Midwest Supplies

[Nateo]

Ordered a few things from Midwest. One of the items was wrong, so they're shipping out a replacement. They apologized and said I could keep the mis-shipped item. So I got some free stuff, and I'm only slightly inconvenienced. They handled it how I would've, if I were them.

 

[lgilmore]

I use midwest and will continue to use them. I also use Brewer's Wherehouse and hometown brewer. I haven't really had any problem at all with any of them.

 

[Nateo]

In the last few weeks I've ordered from a few different retailers for the first time.

Brewmaster's Warehouse was out of stock on some yeast I needed. Their website said it was in stock, so I ordered it on Friday afternoon. Monday they emailed me to say they were out of stock until the following Friday. I was planning on brewing on Wednesday, so that was annoying. If their website had been up to date I would've ordered from somewhere else. That's probably the worst experience I've had with any of the big online retailers (and is hardly that bad, really).

AHS shipped pretty quickly and everything was correct on the order, and in stock when I ordered, so they've done the best out of the bunch.

 

[Sbeltz]

I just wanted to comment about the customer service iv been experiencing from Midwest supplies. I am in the military and stationed out side of the U.S. so buying and shipping things off line has proven difficult at times. So when I ordered my keg starter kit from Midwest I followed it up with an email to explain the weird address. The next morning I received an email stating that everything is good and a 5% refund on my total purchase for being in the military. I was very impressed because I didn't ask about a discount but I was still taken care of... Very impressive.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

That's not surprising. I've had nothing but good experiences as their customer. They have impressed me on multiple occasions, and will always make sure you're satisfied with your order.

 

[TrainSafe]

Thanks for sharing. all too often people bitch when things go poorly, so it is refreshing to hear positive stories like this.

 

[Goose5]

I've been happy with Midwest on every order. I've also used More Beer with the same result.

 

[ffaoe]

i have nothing negative to say about midwest. i have never had a problem with any of my orders, and they have all arrived within a few days.

 

[Sbeltz]

Yea this is the second time I’ve ordered from them but the first time contacting there customer service. The representative that contacted me back said "In the future it may not be a bad idea to have some dry yeast on hand just in case the liquid yeast is not viable after traveling for days and days. The yeast is quite resilient though, so I don't anticipate you having issues with it, just wanted to suggest it, just in case". Is this something that is a common problem and how do I know if my yeast is bad? Please don’t kill me for asking what may seem like an ignorant question I’ve only brewed once and it didn’t go that well. So I'm a little nervous, but I bought what appears to be good equipment and am more than willing to learn. Thanks for your help.

 

[MriswitH]

I'll have to mirror everyone's thoughts.

I've ordered and had friends order from Midwest and every time has been flawless. Great group of people!

Sbeltz: Thank you for the service you do for our country!

 

[Tiber_Brew]

The representative that contacted me back said "In the future it may not be a bad idea to have some dry yeast on hand just in case the liquid yeast is not viable after traveling for days and days. The yeast is quite resilient though, so I don't anticipate you having issues with it, just wanted to suggest it, just in case".
...How do I know if my yeast is bad?

The MW Supplies rep is absolutely right. Liquid yeast is robust and resilient, but sometimes it can be compromised in shipping to a far away location under harsh conditions. Or it could expire before you have a chance to use it. Having some dry yeast as a backup is a great idea. In fact, I always keep 4-6 packets of various dry yeast on hand just in case.

To answer the second part of your question: the best way to tell if your yeast is viable is to make a yeast starter. You really should be doing this for every batch, and it's a good way to get an idea of how viable the yeast is. If the starter doesn't take at all, then you know you'll either have to brew with dry yeast, or wait until a new shipment of liquid yeast arrives to brew. There are multiple videos on YouTube about how to make yeast starters, and a plethora of threads on HBT to help as well.


Oh, and this:

Sbeltz: Thank you for the service you do for our country!

 

[HB92649]

Yea this is the second time I’ve ordered from them but the first time contacting there customer service. The representative that contacted me back said "In the future it may not be a bad idea to have some dry yeast on hand just in case the liquid yeast is not viable after traveling for days and days. The yeast is quite resilient though, so I don't anticipate you having issues with it, just wanted to suggest it, just in case". Is this something that is a common problem and how do I know if my yeast is bad? Please don’t kill me for asking what may seem like an ignorant question I’ve only brewed once and it didn’t go that well. So I'm a little nervous, but I bought what appears to be good equipment and am more than willing to learn. Thanks for your help.

I order most of my supplies online with the exception of live liquid yeast, which I buy locally. Not only do I avoid the perils of shipping yeast, it turns out one of the major labs is a few miles south of where I live here in CA.

 

[EvilDeadAsh]

That's good to know, I'm glad MWS is lookin out for our troops, and glad you're supplying our troops with good beer Thank you for your service!

 

[Jeepinctbrewer]

Midwest Rocks!!

