home brew supply shops in......NJ!

I live in Northern New Jersey. I have to go to Corrado's to buy supplies. It leaves a whole lot to be desired. There are a few places I have heard of in central and south jersey- but thats a drive. Does anyone know of any places near by to buy supplies? Do many people out there turn to mail order for things? I love Midwest- but who wants to spend money on shipping all the time. Are most people out there within a decent distance of a good supply shop?
Is this not the most boring post ever?
I just want to see what others from the area are doing.
All humor directed at my vocation will be ignored, as it's too easy and therefore requires no true sense of wit.

You can get some supplies from Ubrew which is inside The Gaslight Brewpub in West Orange but it's not like a store you can walk in. Call the gaslight.

I just make a big list of things I want to buy and order all at once from Austinhomebrew or Northernbrewer. I'm down in central NJ and about 45 minutes from www.brewapp.com but I don't like their prices in person and they sell out of a lot of stuff.

Side note. It's a shame you missed my big brewout this past Saturday.

im in orange county and travel an hour to corrados... its the only place and easiest other than goin directly into the city for stuff. to me corrados isnt for the beginner, the first time i was there i was very lost...if it wasnt for HBT i woulda been in some very poor shape. check craigslist, i scored a converted keg with all the gauges, 2 cornies, and a huge chiller coil for 125. trust me its all worth the drive if u can find somthin you will need. Also somethin i just found out is that if u go on ebay and search for somthing u want and select "nearest location first" u can find some things that dont need shipping. For brew kits i have used midwest, and have enjoyed listermann.com > cheap shipping, good kits, had real good results with thier beers. sorry for the rant but ive been goin through the same situation and this is how ive been getting by.

I'm in North Jersey too. Corrados is the only place I have found locally. I usually go there for last minute items and order from Midwest for big purchases. Anyone interested in a brewday or bottle swap?

Haha, I've only been advertising my brewout for the last month or so... and it happened this past Saturday. Olllllo joked that this would happen.

The Gaslight! I found a number in the yellow pages for a "Ubrew" and it was the automated recording for the gaslight. Makes sense now. I brew mostly extract and P/M- so I bet that the gaslight has some but not all of what I need. I'm gonna assume that they are an all grain operation.
Corrado's is a good resource, but they never have everything that I need. I wanted to make a hefewiezen, and they didnt have coriander, or orange peels OR candi sugar that day. At least they had the yeast. And thats my typical experience there. They are so geared for wine, that they dont seem to carry beer stuff with any enthusiasm. I have made a habit of showing up there with three different recipes- and what they have in stock dictates what I will brew. It gets old. The Brew'app. is too far, and now that I hear that they are pricey- my temptation to take a trip and check it out again is gone.
Bobby- are You a jar head, or is that just a cool logo for your beer?
I noticed that your brew event just happened to be on the Marine Corps' birthday.
Semper Fi, either way.

I, too, find myself just ordering everything online. Bobby_M, sorry to have missed the brewout. My wife had our car this weekend on a trip. I'm a grad student and almost never need a car, but biking down to Piscataway with brewing gear strapped to my back just wasn't gonna do it. Thanks for the hospitality, though. Hope to meet up with you sometime; maybe I'll even have a little beer to share.

I have been a few times to the Brewer's Apprentice in Freehold. They are pretty helpful there and have a decent amount of supplies. They have a website if you do a google search on the name, and you can prob order ahead and just go pickup.

jzal8 said:

I have been a few times to the Brewer's Apprentice in Freehold. They are pretty helpful there and have a decent amount of supplies. They have a website if you do a google search on the name, and you can prob order ahead and just go pickup.

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I've ordered online about 2/3rds of the time. The other times I've gone to Brewer's Apprentice as well. They usually have what I need and are helpful...

The only complaints I have with brewapp.com (brewer's apprentice) is that their prices are all over the map and change wildly from visit to visit and they are sometimes way understaffed. You'll stand there for a half hour because the only person working is helping the brew on prem people. I've sent my sister in there because she lives close and she's paid $2 a pack for Montrachet yeast and $1.75 each for 4oz packs of dextrose (normally pay $1 per POUND elsewhere). Oh...and they never have any Fermentis yeasts.

Nope, not a jarhead, just a clever logo, or not.

If I were you, I'd check out www.brewbyu.com. They are up in New Hampshire so the shipping rates are decent. The prices for everything they have are incredibly low.

I'm in New Jersey as well although I'm down south right outside of Atlantic City. I've gotten everything delivered to me so far but I just found a place in Turnersville called Beercrafters Inc. Anybody gone there? Is it any good?

I said it before, and I'll say it again. Corrado's sucks. I was just in there today, and they are still out of 2/3rds of the grains that they "Stock", and Only had Amber DME. I'll excuse there ONE type of hop in the store as a direct result of the current state of affairs with hops- but I bet other HBS made more of an effort to find and stock more than this place.
Oddly- the yeast is always fresh- and has a very decent variety.
From now on, I shall use the place only to buy extracts that I don't feel like shipping.
It's been well over 7 weeks since they had even a decent range of Essential goods.

