Did Northern Brewer Purchase Austin Homebrew AND/OR Adventures in Brewing?

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I just called the Ann Arbor store. They close at 6:00 today, and then are moving everything to "another location". Guy on the phone wasn't allowed to tell me anything about where, why, or any of that. The website will remain open, they'll still honor gift cards, rewards program, all that... But the local store is gone after today.
 
I used to work at Austin Homebrew Supply back in 1993-1994. Dave Bone owned it.
I worked with Eric and Shawn. We played great music. And I figured out it was good to mop twice a day with lots of plain hot water. No need to fuss about chemicals… just get a good mechanical cleaning!
We had great customers. Steve and that lawyer guy who was proud of his Cole Porter and is now a judge in… Oregon?
The 50% of ingredients for employees really helped me crank up my experience so I could brew professionally with confidence.
Other customers included Chip McElroy and Brian Peters of Live Oak and ABJB and Jason Davis from Celis, Waterloo, The Lab and now Freetail.
And so many more.
I know it’s not terribly relevant, but I saw AHS and went on a nostalgic trip!
Joe Barfield
Unrecoverable celiac :-(
Castelo Branco Cider
Portugal
 
matt_m said:
... real estate listing ...
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dendrophobe said:
I just called the Ann Arbor store.
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to both of you for doing some research that can't be hidden behind NDAs.

Back in January, I saw that there were some new-ish MI business entities with agents in MN. Nothing absolutely conclusive. Again, there are some thing that can not be fully hidden by NDAs.
 
I have to say, I'm just sick about this. I got my first beginner brewing kit, a number of kits, my first kegging setup etc from AIH. I kind of moved beyond them for equipment but used them a lot for grain, some for yeast and a little for hops. I was just in there a few weeks ago to pick up a few odds and ends. As just another mail order company, they'd be very low on my list.

A few years ago we were considering moving to another metro area. As part of a weekend checking the area out, I checked out the LHBSs in the area and thought I was really lucky to have something like AIH so close.
 
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I just went by Austin Homebrew today and they said they are closing down and everything is getting shipped out of state on Monday. They said the website would remain online and probably still use the name Austin Homebrew Supply, but nothing would be shipped out of Texas.

I was surprised, but I live off of SoCo and I've got SoCo Homebrew real close by. I only drove up to AHS to check it out. RIP.
 
Well, this sucks. So NB is buying out both AHS and AiH? I've bought a lot from AiH. I took advantage of their rewards program when I bought my Top Tier (now no longer made :( ).

I believe Chip Walton still has an account here (I did the "@" thing, but couldn't get his username to come up). Maybe he can share more info. NB was THE store for me before AB/InBev bought and ruined them. I had high hopes when AB sold off Northern to another company. Here lately, they seem to be more like the old Northern I remember and I have bought a few items from them since then. Chip has also returned to working there I think, so I took that as a good sign.

I've been buying more from Williams and More Beer the past couple of years.
 
After reading several of these post yesterday I just called Austin Homebrew and asked if they had been sold. I was informed the sale was true but internet business would continue as normal, would not comment on retail sales. yet to be seen.
 
I did download a few recipe sheets from AiH in case they completely shut down and noticed a lot of them were AHS recipe sheets. I did the same thing with Northern when Chris Farley first sold them as I thought the "free recipe downloads" would be gone with the new owner.

I went ahead and emailed AiH about the Northern acquisition to see what they say. I don't expect a reply back, but figured I'd give it a try. Personally, I don't mind Northern buying either or both of them out (them better than InBev). I like all three stores, but if people are going to lose their jobs, that might be a different story.
 
My local homebrew supply store in Wilmington, NC just closed. I guess they weren't profitable. Now I will have to shop online at NB or AIH.
 
Ron O said:
My local homebrew supply store in Wilmington, NC just closed. I guess they weren't profitable. Now I will have to shop online at NB or AIH.
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Don't rule out others. More Beer has been my go to the past couple of years but I like Williams alot too. I got all my Duotight/EVA Barrier gas/beer line stuff from them. They usually have a lot of specials too. Williams is in Cali, but my last two orders I've received within a week and I'm in east Tenn.