 

[Sbeltz]

Thanks for all the support. I received my starter kit last Wednesday and when I picked it up both of my carboys were broke. I contacted midwest and just like expected the representative was very quick to respond on how to go about this. I am about to send pictures of the broken glass and order some better bottles and a couple other supplies that I think will come in handy when brewing. I went ahead and brewed and plan on using a single fermenter unless I get the secondary's in time.

I posted some pics of my first brew in the beginners section.

 

[midwestsupplies]

sorry again for the damaged glass. I don't think the post office hates us, but sometimes it feels like it. We will work on getting you some better bottles once we get those pics. It is Justin's first week in CS, so it's a good test for him. Glad to hear that people are brewing everywhere, and glad that we can help that. Happy Brewing! Cheers, Todd J

 

[Sbeltz]

I'm not too worried about the broken bottles at this point. I just sent the pictures to the representative who responded to me. I will keep a look out for a reply with the plan of action. Thank you for your continued custom support Midwest supplies.

 

[kaboom133]

I'll echo that, midwest cs rocks. I order most of what I need from them and though problems are few and far between, they're quick to fix any issue.

 

[Sbeltz]

Got an email back from Midwest here is what it said"Dude, those pictures show me some pretty unacceptable stuff. I am so sorry those got to you in that condition. I'm sending you 2 Better Bottles in their place. Here's a gift certificate for $15 for the delay".... Does this make up for the hassle? I would have to say yes. Thanks again Midwest Supplies and thank you Justin for your quick responses and taking care of the customer...Cheers.

 

[mbauer013]

I live about 3 blocks from MW and 2 miles from another larger HBS I've been to both a number of times, but mostly I go to midwest. Unfailingly, when I enter MW someone asks if I need help finding something, and while I've been there so much I think I could find everything I need blindfolded it's nice to be asked. The other HBS, well you have to fight just to get them to aknowledge your existence.

 

[FlashJT]

I live about 40 miles from MWS. Glad I do, cause it's so nice having such a great company local. Not sure I'd enjoy this hobby nearly as much if they weren't near by. Also, their customer service is indeed top notch. Was just in there Sunday and the guy helping me pick out a kit wine was amazing. He's been doing it 17 years and speaks passionately about it. Unfortunately, it seems like I drop an easy $250 or more every time I'm in there, so at times I do wish they were just a little further away

 

[brewmaster101]

The worst customer service. The worst return policy. The absolute worst on customer service.
If you are ordering on line go with northern brewer, rebel brewer, Austin home brewer. There are too many others to choose from to have to put up with bad service from Midwest brewing supplies.

 

[rjwhite41]

I have always received great customer service and in my limited experience with returns they told me to keep the wrong item and they overnighted me the correct item. Midwest is generally really good about stuff, sorry to hear about your trouble. Bad employee maybe?

 

[Subsailor]

Very sorry to hear of your experience. I have never had a problem with them but I have not had to return anything either.

 

[jesserizzo]

Another good experience with Midwest. I've never had to return anything, but once I did buy a bunch of stuff 2 days before they started a big sale. I called and they gave me the sale price.

 

[inhousebrew]

I live in the area and the only horrible customer service I've ever had is practically everytime I go in there they mess up my grainbill or hops at the checkout counter. One time, those jerks only charged me for one pound when it should have been eleven of basemalt. Another time, it was horrible, they only charged me for two of my four ounces of hops. And then one time, a friend of mine spent so much money they gave him a free glass and a discount on his boil kettle....

Seriously though, they suck at ringing things up and I'm ok with that.

 

[cricky101]

I bought my starter kit there years ago. They forgot to include a DVD that was supposed to go with it. I emailed them and they sent it out express that same day. Had a bunch of other orders there and all went off fine too.

 

[lgilmore]

Hmmm.... you say they suck but provide no details as to what the situation was or how they failed to make it right. I like midwest and have never had a problem with them. Even when I thought I did with my first order, the guy on the phone actually walked me through everything till I found everything. So please tell us what happened because so far, it appears most folks like em.

 

[gizmodog51]

midwest is decent and i have ordered a few kits form them. they sell S.S. wort coolers at a better price than most vendors.....

GD51

 

[brewmaster101]

You ask for details, then I will give them.
1. Placed a $100 order on Sunday. On Monday they had a 10% off sale. They refused to give me the discount AND they refused to cancel my order and let me re order it. That's just rude.
2. The order came it was missing an item. After 30 minutes on the phone each week, they say it was back ordered. That was 3 weeks ago. Each week I call them and they say its on the way, but it never shows up.
3. Rude customer service. This one is subjective, but guess what .... I am the customer so my subjective opinion is the only one that counts.
4. I attempted to redeem a discount coupon from a previously screwed up order and they wouldn't honor it because it was more than 6 months old.

I have nothing to gain by giving my honest opinion. They are not a good company. You can keep posting how "great" they are, but hopefully in the end some brewer will read my real opinion and go to one of the other websites and order and not make the mistake I did.