Done with LHBS!!

[joety]

We're getting a Northern Brewer in Milwaukee. It sounds like it will outdo their original location in Minnie. Up to this point, I'd also given up on LHBS and used Midwest Supplies for everything.

 

[JamieT]

Well its a mixed bag for me.. My LHBS is great for most things (ingredients), but high on equipment and generally low on stock.. The staff is great and I always enjoy wasting a lunch hour with those guys... But... I have to say I have placed a few equipment orders with Austin Homebrew and have been EXTREMELY happy with the quick shipping and consistency.. I am close to finishing my "mother of all brew rigs" and I expect to be order many of my ingredients from Austin Homebrew moving forward.. I am lucky enough that standard shipping from them is next day for me..

On the other hand I did make one trip up to the "Conroe Vicinity" to check out that LHBS and was sorely disappointed that I wasted my time.. I found a dusty dank "warehouse" style shop with little semblance of a retail establishment.. I eventually got tired of being passed over time and time again for help finding the most basic of items and left empty handed..

JT

 

[Austinhomebrew]

Well, I am glad, or rather be it a little sad to hear that others have the same issues and gripes. It seems that the very basic principals of running a business are in short supply these days. Professionalism, cleanliness, service with a smile, quality product. These things are getting harder and harder to find.

I noticed several mentioned Austin Home Brew supply. I have checked out their website and it's fantastic. They seem a little pricey but I and apparently others don't mind paying a little extra for quality and service. I plan on ordering one of their clone kits in the near future to try 'em out.

And the flat rate $7.99 shipping for everything.

 

[sjlammer]

I used to support my LHBS "Hennesey" as well, but the combination of prices, and service drove me away. Two of the guys that work there are great, but the one guy is just a pr*ck. You would think he is gods gift to homebrewing the way he talks.

Let me give you an example:

Me: Excuse me sir, Im looking to do water additions, where is the calcium chloride, and ...?
Him: (snotty tone) you don't need to do water additions unless you are entering into competions or something like that
Me: actually I am planning to enter some competitions.
Him: (more snotty) Well the water in this area is fine for brewing and additions are difficult to predict
Me: (trying to kill with kindness) Well, I am a water supply engineer, and I know its not easy, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.
Him: (exasperated) Well you are on your own then. don't blame us if you f*ck it up

I wanted to hit him over the head with a 1/2 keg dip tube at that point. Seriously. do i look like this is my first batch? I just told you that i don't need my grains crushed because i have a mill.

Anyway, now I buy from Ed at brewmasters warehouse. Im sure that the AHS and Midwest are good, but Ed had a special running, and I got great service on my first order, so i've decided to stick with him. In addition, I called him on a sunday morning about a product i had bought, and he picked up and answered my question.

 

[Liquidicem]

You can only support a bad store for so long. Go with one of the quality online vendors.

I guess I'm pretty lucky. Both Northern Brewer and Midwest are less than 20 minutes from my house. Can't go wrong with either.

 

[Scut_Monkey]

You can only support a bad store for so long. Go with one of the quality online vendors.

I guess I'm pretty lucky. Both Northern Brewer and Midwest are less than 20 minutes from my house. Can't go wrong with either.

That would be sweet to have such huge suppliers so close to your place. But the grass is always greener on the other side.

 

[ChshreCat]

I have Homebrew Heaven across town from where I work, so that's nice.

Save the bad LHBS for when you drop your hydrometer on brewday and need a new one, or when you are 2oz short on your priming sugar and just NEED to bottle TONIGHT.

 

[Boru]

Huh, this makes me feel lucky to have a really good LHBS in my neck of the woods. I don't know the guys there super well but they've always been really friendly and answered my questions and helped provide some ideas for hop/specialty grain substitutions in the same price range on the extremely rare occasions they didn't have what I was looking for.

If any of you are in the East Bay area I definitely recommend Oak Barrel for day of needs.

 

[superjunior]

Huh, this makes me feel lucky to have a really good LHBS in my neck of the woods. I don't know the guys there super well but they've always been really friendly and answered my questions and helped provide some ideas for hop/specialty grain substitutions in the same price range on the extremely rare occasions they didn't have what I was looking for.

If any of you are in the East Bay area I definitely recommend Oak Barrel for day of needs.

you do realize this thread is a couple years old, right ?

 

[joety]

The way people get flamed by the old salts around here for not searching or covering topics that have been covered before, you can't blame someone for necroposting.

 

[metaltim]

I'm in the houston boat.. we have very little to choose from for LHBS's.

The one I go to (near 610/59).. they aren't the best.. as someone else mentioned, their equipment prices are very high, but they buy some of these things one at time like the blichmans. their CO2 tank, 5 gal. is $100!

BUT, when i want to brew on the weekend, I can go in on friday, spend $15-$20 on grain, and have what I need to brew. I buy hops in bulk, and generally re-pitch yeast. The staff knows their stuff, and they usually have a beer or two on draft to sip on while shopping.

An online store can't compete with that. AHS is great for big buys, but if you want to spend $18 on grains, that gets hiked up to $25 after shipping, and it takes a day or two, which means planning ahead.

 

[Zamial]

The way people get flamed by the old salts around here for not searching or covering topics that have been covered before, you can't blame someone for necroposting.

I call BS! There is a huge difference between a necro thread that has no real relevance vs. posting in a "What does SWMBO mean?" or a "BB vs. glass" thread.

So, I offer this to aid in the chaos:

 

[joety]

I passed a guy near the zoo interchange this morning who had three zombie bumperstickers on his car and thought "what's that about" and now this.

I agree on the SWMBO thing (though admitedly there are more misleading than real posts if you do search) or even BB vs glass, but I've seen some harsh responses to very legitimate questions just because they were covered before. The search feature on this website tends to put too much weight on the newest posts versus giving you the best matches first.