Then there's places like Brewhardware (Bobby M) and NorCal (Jaybird) since those owners are regulars here. They have or can make specialty items for your brewery that the others can't get or have. All's not lost my friend.
 
Yesfan said:
Don't rule out others.
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... and let's see if HomebrewTalk can 'crowd source' the internet's best list of regional, local, and online stores in 2022.

For those near the "North Coast", ritebrew is worth a look. With generally [1] next day delivery to a wide area of the "North Coast" (including the Twin Cities 🤔), one can (generally) order ingredients on Monday and brew on the next weekend.

[1] Subject to availability of working delivery trucks :(. YMMV. IANAL. ...
 
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BrewnWKopperKat said:
... and let's see if HomebrewTalk can 'crowd source' the internet's best list of regional local and online stores in 2022.

For those near the "North Coast", ritebrew is worth a look. With generally [1] next day delivery to a wide area of the "North Coast" (including the Twin Cities 🤔), one can (generally) order ingredients on Monday and brew on the next weekend.

[1] Subject to availability of working delivery trucks :(. YMMV. IANAL. ...
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Closest store in my area is Beverage World. There an hour out and I doubt they ship anything since they're mostly a beer store than homebrew store.
 
Ron O said:
My local homebrew supply store in Wilmington, NC just closed. I guess they weren't profitable. Now I will have to shop online at NB or AIH.
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Please do not do that. :no:
Northern Brewer is terrible for our hobby, Now that they own AHS and AIH they will destroy that competition just like that did to Midwest before they sold themselves to AB-InBev. Northern Brewer is owned by Blackstreet Capital Holdings, a private equity firm. Northern Brewer is big and and has a lot of stuff available, but they are very high on their pricing.

I just checked on on the price of 3# of Briess DME:
Rite Brew $10.09
Label Peelers $10.92
Atlantic Brew Supply $11.99
Great Fermentations $15.99
More Beer $16.99
AIH and AHB $17.99
Midwest Supply $17.99
Northern Brewer $20.99

Do you see pattern here? $20.99 Are you kidding me?
And these are not the only places, and they don't include any local shops.
At such prices free shipping isn't important if you order much at all.

Take a little time and find some place other to order from. If you're lucky enough to have a local shop to visit, go see if they might not be more competitive than you think. Do it for yourself and your fellow brewers. :mug:
 
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D.B.Moody said:
Please do not do that. :no:
Northern Brewer is terrible for our hobby, Now that they own AHS and AIH they will destroy that competition just like that did to Midwest before they sold themselves to AB-InBev. Northern Brewer is owned by Blackstreet Holdings, a private equity firm. Northern Brewer is big and and has a lot of stuff available, but they are very high on their pricing.

I just checked on on the price of 3# of Briess DME:
Rite Brew $10.09
Label Peelers $10.92
Atlantic Brew Supply $11.99
Great Fermentations $15.99
More Beer $16.99
AIH and AHB $17.99
Midwest Supply $17.99
Northern Brewer $20.99

Do you see pattern here? $20.99 Are you kidding me?
And these are not the only place, and they don't include any local shops.
At such prices free shipping isn't important if you order much at all.

Take a little time and find some place other to order from. If you're lucky enough to have a local shop to visit, go see if they might not be more competitive than you think. Do it for yourself and your fellow brewers. :mug:
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Williams Brewing has 3lb of DME at $14.99. It's Pilsen malt from Briess as well. I saved $20 getting my Fermzilla All Rounder from Williams vs More Beer. I've bought a few items from Rite. I'll have to pay them another visit.
 
Ron O said:
My local homebrew supply store in Wilmington, NC just closed. I guess they weren't profitable. Now I will have to shop online at NB or AIH.
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I usually buy a lot of stuff from Atlantic Brew Supply in Raleigh. They have good prices and fast shipping. Since you’re in NC you’d probably get your order in a day. I’m in extreme rural Colorado and don’t have a LHBS, let alone any other retail stores close. All my brewing purchases are online… usually with whoever has what I need or the lowest price. I’m not particularly loyal to any one company. I’ve done business with nearly all the online companies listed in this thread.
PS I’ll be in Wilmington in June.
 
