Austin Homebrew Supply

[Beast4x4]

I live close enough I just go into the story but I really like these guys.

 

[n2fooz]

#1- Losing my order history with the new site sucks!
#2- I have a $200 gift certificate that I want to use but almost everything that I want is out of stock. What is going on? Various Hops (Centennial), all Kegs, Wine Thief's, every scale, Specific Gravity Refractometers etc..
#3- They don't offer bulk bags of base malts.

Not so happy with AHB right now.

 

[mhochman]

#1- Losing my order history with the new site sucks!
#2- I have a $200 gift certificate that I want to use but almost everything that I want is out of stock. What is going on? Various Hops (Centennial), all Kegs, Wine Thief's, every scale, Specific Gravity Refractometers etc..


Not so happy with AHB right now.

I was just browsing the site for the first time since the change. I have placed many, many orders with them (haven't done anything since the fall) and was disappointed to see my order history gone and I am very confused by the "out of stock" message for every single recipe I am browsing. Are they aware that their site is messed up, or are they genuinely losing their mojo?

 

[n2fooz]

I was finally able to scrounge several items that it allowed me to add to the cart but when I went to check out it said "One or more of the items in your cart is out of stock" or something to that effect. But the stupid thing wouldn't tell me which item/items it was. After several attempts at removing things one by one and getting the same message, I gave up.
The fact that in the last month I've purchased:
(2) 10 gal batches worth of ingredients (Morebeer)
$500 worth of Kegging parts (Keg Connection and Morebeer)
$200+ of miscellaneous tubing/replacement brewing parts/etc..
All while having a pretty much useless $200 gift certificate (since Dec.) to AHB is really starting to piss me off

 

[julioardz]

AHB is my local brew shop. I've been brewing malt centered batches recently because they've been out of a ridiculous amount of hops for a while now. However, I went in one day and they were even out of 2-row (???). I went in again today and they had replenished some hops, but still had many others out of stock. There were empty bins and other well stocked ones throughout the store. I noticed that it has been this way since after Thanksgiving 2013.

Overall, it seems to me like whoever has been doing their purchasing has dropped the ball several times. It's usually no big deal for me because I can work with what I have, and I get the whole growing pains and all... but it is annoying when I can't even find 2-row, cascade, or US-05. I want my old AHB shop back.

On the plus side, I heard 3 different workers being extra helpful with other customers just in the few minutes it took me to go in and buy a couple ounces of hops.




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[nestler]

I have been shopping at AHS since 2007 when I moved to Austin (they are my LHBS). For the most part they have been great: helpful staff and a great selection of ingredients and equipment.

I only go there a couple of times a year. The most recent time I went there they were out of extra pale LME. I can understand being out of various varieties of hops periodically (especially the proprietary ones like Simcoe) but it is fairly shocking to me that any homebrew store would run out of extra pale LME. They were also out of liquid line. The previous poster said that they were out of two row.

I am not sure what is going on, but it is not a good thing that they have had so many stocking problems recently on extremely basic items. I also don't like their recent move to bundling dry yeast on all kits. So far my response has been to not use their kits (I have been bringing in my own recipes to avoid this issue).

Hopefully the stocking issues will be corrected in the near future. Maybe the dry yeast in kits change too (at least for in store customers if this is just about liquid yeast not surviving in shipped orders in hot months).

 

[kerklein2]

I thought about starting my own thread on this, but decided this was a better place.

I've shopped at AHS for 5 years now. Only good things to say about them (well, I could say a few things, but won't) until the past 6 months or so. This place has seriously gone downhill. They are constantly out of stock of half their inventory. Most recent example was last week I needed some Simcoe, Citra, and nylon hop bags to dry hop my pale ale. Now, I understand those are popular hops, but every other major online shop has them in stock. But the nylon bags? Seriously? Another time recently they were out of some pilsner base malt. Base Malt.

It's almost depressing to go in there now with the shelves bare and empty. I asked an employee recently what was up (the employees, by the way, are still top notch), and he looked me in the eye and told me they were still catching up from Christmas. In April.

