Portland, OR

Hey now!

New to the game, what's the best home brew shop round here?

I'm in the Southeast if there's something specific.

Thanks a lot, I've had a lot of fun on the site so far!

FH Steinbart is going to be the closest to you. I normally go to Brew Brothers or Main Brew's new place off 26, but both of those are on the westside; my neck of the woods.

Im on the westside too, and I go to Mainbrew. Great selection of ingredients and botteled beer.

Welcome

I agree with FH Steinbart, especially if you are in SE. Just beware, if you are new and have a few questions, you may get a little attitude. Overall though, it's a great store. Some of the guys there have been super helpful, some, on the other hand, have made me feel very awkward about being green.

http://www.fhsteinbart.com/index.php

Strange hours also. I would think they'd want to be open all Sat/Sun. But they close at 1pm Saturday and are closed on Sundays. I live in NW and literally walk over there Saturday mornings. Good stroll before a big brew day.

I like F H Steinbart too! But for great service and generally better prices go to the Main St Brewing in Hillsboro (The warehouse location) they are very freindly, open Sundays, and have a VERY good selection of refridgerated import/micro beer selection. I'm talking 75 cents for a pound of malt grains! (Imports are a little more obviously)

FH Steinbarts is the best for your area. If you wanna travel Brew Brothers in Hillsboro AND! Above the Rest in Tigard...thasss riiight Tigard!

I vote against Steinbart's. Last time I was there they were scary expensive, the employees seemed bothered when I asked for a couple items that were behind the counter, and the serve yourself grain area was a disaster. I really feel like the only reason people go there is momentum. Oh yea, and if you want carafa you can choose from... carafa. No special, let alone the 3 different varieties of each. Same story with caramunich. And they don't put the maltster on the bin labels. And they don't carry multiple maltsters in the specialty grains. And I could go on.

It's very much worth the drive to go to Brew Brothers. They're incredibly helpful, and have great prices. Also, they have an enormous grain and hop selection, and they'll never have a problem opening a bag or packaging some hops for you. They run brew demos on Sat and Sun, so it's a great time to go hang out and see the process or ask for tips. They also make deliveries around town, so you can call or place an internet order and pick it up somewhere closer to home. Check their website for the info.

Main St. is ok too, but they were more limited on grains and less helpful than BB the couple times I went out there.

BTW, I'm in no way affiliated with BB other than being a very satisfied customer. They're just my favorite, so I gotta give them some big props and keep them in business.

Please please please do not go to Above the Rest in Tigard. They fired the only person there that actually knew anything, their prices are all over the map and none of them make sense, and their mill is truly a piece of crap.

I like Steinbart but yes they can make you feel awkward at times.

Keep your eyes out for a new shop in Sellwood. I believe the are calling it Portland-U-Brew (PUB) and they were trying to open in Feb. We'll see...

Heard lots of good things about Brew Brothers.

Good luck and welcome!

I haven't been to Brew Brothers but, after reading the other responses I will be going soon! So they are open on Sundays too? That is my best day to buy/brew.

Steinbart's.

And join the Oregon Brew Crew. Go to some meetings, drink others homebrew, bring your own, talk about beer, learn from other homebrewers and pros as well. Great fun. I miss it (I lived there 9 years).

There is a small shop in North Portland called Homebrew Exchange. They have fair prices not an giant selection, but they are open Sundays and are very friendly and helpful even when I have my 4 year old son running laps in the store.
Plus they carry cheese making supllies.

step said:

Please please please do not go to Above the Rest in Tigard. They fired the only person there that actually knew anything, their prices are all over the map and none of them make sense, and their mill is truly a piece of crap.

I like Steinbart but yes they can make you feel awkward at times.

Keep your eyes out for a new shop in Sellwood. I believe the are calling it Portland-U-Brew (PUB) and they were trying to open in Feb. We'll see...

Heard lots of good things about Brew Brothers.

Good luck and welcome!

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Do you know exactly why they fired that guy? I do, and I would have continued to kick him to the curb. Sharons run that buisness for over 12 years and has done well. a little cluttered and her prices are funny on some things but she will work with you if you on them if you notice them to high. She has good basic knowledge and I think its up to you to figure more complex things out for yourself. Above The Rest Homebrewing in Tigard is a decent place to get stuff.

step said:

Please please please do not go to Above the Rest in Tigard. They fired the only person there that actually knew anything, their prices are all over the map and none of them make sense, and their mill is truly a piece of crap.

I like Steinbart but yes they can make you feel awkward at times.

Keep your eyes out for a new shop in Sellwood. I believe the are calling it Portland-U-Brew (PUB) and they were trying to open in Feb. We'll see...

Heard lots of good things about Brew Brothers.

Good luck and welcome!

Click to expand...

Oh yea, and most shops mills are crap. Go buy one man.

