Frankie V Beer & Soda Opens in Hellertown

Now that Frank and Dot Varju have opened a beer store in downtown Hellertown, residents of the borough once again have a convenient spot to buy brews.

Frankie V Beer & Soda opened at Front and Water streets, one block west of Main Street, on July 21--the day the owners got the OK to open from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.

The Varjus are residents of Forks Township and previously owned and operated Frank & Dot’s Beer Depot in Easton, the Varjus.

They said they realized that Hellertown could use a beer store, too.

The nearest beer distributor to downtown Hellertown was previously Oasis Beverage in the Creekside Marketplace shopping center on Route 412, but that business closed months ago.

Frankie V’s beer selection is likely to please many local consumers of suds.

In addition to all the usual domestic brands, Frankie’s offers six varieties of Weyerbacher, a beer made locally at an Easton microbrewery. The store also sells nine kinds of Samuel Adams, plus several varieties of Magic Hat, which is brewed in Vermont. Many different Mexican beers are also available, including Dos Equis, Tecate, Sol, Modelo and Corona.

Also fully represented is a lineup of brews from The Victory Brewing Company, which is located in Downingtown, Delaware County. Victory is the recipient of Philly Beer Scene magazine's 2011 Best Area Brewery award, and Frankie V’s sells its Golden Monkey, Prima Pils, Hop Devil and Hop Wallop varieties.

Bestsellers are usually Budweiser and other Anheuser-Busch products, including Land Shark pale lager and spicy Shock Top, and the Coors product, Blue Moon, said Frank Varju. There’s a wide range of hard cider and hard lemonade products available as well, and if the store doesn’t have what you want, they will get it for you, he added.

In addition to beer, Frankie’s also sells cigarettes, soda and snacks, and is open seven days a week, from 10am to 9pm Mon.-Sat., and noon to 5pm Sundays. The store's phone number is 610-838-1036.

Earlier this year, the Varjus turned the operation of their Easton store over to their son, Frank Varju Jr., of Bethlehem, and other family members help staff both locations.

The Varjus have five children, 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. One of their grandchildren, Jared Holley of Forks Township, is a football player for the University of Pittsburgh, they are proud to say.

Before their beer businesses, Frank and Dot Varju operated a gas station in Phillipsburg.

Dot, 69, said she much prefers selling beer (“It’s indoors”) but Frank, 70, seems the resilient type.

“We’re two old people going strong,” he said.