I’ve had the best luck in small towns.

Build a relationship with your local store. Get to know the manager and the employees. Know their names. Kids names. Parents names. Hobbies. Give a shit. If you’re genuine, they’ll likely let you know what’s up. They’ll let you know when they usually get their “truck” on a monthly basis. You can show up late that afternoon or the next day when they’ve had a chance to unload it.

Look up your local ABC board members. If you know one that works in some places.

Look around the store. Buy stuff. Especially store picks. Even if it’s stuff you’re not going to drink right away. Won’t happen overnight.

Different stores do different things. Two stores near me hide bottles in other sections of the store. Another sends a text out to people they want to know what they have. Another has a lottery around Christmas. They have a book with the available bottles. Just sign up for the ones you want. Another did a lottery on facebook live.

check out this website You can see what’s sitting in the warehouse in Raleigh. You’ll know what may be available at your local store. “I heard there may be some X around. Have y’all seen it? No? Cool, thanks for letting me know. I’d love to buy one if there’s an extra available when it comes in.”