I don't know what's going on, but one can only assume Forrest's newest endeavor, Rogness Brewing, is the culprit. I don't believe they are doing so well, and his attention and financials are probably focused on Rogness. Hopefully this isn't the case and there is some other explanation. It doesn't make sense to bring down one successful business to help save another.

Sorry if this is too harsh, it's just been really frustrating lately and a lot of my business has gone to online shops as a result.

 

[gometz]

Crap, after all these stories I'm a bit worried. I am counting on them having the style of 22 oz bottles I like and am planning to buy 3 cases this coming week while I'm in Austin. I hope they still have those in stock.

 

[kerklein2]

Crap, after all these stories I'm a bit worried. I am counting on them having the style of 22 oz bottles I like and am planning to buy 3 cases this coming week while I'm in Austin. I hope they still have those in stock.

If they have them in stock now, just order them for store pickup.

 

[Michael311]

I was finally able to scrounge several items that it allowed me to add to the cart but when I went to check out it said "One or more of the items in your cart is out of stock" or something to that effect. But the stupid thing wouldn't tell me which item/items it was. After several attempts at removing things one by one and getting the same message, I gave up.
The fact that in the last month I've purchased:
(2) 10 gal batches worth of ingredients (Morebeer)
$500 worth of Kegging parts (Keg Connection and Morebeer)
$200+ of miscellaneous tubing/replacement brewing parts/etc..
All while having a pretty much useless $200 gift certificate (since Dec.) to AHB is really starting to piss me off

Same thing happened to me with the "one or more items" error. I'm a new brewer but I'm buying LOTS of equipment and ingredients. I stopped buying from Austin because of the website issues. I buy from MoreBeer now.

 

[TXjayhawk]

Well, not to pile on to AHS.

I was just recently browsing seeing what I want to brew next (06/04/14) and noticed almost every beer I was interested in is listed as out of stock. What is going on?

I placed an order on the Thursday before Memorial Day and put a note for them to not ship until after the holiday. Well, they shipped that Friday....so my order (and yeast) sat in a warm UPS warehouse over the 3 day weekend. I called them and they apologized and said the yeast should still be good. So I made a starter, and he was right...the yeast was still good. In fact, when I pitched the starter, fermentation took off within a few hours and finished in a couple days.

So no harm, but irritating they didn't pay attention to my note in the order.

And yes, like others, I'm irritated they lost my order history. In fact, I have trouble logging in to AHS now as it seems to not remember my password.

Sad to see AHS, my favorite place for ingredients/kits, not be as good as they once were.

 

[Austin_]

Thumbs down for AHB.

I've ordered from AHB over 50 times since 2008. Never had a problem until this week, and it really wouldn't have been a problem if their customer service people weren't inept. I ordered a couple bucket fermenters. The description stated that the bucket came with a drilled hole for a universal stopper and that the universal stopper was included. I had ordered the same thing last fall with no issues.

I get the buckets in and everything is there, but the bucket is not punched for the large stopper that is included. Instead it is a small hole with a grommet to fit an airlock. No biggie. I email customer support and tell them they sent me the wrong lids and that I'd like the lids that were shown to come with the bucket. The customer service rep emails me back saying he can't because they are out and that my bucket lid will still work, so all is good. It's not all good though, because I like the larger holes in the tops so I can take wine thief samples without having to take the lid off. There was a reason I paid a little more for a bucket from AHB than from some other on-line retailers.

I ask for a return label so I can return the fermenters since it wasn't what I ordered and they weren't going to exchange the lid. They email me back stating they can't issue a return label because it's not defective or an error on their part. They once again try and tell me that the lid will work for me. I email back saying it is indeed an error on their part as they shipped me the wrong item.

I get an email back from another CS rep telling me their supplier sent them the wrong stuff (why they sent the wrong stuff out to customers, I don't know) and they will issue me a $0.99 coupon for the universal stopper, but won't accept a return on the fermenters.

Now I know this is just a bucket with a hole we're talking about, but it's the principle of the matter. Their site says one thing and they ship me another, and then they refuse to reimburse me for returning the item. Needless to say, I will not be ordering from them again. I couldn't get over them telling me they sent the wrong thing, yet telling me it will still work for what I need. No it won't, AHB. If you can fit a wine thief through the grommet hole, you're a damn magician.

