Worth the trip. Great store, great owner. Will be going back.
^ This.
OK. tl;dr
Good folk. Good business. They get my money.
For the novella, see below.
Good people. Good products. Fair prices.
What more can you ask for? Really?
Yeah, I can shop Teh Intarwebz all day & maybe save myself about 5%.
The idea of an LHBS that close & convenient trumps the heck out of the illusionary savings from mail order.
To say nothing of "Oh crap. I thought I had some WL029 in the 'fridge"
That solution, right there, is *SO* worth it.
And I priced their full 55# base malt prices. I can't do it cheaper, unless it's with a group buy. And at that, I'm only saving a couple of bucks, considering in gas prices to drive to the pick-up.
So, am I willing to cough up a buck or 2 more, here & there, for what they offer?
Hell yeah!!
Value received is worth the price paid. Simple economics.
Non-calcualatable value is the people running the place, how they listen, what soft skills they possess, etc.
I like the way the owners listen & are willing to consider possible changes/additions. I also like the fact that they will say
"Yes. We thought of that & we can't do it. Doesn't make business sense"
Fair enough!
So shut up & take my money!
Also, to be fair, the other 3 LHBS in Maryland also, pretty much, behave the same way. I'm *not* dissing them at all.