Jay's Brewing Supplies

Homebrew

9790 Center St.
Manassas, Virginia, 20110
United States

(703) 543-2663 | map
jaysbrewing.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.2
Reviews:
4
Ratings:
4
pDev:
6.43%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews.
Photo of tlazaroff
Reviewed by tlazaroff from Virginia

4.16/5  rDev -1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 3
I've been a long-time customer of Jay's since Derek has opened his store in Clifton by the post office. It is kind of tucked away and might be a tad confusing to find, but only for a second until you figure it out.

Once inside, you realize that it's a very small shop, only about a 12x12 room, with a back-room attached. I gave the atmosphere a high rating because when there are other shoppers there everyone becomes very talkative and gets into what the other person is doing, giving out tips and pointers and just generally having a good time talking beer.

The quality of the supplies is exemplary, the yeast is ALWAYS fresh, he has really quick turn-around on yeast, and I have never had a problem with stale or moldy ingredients when buying from here.

The best part of the shop is the service. Derek is always willing to talk technique, ingredients, etc. with his customers and gives each customer his complete undivided attention. There have been times when I was looking for a particular yeast, which was sold out, but he asked what I was making, and recommended another yeast - to my surprise, the beer turned out great! Derek really is the star of the show here.

Selection is good, but not great. He has a lot of ingredients and equipment, though, I wish the selection was a bit more wide. I honestly want to give all my money to him for ingredients/equipment that I need, however, I do sometimes have to order from online merchants to get what I need. It's hard to fault him though, because his space constraints seem quite limiting. He does very well with the space he has.

Prices are reasonable, grain clocks in at only about $.10 higher than you can find online, so I buy it at Jay's if he has it, when you factor in shipping costs, it comes out cheaper. Hops, depending on the variety can be a bit more expensive or not, it's a crap shoot, but overall his prices are reasonable, and what I would expect.

Overall Jay's Brewing Supplies is a great experience, and to boot, it's only 4 miles from me, so that makes me a happy brewer.
Dec 29, 2011
Photo of dedrinker
Reviewed by dedrinker from Kansas

4/5  rDev -4.8%
Considering that this is in the basement of his townhouse, Jay's Brewing Supplies is quite an operation! Jay has everything the casual homebrewer needs, and for the more serious he can order you up any additional items. I was impressed by his being able to fill the order for my recipe with all the basics, and getting my specialty grains cracked was a bonus. He is equipped to take credit cards too! He also does mail order. While I have been to bigger, better equipped shops, they were in industrial parks, and had the original craft brew craze of the early 90's to fuel their sales, while Jay is pulling off a helluva job in his basement!
Oct 31, 2006
Photo of dbit483
Reviewed by dbit483 from Virginia

4.65/5  rDev +10.7%
I started homebrewing about a year ago and being completely inexperienced, I really didn't know what to expect from my first attempt at buying supplies and ingredients. I received a friendly greeting after ringing the bell at his townhouse and went on in. Jay was really great in helping me out as a first time brewer. Even though there were others in the shop he took the time to make sure I had everything I needed and made sure my recipe was acceptable for a first timer. Then he went above and beyond and gave me his card and told me to email him if I had any questions. Well I did have some questions and I received very quick and very friendly responses from him.

Since then I've been brewing on a fairly regular basis (5 or so batches last year) and I have absolutely no complaints. As others have said, Jay is very knowledgable and is always willing to give suggestions, tips, help, etc. Jay also provides a newsletter via email that contains a little info and usually a recipe.

Now that I'm getting the hang of this homebrew thing and I'm starting to try more complex recipes, I have no doubt that Jay's Brewing Supplies will deliver. Anything he doesn't have on hand he'll gladly order and what he does have on hand is always fresh and of great quality.

Overall Jay's is a clean, well organized, and friendly shop to go to. Get over there and start brewing!
Aug 04, 2006
Photo of gbarron
Reviewed by gbarron from Georgia

4/5  rDev -4.8%
Sadly, Jay's Brewing is the last homebrew shop left in the Northern Virginia area. If you don't want to go to Jay's, you'll have to go to the outer DC suburbs in Maryland. I'm not sure why so many people found homebrewing stores so unprofitable in NoVa.

Anyway, we are lucky to have Jay here, not only because he is the last homebrew store, but also because he runs a nice little operation. Jay runs the store out of the basement of his home, which is convienently located in Fairfax right off Rt. 50. His website reveals an extensive selection of homebrew products. On hand, he has everything you would need for a 'basic' brew and then some. If there is something special you need, he can almost always order it for you and have it within a few days. He will also crush the grains for you, mix them up, and have them ready when you get there. Jay is very knowledgeable about homebrewing and will offer up suggestions if you're having a problem. Prices are perfectly reasonable and average for homebrew ingredients. Email or call him with your ingredient request and he'll have it all set up for you to come pick up.

The only downside of Jay's is the hours he keeps. Since he runs this as a part-time operation out of his home, the hours can be inconvienent to the customers. He is generally only open from around 10am to 6pm, Fri- Sun. Check out his website for details on the hours and variation thereupon.
Jan 17, 2006
Jay's Brewing Supplies in Manassas, VA
Place rating: 4.2 out of 5 with 4 ratings