Homebrew Supply Chain

I also wanna start buying my grain in bulk. That's next on my list. As for supply chain, I order my grain from Northern Brewer, and most of my hops from Yakima. It's just too damn convenient anymore. My LHBS that I used to frequent all the time is now 45 minutes away since we moved.

I did just order a bunch of high alpha hops from Yakima that arrived today (HBC 630, Vic Secret and Equanot) since my long term brewing schedule is going to consist of lots of hoppy brews! So, yea. I try to buy my hops based on my long term brewing schedule. I harvest yeast, so I keep a set amount of favorites in the fridge that I prop up before batches. Grain... that's the only thing right now that I don't buy (or store) in bulk, so I need to get on that. A large bag of pilsner or 2-row would save me a lot of money in the long run, I just need to figure out somewhere to store it cool.

 

“Do you buy all your ingredients from a local homebrewing store?”

Unfortunately my LHBS is not that local so I do not shop there often. I usually visit the store when I am in the area for other reasons (which are rare).

“Order online?”

I purchase the majority of my homebrew supplies online. I have been using MoreBeer the past 4-5 years and I have been very happy. The fact they have a warehouse in western PA means I get deliveries very quickly.

“Do you buy ingredients in bulk for to save costs?”

I do with some ingredients:

· Malt: I purchase Pilsner Malt in 55 lb. bags

· Hops: I recently purchased hops in bulk from Yakima Valley – 1 lb. and 8 ounce bags

“Do you plan out your long term brewing schedule, or do you brew based on what your feeling like at the moment?”

I create a brewing schedule per season (fall, winter and spring) and order ingredients for those three seasons. The only beer I brew in the summer is a Saison.

Cheers!

 

I don't have a local homebrew shop, so I typically plan 3-5 batches in advance and order all the ingredients needed from more beer. That way I qualify for free shipping. Their quality is good and their shipping time is typically quick. My local brewery is nice enough to offer up bulk base grain bags at a very good price. So I buy one bag of that and specialty ingredients online and I am pretty well set.

To get some different hops going I signed up for the Yakima Valley Hop Box Subscription. Once a quarter I get 2 oz each of 8 different hops.

Every now and then I'll see a deal for dry yeast on Amazon and stock up on that.

 

Hops I get from Yakima Valley Hops a few times a year. No way I'm going to drop $40 on hops alone for a 5 gallon batch of NEIPA. Occasionally I will buy some random ounces for batches when I don't have a need for bulk.

Grains I have a mill but tend to order them recipe by recipe. I switch between 3 or so base malts that it even makes choosing a single base to keep on hand tough, much less the specialty grains. Though mentally I'm close to buying a sack of Barke Pils.

Yeast I buy as I need, though when given the chance I will reup when I see it on clearance since I overbuild starters and pitch multiple generations as it is.

Other than the hops I order probably 95% of my ingredients from one of two NJ based homebrew shops. Moreso one over the other in the past year or so.

 

My LHBS is only 10 min down the road so I buy most from them. I started ordering the varietals of hops I use often from them in bulk to save some $$$. I’ve bought some speciality grain online here and there but I try to stick with the store to support locals as much as possible.

 

Wh

Which brewery sales you bulk grains? There’s so many in my area I’ve never thought to ask.

 

Yes to both. I have no LHBS, but my local brewery lets me tag on their bulk orders. I keep three base malts in stock: Golden Promise, Maris Otter, and European Pilsner. This cuts out a middleman, cost is roughly one half, and freshness guaranteed. My grain mill paid for itself in less than a year. About three times a year I order specialty malts online, things like crystal, Munich, Special B, etc. Hops are twice a year from YVH, once when the domestics are released and once for international. With a Foodsaver I have fresh hops whenever needed and very little waste. Yeast is toughest, I can only order online during winter (and that's tricky). So I harvest (from bottles) and re-use a lot. There's a stir plate whirring often around here. Dry yeast takes care of itself.

While saving some dough and having fresh ingredients is nice, the best return of all is the flexibility to brew whenever I feel like it (typically every 3 weeks). It's rare I don't have what's needed and I brew a diverse group of beers. I have a semi-schedule of about a dozen brews, but still experiment some, getting any special items online. Couldn't recommend any higher to get bulk grains and a mill.

 

I used to buy from LHBS, but they closed about a year ago.
I stocked up enough on their closing sale that |I was able to get through the year, aside from a couple of specialty grains and yeasts.
I just picked up a couple sacks through a local group buy, so I'm good on that, and |I have a bunch of hops stored, so I may need specialty grains.
I have some yeast in the fridge, but |I'm not sure how much viability they have.
Getting a second fridge in a couple weeks, so I'll be planning on stepping up what survives and freezing it down.
May experiment with drying too, but we'll see about that.

