussy.
- Pearl Snap and Hans' Pils are the two lagers we drink most ourselves. Crisp, clean, and they don't get old by the third one.
- Electric Jellyfish is the hazy IPA that turned Austin onto hazy IPAs. It's the one people drive in for.
- Shiner Bock is a Texas institution, and it's in the cave by the case because that's how it goes home.
Seltzers and Canned Cocktails for the Lake
Boats, docks, and swim spots aren't the place for glass, and they're not the place for a shaker either. The cold cooler doors are stacked with ready-to-drink options that travel well:
- Ranch Rider (Austin) — canned Ranch Water, Paloma, and Chilton made with real tequila and vodka. The Ranch Water is the closest thing to the real recipe in a can; we go deep on that in our Ranch Water guide.
- Lone River Ranch Water — a lighter seltzer-style take from Far West Texas, easy to drink all afternoon.
- Topo Chico Hard Seltzer — the mineral-water brand Austin already loves, with a little kick. The tangy lemon-lime is the crowd favorite.
- Bigger-name seltzers like White Claw, Truly, and High Noon for the group that wants variety packs.
Want to make your own Ranch Water at home? The Texas spirits guide has the tequila and sotol picks.
Shop this guide: browse the beer and seltzer section online and we'll pull it from the cave, cold, for delivery or curbside pickup.
SHOP BEER & SELTZERSHow to Build a Mixed Cooler
The mistake most people make is buying one case of one thing. By hour three, nobody wants it. Here's the formula we suggest for a day on the water with a crowd:
- A crushable lager as the base — roughly half the cooler. Pearl Snap, Hans' Pils, Shiner, or Lone Star.
- One hoppy option — a six-pack of Electric Jellyfish or Fire Eagle for the IPA people.
- A seltzer or canned cocktail — Ranch Rider or Topo Chico Hard Seltzer for the folks who want something lighter or spirit-based.
- One wildcard — a hefeweizen, a Mexican-style lager, or whatever's new on the singles wall. Ask us.
- Non-alcoholic cans — a few NA beers or plain Topo Chico for the designated captain. Boat rules and Texas law don't take the day off.
Pack the cooler in layers: ice, cans, ice, cans, ice on top. Cans that go in cold from our cave stay cold far longer than cans that go in warm.
Cases, Singles, and Growlers
The cave stocks cases and 12-packs of the most popular beers, so you can grab in bulk without waiting for us to break down a pallet. The singles wall in the cooler lets you build your own mixed six-pack, which is the best way to try five Texas breweries without committing to a case of any of them. If you're a growler person, ask at the counter or call (512) 614-4949; availability changes with what we can source, so we'd rather tell you than promise it here.
What About the East Austin Store?
Our East Austin store at MLK and Chicon is a smaller building and doesn't have a walk-in cave. What it has is a tighter, curated beer selection: the Austin core (Live Oak, Austin Beerworks, Pinthouse, Zilker, Lazarus, Hi Sign), a few rotating seasonals, and the seltzers and canned cocktails that move on the east side. If you want breadth and cases by the dozen, Lakeway is the store. If you want a well-edited cold six-pack on the way to a backyard, East Austin has you.
Both stores are open Monday through Saturday, 10am to 9pm, and closed Sunday (that's Texas law; our liquor laws guide explains it). Heading to the lake on a Sunday? Order Saturday. And if you're new to the area, our guide to liquor stores near Lake Travis covers how to find us from the marinas.
Common Questions
Which Monarch store has the bigger beer selection?
Lakeway. It's our biggest store, with a walk-in beer cave and a 17-door cooler. East Austin carries a smaller, curated beer selection focused on Austin breweries and seltzers.
Is the beer in the cave actually cold, or just stored there?
It's cold. The cave is a refrigerated room kept at fridge temperature around the clock, and beer goes in straight from the distributor's refrigerated truck.
Can I get beer and seltzers delivered from the Lakeway store?
Yes. Order online for delivery or curbside pickup, Monday through Saturday during store hours. A 21+ adult with valid photo ID must receive the order. See our delivery page for terms.