BNVince-
Did you ever make it to Beercrafters, and if so- what did you think?
I'm not about to drive that far (same/same as shipping) but If I find myself in the area......

oguss0311 said:

BNVince-
Did you ever make it to Beercrafters, and if so- what did you think?
I'm not about to drive that far (same/same as shipping) but If I find myself in the area......

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I've been two Beercrafters twice. Its expensive. Cheaper for me to buy online and pay shipping, and I'm only 15 minutes away. Cost me over $10 last week for caps and iodophor. If I hadn't needed the stuff so badly I would have just said forget it.

HomeSweet HomeBrew in Philly is pretty good. Thought I'd save myself $3 on the bridge and go to Beercrafters last week and regretted that. Could have gotten lunch and gelato in Philly...

oguss0311 said:

BNVince-
Did you ever make it to Beercrafters, and if so- what did you think?
I'm not about to drive that far (same/same as shipping) but If I find myself in the area......

Click to expand...

Yeah I ended up going there. It was expensive. $14 for 3lb of DME. $7 for 2oz of pellet hops. I ended up spending around $50 which is probably exactly what I would have spent had I bought the stuff online. In the future, I'll probably only go there to get yeast.

I went to Corrados for my first brew and all my equipment. Ordered my second kit online.

Where in Jersey are you guys? I'm in Hasbrouck Heights.

I got an idea...we should have a brewout! (Just Kidding, Bobby... )

Seven bucks for 2oz of hop pellets?!Thanks for that heads up- I'll pass on the curiosity to drop by that place.
I'm in Montclair and Butler- and do wish that I had joined early enough to catch that last blowout- I could have learned a lot.

hehe, I'm done "begging" people to learn something.

oguss0311 said:

Seven bucks for 2oz of hop pellets?!Thanks for that heads up- I'll pass on the curiosity to drop by that place.
I'm in Montclair and Butler- and do wish that I had joined early enough to catch that last blowout- I could have learned a lot.

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Same here. I'm thinking of making the jump to AG.

I'm in Madison... I'm went down to check out B A last weekend. They missed a shipment, so they were pretty much out of everything, but I knew that before I went, because I called ahead. Just the same I wanted to get a good look at the place for a few reasons... so I stopped by.

I faxed in my order to them... funny thing, the fax is only on during thier business hours... and I expect to pick stuff up this weekend. I thought the grain prices were pretty good (if you buy bulk). Especially, when you factor in the shipping costs from the online places.

I went to the Gaslight, and frankly I wasn't impressed. The only good thing was I could drink a beer while waiting for the gentleman to escort me to the supply closet. You can call and order whatever you want, but why bother...

I liked the look and feel of BA better, even though its further away. It was a bit slow, but I was checking the place out so I didn't mind.

Maybe we can set up a club in Morris Co. - Is there already one? - we could bulk order supplies, get together and brew, discuss string theory, or ... idunno, drink a beer or two?

Ah Corrados this is too funny. I'm also a patron of theirs due to location. They are so odd. I broke my brewing spoon months ago, and they haven't re-stocked those yet. All other ingredients are a total crapshoot, they regularly don't have stuff I need. And to top it off, their hop prices are 400% higher now than before the shortage. Extract prices have also increased. I'm gonna start ordering hops online but otherwise I'll probably still use them for the other stuff. I like that someone commented on them not having corriander and peel. Plenty of elderberries to go around but no corriander for months now. If you live near a brewery like flying fish or cricket hill, maybe they sell supplies? Otherwise I'm stumped. Maybe we need to start a "for brewers, by brewers" north jersey homebrew shop?(patent pending)

I second that notion! A good resource I've since discovered is the Gaslight in South Orange. They are a local brew pub, and will gladly bag up whatever you might need. I was in there for a pint and hit up a conversation with a nice guy who brews with his friends....He was picking up hops and what not, and I mentioned that they must not have extracts- being a brewpub more than anything else- and then he noticed that some one else had what looked a lot like Muttons LME in their bag. Hmmmm. They do not seem to have an actual store front-(For supplies anyway- all supplies were sold bar-side- that I saw) and I've not a clue to their prices- because I had mad a huge order from Midwest and dont need anything at the moment- but next time I do- I'm going there.
+1 on Corrado's hop prices. WTF. I'm looking into growing my own this year.

They do not seem to have an actual store front-(For supplies anyway- all supplies were sold bar-side- that I saw)

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nope, they don't... you call ahead or ask the bartender, and if the guy is there (I think it's a family operation and the Father runs the homebrew part), he'll come around and take you in the back and upstairs to the homebrew section... it's a big storage closet basically. But, he has a bunch of stuff, and was helpful. But since your escorted there, it isn't really comfortable, kinda like if your going to someone's house to buy something they are selling... just check it out and either buy it or get out...

I've seen in other places where people get together to split bulk shipments. I'd be willing to organize it, if people want to go in on it.

If anyone has done this before, please contact me, I'd like to find out how to go about it the best way.

Anyway, I'm going to look into it further... if you are interested in getting grains from Madison (next to Morristown), let me know - if we get enough interest, I'll put it together.