 

I Buy bulk hops from Hops Direct, YVH, Farmhouse Brewing Supply, Hop Head Farms, BeerCo. I rarely rarely buy hops at the Homebrew shop.

2 LHBS Stores that are about 30 minutes away. Buy 90% of my grain at one or the other and a decent amount of yeast. I will order random yeast from The Yeast Bay and FermentedNJ (East Coast Yeast).

Fruit Purée from Bierfrucht

Nuts.com for random stuff like freeze dried fruit or nut powder

 

I've only ever used 4 different 'local' stores but I defined 'local' as close-by if I happened to be working or visiting in that city when I needed some supplies. One of them was the Ann Arbor location of Adventures in Homebrewing where I received the best service of any store that I've ever visited. They're set up to pick-and-ship orders as quickly as possible.

 

I buy malt from my LHBS. Sacks of TFGP for base malt in all beers, and pounds of specialty malts. I also buy yeast and miscellaneous stuff from them.

I buy hops in bulk from Yakima.

I try to plan out several batches in advance so that I don't have lots of odds and ends for ingredients laying around, but it doesn't always work out. That's what porters and freezer cleaner IPAs are for.

 

Before Covid, I would buy from my LHBS about 95% of the time. Since last March, they are only open specific hours that don't fit into my schedule, and they do not have online purchasing or shipping.

Since then, I have been buying most stuff from More Beer.

I still go to my LHBS if I can free up time on a Saturday morning, but that is normally when I can fit brewing in.

 

Hub City Brewing does. They host our homebrew club meetings there, too, so I guess that might be how it started. Maybe start with the brewery that's *most friendly to homebrewers* and see what they say?

 

I'll second Adventures in Homebrewing. I lived in Lansing for several years, and I used to drive there for some supplies in addition to a local place that was nearby. Now I order 90% of my grains and other ingredients from them online. They ship fast, and I've never had an issue with quality. To answer the original question. One of the best purchases I made was a grain mill. My BH efficiency increased dramatically and I save money buying in bulk. I buy 55 lb bags of base malt as needed and try to keep the specialty grains I use regularly (Munich, wheat, Crystal 20/40/120, biscuit, etc.) on hand. I'll normally purchase everything I need for 4-5 batches from AiH to take advantage of free shipping.

 

I’m not unlike many others here with regard to this question.

Most all hops I buy online, primarily from Hops Direct (although based on the responses here, I should maybe check out YVH). I buy by the pound and vacuum pack using a Foodsaver. Hops will keep for a remarkably long time when vacuum packed and kept in a freezer.

Base Grain I buy in bulk from my LHBS. I store the grain in a plastic bucket with a gamma-seal lid. Specialty malts also from the LHBS.

I also by yeast from the LHBS. For simplicity I’ve gone with dry yeast for the last few years. It keeps for quite a long time in the fridge.

For a quite a while I purchased RO water from a local grocery, which I would treat as necessary. With COVID, I started using my tap water and treating with Camden tablets to remove chlorine and acid to hit my target mash pH. My water has lots of temporary hardness, but otherwise the relevant ion profile is quite good for brewing. I will continue doing this in the future, as it is easier and I do not notice any difference due to the change in water source.

Cheers!

 

I, like most here, have been buying hops from YVH. Sometimes in bulk, but in my order a couple weeks ago, I opted to get 4 2oz bags instead of an 8oz bag of some non-IPA type varieties where I might only use a couple oz at a time. The price for an 8oz bag was $7.75 but only $8 for the 4 smaller bags on Hallertau, for example.
Unlike most here, I have been getting most of my grain from Midwest. Their prices are the cheapest I’ve seen, but you typically have to hit a high threshold for free shipping. Once or twice a year, they’ll lower that to $40-$50. Sacks don’t count but it seems like you can order as much by the pound as you want and still ship free. I think I’ve ordered like 80lbs of various base before.
Morebeer usually gets any and all other orders or grain Midwest doesn’t have.

 

Tri- Hop brewery host our club meetings. Never thought to ask them lol

 

Similar to lots of others - I buy hops by the pound a couple times a year from YVH or HopsDirect.

I'm blessed that my neighbors own the LHBS that's 5 minutes away. I buy milled grains from them by recipe, plus any other supplies (caps, etc.) and the odd ounce or two of hops that I don't want in bulk.