 

[Matterpro]

Ugh.

Just ugh.

I live 5 minutes from AHS, drop on a couple times a month at least to window shop and chat up the awesome guys that work there if not to pick up some yeast, hops and maybe a specialty grain or two.

The store is going massively downhill. Empty shelves, hardly any items in stock.. heck, I needed camlock fittings a few months ago and they are STILL not in stock. I try to support local (hey, this is Austin and that's kinda our thing) but if something's not in stock I am forced to buy online. And lately I've had to get everything from somewhere else. It's not a matter of planning 2 weeks ahead for a brew day. Things have been out of stock for months. You can't plan that far ahead. (Or at least I can't)

I buy in bulk except for specialty grains and yeast. And I just had to do my latest order online for those items as AHS was out of all but one of the grains. And it sucks because shipping was more than the cost of the grains!

I really hope that they figure out how to run Rogness and the shop soon. Or someone steps up and opens a competing store. They'd clean up and be in profit pretty quickly if they can do the basic requirement of keeping items stocked or ordering in a timely manner for customers when they're out.

Again, all the guys that work there are awesome. I need to make that clear. But they work in an empty store.

 

[hunter_le five]

I used to order from AHS all the time, and even made the trip up there every once in a while. The staff was always friendly and helpful. Lately though it does seem to be going downhill, as others have noted. They can't seem to keep anything in stock. Order processing time has slowed down, and flat rate shipping is gone. I don't care much for the new website either, but that's minor compared to the stocking issue.

Consequently I haven't ordered from them in a while. I really hope they get their $#!t together soon, as it used to be a great HBS.

 

[USMCBrewer]

AHS is my LHBS. Well, at least they used to be my LHBS. I've never ordered ingredients from anywhere else, and being that they are less than 10 minutes away, I never saw the need to order from anywhere else. However, every time I've been in during the last 6 to 8 months the store is seriously going downhill. The staff continues to be great, as they have been since I started going in, however, the store doesn't have nearly the supplies that they had just a year ago. Their grain supplies are severely depleted, the shelves are more than half empty. There was no DME anywhere to be found, and there was only one kind of LME. The shelves have been so empty for so long that they have taken out shelves and now there is just empty space. It looked like they still had a decent supply of hops and yeasts, but I just can't understand why everything else is so bad. I love having AHS so close and love going in to BS with the staff, but if I can't get the ingredients that I need, then I'm going to take my orders elsewhere. Sorry AHS, but y'all need to get on the ball.

 

[BigJack]

I was thinking of ordering an all grain kit on line. I was debating a few different styles. I looked at 10 recipes, all were out of stock.

I used to love AHS. I think I'm done with them. Sad.

 

[Curtis2010]

Damn shame, I've been a loyal AHS customer for years. I was in Texas recently and noticed a number of beers on the shelf at Specs by Rogness (sp?). Is this the other business the owner has started?

 

[user 30639]

Damn shame, I've been a loyal AHS customer for years. I was in Texas recently and noticed a number of beers on the shelf at Specs by Rogness (sp?). Is this the other business the owner has started?

Yes, Rogness and AHS are owned by the same person.

I will echo what a lot of people are saying. I used AHS exclusively for about about 3 years since I lived in a town without a LHBS. They always had what I needed and since I lived a couple hours away, my order arrived the day after shipping. Now, it seems like nothing is in stock and the it sucks losing my order history from them. I've got a LHBS now, and I placed an order with MoreBeer for the first time tonight. Sorry, AHS. I'll still check the site, but you won't be my first choice anymore.

 

[SouthernYankee]

Damn shame, I've been a loyal AHS customer for years. I was in Texas recently and noticed a number of beers on the shelf at Specs by Rogness (sp?). Is this the other business the owner has started?

Yes, hes the owner of both.

 

[zach976]

Good news for home brewers in Austin. A new homebrew store is opening on south congress this month. Soco Homebrew. I'm south of Austin, so no more trips to north Austin for supplies.


