More Problems with my LHBS

Saccharomyces said:

Yeah what's up with dissing Great Western. I was just at a local brewery which uses their 2-row as their base malt. Trust me, their beer doesn't suck.

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It is just fine. Ballast Point uses it and they turn out some amazing beer. The Bruery uses it too. I am sure many more in town do as well. I don't know how it got a bad name.

I can't remember which brand of grain I just bought, but it was a canadian 2-row and I got a 50# sack for $40. I know it's good because I bought it from a Brewery! And their beer was not bad!

I think that guy is just sour grapesing you because he'd got problems in his life. As long as that sack of grain is fresh enough, it will be fine.

Great Western is one of the oldest maltsters in the US and its products are well respected. You don't stay in this business 75 years selling junk.

I'm glad to have the friendly folks at AHS as my LHBS these days, but I can definitely empathize with the frustrations having lived elsewhere. Lot's of places it seemed like I'd walk in and they'd condescend and treat me like I had no idea wtf I was talking about for no other reason I could come up with besides my being a woman. Then some self aggrandizing dudely dude would walk in pretending he knew what was up, grab a can of 10 year old malt extract, and the staff would be right there at his beckon call. I started making a habit of getting in and out quick as I could, but always wondered about missing out on the LHBS "experience".

Actually, come to think of it, it still happens at bike shops, with car mechanics and at the home depot... But I'm glad to have the fellows at AHS now, they're always great.

oh I got one or a few...

my lhbs, only has two varieties of hops. These sit out in the open at whatever their room temp is, and have been there for several months.

When I was making a pale ale and asked about a safale us 05 or nottingham, I was told that the Munich wheat beer yeast would produce the same results.

When I asked if they rent out corkers, the guy looked at me like he was offended and said, "why the hell would we do that?"

They charge 48 dollars for a 5 gallon glass carboy.

but i could go on
thanks for letting me vent

How about this one . . .

I swung by a hbs that is along my commute that I just heard about yesterday to check the place out. The owner was there and was generally haughty and condescending.

I asked him if he had fermcap-s or any other anti-foaming agent and he told me that fermcap-s is a clearing agent and I could just use whirfloc or irish moss.

Yeah, not likely to go back there again, luckily I live near one lhbs and work near another and both seem pretty good.