I started going to Brew Brothers when they sold from out of their home garage. Now they are in a small warehouse space and they are friendly, have great prices, remember my name, will pretty much stock anything that you request they keep on hand.

Mainbrew, the dude thinks he knows everything about brewing and his way is the only way - scientifically proven due to his science background. I visited the new location recently and was shocked at the poor selection of hops. As for the selection of beer, you'll find MUCH more selection @ Johns. I bought my first kegging equipment from them and then when I had a question about it the other owner told me that they never sold that kind of regulator so I didn't buy it from him. Still had my receipt of course and stopped buying from them after that incident.

Above the rest - worst store I've ever been in for beer supplies. Crazy as a loon.

Steinbarts - prices were high, service was good, selection excellent. Service dept for a leaking regulator - the guy told me it didn't leak, he was wrong. But they do have all sorts of parts that you won't find elsewhere locally.

I live in SE and have used Brew Brothers for all my supplies so far. I learned about them from a friend and they have been great.

They will actually deliver to Hopworks Urban Brewery so I don't even have to drive over there. Just add a comment to your order that you want them to deliver to HUB and they will meet you there in the lower parking lot on Thursdays at 12:30pm.

Another ++ for Brew Brothers. Best selection and prices around. Don't forget to show them your AHA card for an additional discount.

FH Steinbart can be a little intimidating but have lots of things you cannot find at the other places. If you're in SE Portland there is Lets Brew. The lady there can be a little condescending but after she sees you a few times she lightens up. I like HomeBrew Exchange mainly because I work up in that area. They are not that knowledgeable but they make up for it by being overly nice and open on Sundays.

syblue said:

There is a small shop in North Portland called Homebrew Exchange. They have fair prices not an giant selection, but they are open Sundays and are very friendly and helpful even when I have my 4 year old son running laps in the store.
Plus they carry cheese making supllies.

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I was hoping someone else would mention HBX. I live across the river in Vancouver, so we often go to Homebrew Exchange. The folks there are really nice, and occasionally they have homebrew exchange parties where you can sample other people's creations. (I think they stopped temporarily, till that OLCC thing gets settled.)

Anyone in the Portland area wanting to hang out and brew some beer let me know. Note me or add me to msn

I've been to steinbarts a few times and I've never experienced the mistreatment people complain about.

That said, if you go there on a saturday an hour before closing, don't expect them to be available to answer all your questions. (I don't know... That sounds reasonable to me).

That said, I go to mainbrew's new location north of hwy 26...huge selection and its big and open, so I don't get claustrophobic like at steinbart's... The real reason... I can get there on my bike.
Oh...and they have taps and pour samples of local stuff...never a bad thing.

I like Steinbart's, and their roller mill for base malts gives me good efficiency. Good selection of grain, hops, and yeast.
I've never gotten any attitude from anyone who works there, and my wife has bought stuff for me with no trouble, despite not knowing a thing about brewing or equipment.

I'm up at Hood otherwise I would be hitting up both brew brothers and main street. However there is a new SMALL shop in Sandy called the Beer Den. Cheaper than Steinbart's but way less selection. Really great about special ordering since he doesn't have a huge selection setup yet.

shutupjojo said:

Do you know exactly why they fired that guy? I do, and I would have continued to kick him to the curb. Sharons run that buisness for over 12 years and has done well. a little cluttered and her prices are funny on some things but she will work with you if you on them if you notice them to high. She has good basic knowledge and I think its up to you to figure more complex things out for yourself. Above The Rest Homebrewing in Tigard is a decent place to get stuff.

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I am that guy, and I'll tell you exactly why they fired me. I was helping a very good friend of mine start Portland U-Brew & Pub while working for ATR. She was very personally offended about that fact. I came in on new years eve day, worked all day, and then her husband fired me out of the blue. I was never hired on as an actual employee (even though I worked there for a year and a half) thus they screwed me out of any benefits I would have been entitled to. Anyone who would fire someone who cared so much about not only their business, but their customers and the owners is a fool(including you shutupjojo). She has almost no basic knowledge of brewing which is absurd seeing that she's been doing this so long, and I have no idea how she has stayed in business by boldfaced lying to customers and giving them wrong information. Yes, some things you must learn on your own, but if the knowledge you've been given from the beginning is wrong then she has made it that much harder for you. For example a guy called asking the alpha of our centennial hops. She said "They are 11.1% alpha, and it's a 2 ounce package so the alpha is 22.2%." When I told her it was wrong she just argued with me. Her husband pulled me aside one day, and asked about the situation. When I told him the story he said to me EXACTLY this, "If someone calls and asks a question and she gives them a wrong answer it's ok because they don't know the right answer and they don't know they're getting wrong information." I could not believe what I was hearing! That's no way to treat customers.
Cheers,
Aaron Gillham
Portland U-Brew & Pub

Oh, snap!