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[Curtis2010]

Competition is usually a good thing. Hoefully it puts some pressure on AHS to get their act together again...and hopefully create two great HBS shops for Austin.

 

[Curtis2010]

TO AHS (who used to reply here...)

A suggestion: post an open letter about what is really going on at AHS (not more obviously lame excuses about supplier/inventory issues). It would be best for the owner to man up and do this. There are a lot of loyal AHS customers here. You may find they rally to your support if you are honest with them.

 

[zach976]

I hope AHS steps up their game too. If not, a lot of people will be shopping elsewhere. It was once a great store and the employees have always been great. When I went to get supplies last month they were out of a lot of stuff. Lots of empty shelves.


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[poptarts]

Yea, they use to be my go to online store but i haven't ordered from them my past 10 or so orders and haven't even tried to fill out a cart on there the past 5 times or so. Their prices were competitive and shipping was pretty fast but it makes it hard to buy when nothing is for sale. That and the new website just sucks, it may look pretty but it is extremely nonfunctional.

 

[Clweed]

Amazing changes ahead!
Lets hope so

 

[Curtis2010]

Well, the recent past changes have been pretty "Amazing". I'm still amazed someone would trash one of the most popular HBS businesses in the country. Lets hope future changes are amazingly positive.

 

[dford]

AHS brought this on themselves. They were my go to homebrew shop until they suddenly started being out of a lot of supplies. The website change came at the most inopportune time. No one likes change, having the order history lost and being out of supplies. Even local shoppers said the shelves were empty. I'm hoping they get it turned around in the future but for now I will wait and see before I order again.

 

[Zuljin]

Yall have bad luck. I've ordered recently and it was fine.

 

[Rhumbline]

I've enjoyed the kits I've made through them, I hope they've ironed out their problems. I just checked and they seem to be stocked up, but I've seen this before with them and it didn't last.

I'm waiting to see if they can maintain things and I'm concerned that they may have just learned to conceal the fact that things are out of stock until after I've placed my order.

I'm not writing them off yet, but I've become skeptical.

 

[Mindsculptor]

Been in the Austin area a couple months now and finally managed to make it out to AHS two weeks back. I only ended up buying a book, largely because I was an idiot and forgot my phone, so no checking my bank account. I wanted to get an equipment kit, but what held me back was the lack of a pot with a spigot since there's no way I'm going to attempt to move anything except in a fermenter with a firmly sealed lid. Apparently they make such pots on site and they didn't have the spigots, so I held off. I'm still going to get the equipment kit and Dutch Castle Magic extract kit when I go there again, probably today. The latter, by the way, wasn't available in any form on their website two weeks ago and as of 10 minutes ago all they don't have is the DEX and DMM options.

I'm still going to have to order the pot from another place, probably Spike, but that was always my plan when I was in Michigan and AIH was within walking distance, so I don't see a reason to cry about it now that AHS is a 20 minute drive away (on a good day, **** I-35 traffic).

Btw, I have to echo the excellent customer service. The people there gave me space until it was obvious I was actually looking to buy something rather than just browsing, and the gentleman not only recommended the book I eventually ended up buying, but also answered the questions I had without ever hedging around the fact that they're having supply problems. He also wasn't pushy, which I absolutely hate.

EDIT: Went in today and got what I planned. Adam filled my order, answered the questions I had, and helped carry everything out to my truck. I logged back in to update this and saw a message from Adam stating that he had forgotten to bag the hydrometer and floating thermometer. I was stunned at first, because I know I didn't mention I had an HBT account, but then I remembered what I'd written here and I had basically told him the same thing. So, not a Jedi, but a damned honest dude nonetheless (I wouldn't have noticed those things were missing). I was going to go back and get a plain pot later this week because the equipment kit comes with everything I need to do a seamless transfer, but even were I on the fence I'd go back and buy the pot because that sort of honesty in business should be rewarded.

Btw, Adam informed me that they have a new supplier that's gung-ho about making sure AHS receives what they need. Hops were mostly in stock, excepting a couple of the really popular C hops, but bulk 2 Row was on the floor and there was plenty of DME/LME.