Yesfan said:
Williams Brewing has 3lb of DME at $14.99. It's Pilsen malt from Briess as well. I saved $20 getting my Fermzilla All Rounder from Williams vs More Beer. I've bought a few items from Rite. I'll have to pay them another visit.
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Yesfan, If you are still in Cleveland.... The Vine n Hop in Medina, by way of comparison has Briess DME $12.99 for 3# Maybe they are closer to you than Beverage World.... they do ship also
 
camonick said:
I usually buy a lot of stuff from Atlantic Brew Supply in Raleigh. They have good prices and fast shipping. Since you’re in NC you’d probably get your order in a day. I’m in extreme rural Colorado and don’t have a LHBS, let alone any other retail stores close. All my brewing purchases are online… usually with whoever has what I need or the lowest price. I’m not particularly loyal to any one company. I’ve done business with nearly all the online companies listed in this thread.
PS I’ll be in Wilmington in June.
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Thanks for the recommendation. Now that you mention it I remember buying kits from Atlantic Brewery years ago when I lived in Raleigh.

BTW, there are many good breweries in Wilmington.
 
doogster said:
Yesfan, If you are still in Cleveland.... The Vine n Hop in Medina, by way of comparison has Briess DME $12.99 for 3# Maybe they are closer to you than Beverage World.... they do ship also
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I live in Tennessee brother, but thanks for the suggestion. I'll consider them since you said they ship. Appreciate it!
 
doogster said:
The Vine n Hop in Medina, by way of comparison has Briess DME $12.99 for 3#
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But they are currently out of stock on Briess Golden Light which they price at $14.99, I did not specify that it was the Golden light that i checked the prices on. My bad. I was just using that product as an indicator or how bad Northern Brewer's prices are.
 
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My quasi local (1 hr drive) shop ships, Free over $100. Just checked their price on Briess DME, 16.14, maybe not the cheapest but I find their hops well priced. It is always a total cost situation. Now I see they are moving into a larger space so I guess this means the business is growing.

http://www.brewsrq.com
 
Both were bought by Blackstreet Capital which owns Northern Brewer and Midwest supplies. AiH in Ann Arbor is indeed closed and will only be an online entity. Sadly shipping from MN will mean no overnight shipping that I enjoyed from Ann Arbor and no store to wander through with everything under the sun.
 
Missouri Malt in Fenton, Missouri (actually, southwest St Louis area) for malt, hops, yeast and other ingredients including flour for baking! Although I live south of Cincinnati (Listermann and Paradise Brewing) I visit St Louis often enough to stock up on ingredients. I do buy local to fill in holes when I run out. Rarely purchase ingredients online...
 
BrewnWKopperKat said:
... and let's see if HomebrewTalk can 'crowd source' the internet's best list of regional, local, and online stores in 2022.

For those near the "North Coast", ritebrew is worth a look. With generally [1] next day delivery to a wide area of the "North Coast" (including the Twin Cities 🤔), one can (generally) order ingredients on Monday and brew on the next weekend.

[1] Subject to availability of working delivery trucks :(. YMMV. IANAL. ...
Click to expand...


My LHBS also has an online storefront. They have a very healthy supply of ingredients and equipment with very quick turnaround from order to shipping. Hop Craft Supply Co. | Beer & Wine Making Supplies
 
GoodTruble said:
I was pleasantly surprised that my preferred LHBS (I'm lucky to have a few options) seemed to be upgrading yesterday. They added a grainfather section, a duo-tight fittings section, and a new freezer for hops. That was all new in just the last 1-2 months and seem to be welcome additions. (Though they also told me they are mostly phasing out Wyeast in favor of Omega - which I thought was surprising).
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The old hop fridge broke :(
 
For hops, I'm almost exclusively using Yakima Valley Hops these days. The prices are great and shipping is very reasonable (and lightning quick, I have been seeing them arrive in 1-2 days!) The exception would be if I just need a couple ounces of something I'm not sure I'll use again. The only problem is they send great sale emails--our freezer now has more hops than food :D
 
It probably doesn't matter, but I did get a couple of replies from AiH after I emailed them.