Just picked up my supplies at Brewer's Apprentice...
Bottom line, I'm satisfied. You only get a price break on full sacks, so the specialty grains didn't come at much of a savings compared to online, but the 55# Maris Otter was $44 which is pretty good. And I on my next purchase of $25 or more (ingredients) I get 50% off (up to $15). Which isn't bad.

They didn't have the California V that I wanted, which I thought they should have picked up since I put in the order in advance, but really that was a minor inconvenience. They also didn't have chinook pellets, but that's more expected with the whole hops thing going on (i guess).

I much prefer going to a store vs. online shopping for beer stuff... I like the ambience, plus I like to shoot the breeze with fellow brewers a bit. Anyway, my bottom line is that I will be going back to BA.

What kind of stuff does Gaslight have? Do they carry a decent selection of hops and grain?

Like Bobby and Soulalive, I'm stuck in central NJ (Middlesex). I'm 30 miles from Freehold and about 20 miles from Gaslight.

I can't believe that there isn't a decent homebrew store in Newark or Union. WTF?

I'm almost tempted to start my own operating out of my basement.

morebeer in california- free shipping over $59,
and I made a mistake on my order, called to change it,
and the guy that answered the phone was awesome!
my LHBS is about 20 miles away.
I'll take it shipped right to my door, thanks.

I hate morebeer. They haven't gotten 1 out of 3 orders correct. 3 strikes you're out.

Northern Brewer or Austinhomebrew for me.

Bobby_M said:

I hate morebeer. They haven't gotten 1 out of 3 orders correct. 3 strikes you're out.

Northern Brewer or Austinhomebrew for me.

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I haven't decided yet if I will make the 30 mile pilgrimage to Brewer's Apprentice or do the 20 miles to Gaslight. BA definitely has the prices that change every time I go there. I have never been to Gaslight.

I do need to get a big sack of grain so it makes sense to go one of those places. I also need some base grain and a couple ounces of hops.

Will Gaslight work for me?

njnear76 said:

What kind of stuff does Gaslight have? Do they carry a decent selection of hops and grain?

Like Bobby and Soulalive, I'm stuck in central NJ (Middlesex). I'm 30 miles from Freehold and about 20 miles from Gaslight.

I can't believe that there isn't a decent homebrew store in Newark or Union. WTF?

I'm almost tempted to start my own operating out of my basement.

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The only thing that they have not had that I wanted was ashburn mild. I use about all the time now. Pro's are decent prices, and a great selection. Cons are a lack of storefront- so you can't window shop and the fact that hops come in little sandwich bags with twist ties.
You typically place an order of what you want and tell them when you want to pick it up.
It beats Corrado's- who will at times have ten lb bags of Morris Otter and other good stuff- and then go MONTHS without anything but extract syrip, etc.

The idea with both places is to call way ahead and ask if they have what you want and they'll hold it for you. The last time I called gaslight, they had the sack of MO for me and handed it to me AT THE BAR when I showed up. Weird. Note though, the malt was 2 months passed exipiration and I only noticed when I got home. I know BA has fresh stuff. They order grain once a week. Call by Monday morning and pick up the sack on Friday.

I'm not too keen on the Brewer's Apprentice. The help is terrible, so slow! Gas being what it is, it's cheaper to order online than drive there. Plus their prices are up and down. It's like they wave a magic wand over the cash register. I have not been too satisfied with their extract either. I'll probably give them another chance though, if I happen to be in the area. I just wish they were quicker and cheaper.

do you remember about much the sack was from GL?

I got an expired sack of Baird's MO from them back before the grain prices shot up and I remember it was $5 less than BA wanted. If their prices are tracking with everyone elses, they'd probably sell it for $55 right now. Just check the "use by" date because that was a big mistake I made.

if you're going to open a brewstore in NJ, make sure it's close to the city. There's exactly Fukall in NYC.

B

Bobby M,

I realize that you are an all grain brewer, but have you tried any of the BA extract recipes? If so, what kind of success have you had. I've brewed 3 extract recipes from them, so so results each.

Postman

I've never tried any of their recipes. I think I've been there three times. The first was for extract ingredients for a recipe I found somewhere and the next two times were just for sacks of grain. Even though my brew club gets 10% off sacks, it still feels like being raped.

Really is too bad, it'd be nice to have a good home brew shop. I guess they must make most of their profit from the BOP. Even still, if I was in a pinch...I'd go. I'll probably stick with NB or Midwest for now. I kind of feel like Austin HB is a little pricey too. Best wishes bro!

If you're really dedicated to sticking it out with extract, you'd probably benefit from a 50 pound bulk purchase of DME. If you're only looking to buy it in 3lb bags, check out www.brewbyu.com

i live very close to two great supply stores

Thanks Bobby. I've never really thought much about DME. For the last year everything I used was LME, which has given great results. Is there any difference in taste? For now, I'm an extract brewer, but I have read a lot recently on all grain. Time is the biggest issue with 2 very little kids at home. Also, $$$$. It's like kegs vs All Grain equipment. For now, I'm extract who is considering partial mash. But even there I'd need to build a MLT manifold for my cooler - 50 Qt Igloo rectangle and get a larger pot. Thanks for the advice.