Support your local home brew store

BarbarianBrewer

BarbarianBrewer

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Established Member
Joined
Mar 12, 2017
Messages
2,509
Reaction score
5,195
Points
113
I've always known I have been very spoiled by having a local home brew store (Northern Brewer) 15 minutes from my house. I always relied on being able to decide on a recipe today and brew it tomorrow. Or, as happened with my current batch, if I come to realize I really don't have a necessary item I can just run down there on brew day and pick up the missing item. Now I have to decide if I can change the recipe to what I have on hand or delay brew day to the following weekend to allow for the needed item to arrive. And shipping costs for me used to be whatever a 1/2 gallon of gas cost. I now need to plan ahead and buy enough stuff to reach the "free" shipping threshold. I am a lifetime member of the procrastinators club.

Buying local doesn't always keep local businesses afloat but, it might give them a fighting chance or at least delay the inevitable. The only time I didn't buy from my LHBS was when they simply didn't carry an item I needed.

Ok...ranting is is over.....for now at least! ;)
 
There's no shop in Fort Wayne.
There's a hardware store a town over that has a very minimal amount of homebrew stuff. If they had a better selection I'd go there more often.
 
Keep it local is a great philosophy for more than just economics.

I used to have 2 "on the drive home" options to stop at and purposely supported the more local, little guy even know they had a smaller inventory but he could get things he didn't normally had provided I ordered ahead so here's a local that appreciated my business enough to get me what I WANTED as well as what I NEEDED. In this case the guy opened the LHBS as a side line to a local restaurant that added their own boutique beer to their menu so double bonus for the downtown business in the county seat. But again, competing against Big Beer I guess was too much.

So now, I support the bigger gal and hope she's getting enough support because I really don't want to do the mail order thing. I like pulling my own order and chatting up the staff on what I'm making and getting new ideas and opinions on methods and materials...just like we do on the forum here!
 
Loosing Northern Brewer here in Minnesota put a hurtin' on me for brewing. I don't know of another supplier around except mail order.
 
I do use the local dudes. We did lose one, but the other has been around probably since the 80s. The one we lost was 15 minutes away. When they were open, I could order, go next door, and sit at the brewery bar for a beer.
The other one is probably only 20 minutes.
They make it easy too. Order online, go pick it up. Email sent when ready.
 
I miss the 2 choices of LHBS that I used to have in SoCal, but I definitely appreciate the one that is open here in Eugene. The Home Fermenter got more of my business recently so that I could make the beer I am brewing right now.
 
I always go to the lhbs for a few reasons, first to support them and get everything I need. Second for the people I meet and the advise I can get from the shop and customers.
 
Smash thurlby said:
I always go to the lhbs for a few reasons, first to support them and get everything I need. Second for the people I meet and the advise I can get from the shop and customers.
Click to expand...

The grain room is something I really miss. Walking in you were enveloped in the wonderful smell of all that grain. They make candles with so many different scents. Why hasn't someone came up with a Grain Room Scent candle? Another benefit was the ability to taste a few kernels of grain to get an idea of the flavor it would bring to a beer.
 
I made trips to lhbs on consecutive days this weekend. My wife wanted her own fermenter for cider batches, so we got her a 1 gallon ported wide mouth FerMonster, fitted with a spigot. Also got a long plastic mash paddle, some bottle caps, gypsum and citric acid. The next day, I went back to get a bung for the new FerMonster, and on a whim decided that I would brew another wheat ale, so got grains and hops for that. The new fermenter is already in action with a cider batch, and the citric acid was deployed in the canning of a couple quarts of tomatoes.
It is refreshing to see the lhbs (Home Fermenter in Eugene, Oregon since 1979) busy on both visits. My wife works in a home and garden store, where she regularly refers customers to Home Fermenter. We’re doing our part to support this fine local business.
 
I never had the opportunity to try a lhbs until August 24th when I stopped by northern brewers store....and found the sorry we're now closed for business sign posted that morning
 
I have to lhbs stores within about 20 minutes drive.
I use to split my business between them, but have used one over the other for a few years now.
Other than a piece of equipment here or there from Amazon, I get all of my ingredients from my favorite shop.
 
west1m said:
Loosing Northern Brewer here in Minnesota put a hurtin' on me for brewing. I don't know of another supplier around except mail order.
Click to expand...

For those in the Twin Cities MN area, Nordeast Brewers Alliance announced an event for Oct 22 that may be of interest.

Slightly off topic, but related to local club activity, back in September, St Paul Home Brew Club had an event over at NB's Roseville MN building. Also, are a number of other clubs (check AHA's club listing or MN State Fair competition results) in the area.
 
Looks like a grillfest is going to happen.
Do they sell supplies as well?
I couldnt tell from the ad.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Want no ads? Go Premium and unlock all our brewing tools!
Copyright © 2007-2025 Brewer's Friend, Inc. - Send Feedback - Terms - RSS Feed - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

Back
Top