Both stores are indeed closed as of 3/25. Online operation only. They're hoping to keep things "running as smoothly as possible while they transition to a new warehouse." I had asked if they were bought out by Northern and if anyone at AiH were going to lose their jobs. I never got an answer to that, but didn't expect one either.

Bummer. AiH is an awesome store. Northern too, as I felt they were going back to their roots after AB/InBev sold them and Chip Walton, assuming, is back working with them. I just bought a few scales from Northern a couple of weeks ago and have been very pleased with them.
 
Locally, I use Midwest Supplies for my brew day supplies (grain, yeast, corn sugar, etc,) as they are about a 10-12 minute drive from home. I haven’t purchased much equipment at all from them or NB (also local to me) as they cost more and don’t necessarily have what I want. I’ve used AIH, William’s, More Beer and Atlantic Brew Supply (grain from ABS, too) for Speidel, my M&B, malt mill, etc.
I wonder — and probably some of you know — how steady are the numbers of home brewers in the USA? Have they significantly increased or decreased In the last 5-10 years? As far as I know (only anecdotally), not everyone and their brother is brewing beer at home. I have to think this affects the number of stores — local & online — that can make it in the marketplace. Are the future suppliers for our hobby gonna be the big boys? It doesn’t strike me as the easiest hobby-oriented business to turn a profit from. I’m speculating with no facts here so I’d like to know what others think.
 
Dancy said:
Locally, I use Midwest Supplies for my brew day supplies (grain, yeast, corn sugar, etc,) as they are about a 10-12 minute drive from home. I haven’t purchased much equipment at all from them or NB (also local to me) as they cost more and don’t necessarily have what I want. I’ve used AIH, William’s, More Beer and Atlantic Brew Supply (grain from ABS, too) for Speidel, my M&B, malt mill, etc.
I wonder — and probably some of you know — how steady are the numbers of home brewers in the USA? Have they significantly increased or decreased In the last 5-10 years? As far as I know (only anecdotally), not everyone and their brother is brewing beer at home. I have to think this affects the number of stores — local & online — that can make it in the marketplace. Are the future suppliers for our hobby gonna be the big boys? It doesn’t strike me as the easiest hobby-oriented business to turn a profit from. I’m speculating with no facts here so I’d like to know what others think.
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I think that's what it is. According to AiH's email replies to me, a decline in homebrewers is part of the reason why they are closing their stores. I didn't brew as much as I wanted in the past two years due to the pandemic (work), so I'm sure that's one variable in the homebrewer decline.
 
Yesfan said:
I didn't brew as much as I wanted in the past two years due to the pandemic (work), so I'm sure that's one variable in the homebrewer decline.
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I brewed a bit more due to being isolated and living alone during the pandemic and I’ve worked at home as well. I’m thinking there could’ve been an increase in home brewing but maybe my assumption is wrong.
 
I went by AHS today to spend the rest of my gift cards. The last day the storefront will be open is tomorrow. Been driving To their store for supplies since 2007. It’s a real shame :(. AHS website will still be active but it is just a front for Northern, as all will ship from their warehouse up north (All left over inventory from AHS will also be packed up and sent to Northerns warehouse ). The building should be vacant by the 31st but they built it and own it so who knows how big of a hurry they are in to get out.
 
Dancy said:
I brewed a bit more due to being isolated and living alone during the pandemic and I’ve worked at home as well. I’m thinking there could’ve been an increase in home brewing but maybe my assumption is wrong.
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Could be. In my case my work load increased and I couldn't make time for a brew day to happen. If I needed anything, I got it online instead of going out to get it. I'm sure people going to Amazon to avoid getting out, probably hurt a lot of local brick and mortar stores. I brewed three beers in 2020-2021. The past two weeks however, I brewed two beers and hoping to do a third this weekend.
 

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