Connecticut Maltose Express is NOT(?) closing. What LHB shops remain in CT?

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Cameronl

Cameronl

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Maltose Express in Monroe, CT just announced they've lost their lease. Their FB post implies they are not relocating (they haven't responded to any questions about that), nor did they mention the fate of Veracious Brewing next door. This makes me sad. It also made me try to find what HB shops remain in CT. A very old post here is pretty much out of date. I looked at the list of HB shops on the AHA website, and half of them come back with bad web links (they are also an hour or more away from me in Stratford).

So Nutmeggers... who is YOUR LHBS, and what do you think of them? Or am I going to be stuck with mail order?
 
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Cameronl said:
Maltose Express in Monroe, CT just announced they've lost their lease. Their FB post implies they are not relocating (they haven't responded to any questions about that), nor did they mention the fate of Veracious Brewing next door. This makes me sad. It also made me try to find what HB shops remain in CT. A very old post here is pretty much out of date. I looked at the list of HB shops on the AHA website, and half of them come back with bad web links (they are also an hour or more away from me in Stratford).

So Nutmeggers... who is YOUR LHBS, and what do you think of them? Or am I going to be stuck with mail order?
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This is TERRIBLE news...best malt prices anywhere! Going to have to grab some sacks of grain before they close up shop!
 
Wow that sucks, they have been around forever. May be losing my LHBS here in Mass too. It's a 4 store chain with 1 in upstate NY and three here in Mass. The owner who is NY already closed the Cambridge Mass store, the only shop in Boston area, to focus on "NY store and brewery" and said "we are trying to keep the other two stores open, but they will most likely close also.". Guys in my club want to see if they can buy out the local store, but if it falls through, the only stores left in Mass will be a guy who sells out of his garage and a liquor store with a small homebrew section.
 
jdauria said:
Wow that sucks, they have been around forever. May be losing my LHBS here in Mass too. It's a 4 store chain with 1 in upstate NY and three here in Mass. The owner who is NY already closed the Cambridge Mass store, the only shop in Boston area, to focus on "NY store and brewery" and said "we are trying to keep the other two stores open, but they will most likely close also.". Guys in my club want to see if they can buy out the local store, but if it falls through, the only stores left in Mass will be a guy who sells out of his garage and a liquor store with a small homebrew section.
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I know it's out here with the dragons past 128.. but we have Beerology in Northampton (Western Mass.), and I think there is one in Westfield as well.
 
The sad reality is that most of them are in bad shape and on the verge of closing.

Years ago a shop could make it based on the wine and brewing needs of a community.

Today everyone clicks away on their computers trying to shave two bucks off a sack of grain, denying the LHBS enough profit to stay open. Then brewers are sad because they have to close the store down.

The only answer is to buy locally, but that’s just not going to happen. It’s too easy to outcompete them buying online. It costs a lot to keep a business open.
 
jdauria said:
Wow that sucks, they have been around forever. May be losing my LHBS here in Mass too. It's a 4 store chain with 1 in upstate NY and three here in Mass. The owner who is NY already closed the Cambridge Mass store, the only shop in Boston area, to focus on "NY store and brewery" and said "we are trying to keep the other two stores open, but they will most likely close also.". Guys in my club want to see if they can buy out the local store, but if it falls through, the only stores left in Mass will be a guy who sells out of his garage and a liquor store with a small homebrew section.
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Is that Homebrew Emporium? Didn't know they closed down in town. Right now I think the closest store to me is the one in Boylston. My go-to was Strange Brew, but they've been gone a couple years now - just missed the whole COVID boost.
Since then, I haven't gotten a ton of stuff, but I've gone online for most of it, other than a group buy through here.
I had a good experience ordering on line from Jasper's in NH; I still do like the idea of mom & pop shops rather than big ones, plus relatively local is good too.
 
jrgtr42 said:
Is that Homebrew Emporium? Didn't know they closed down in town. Right now I think the closest store to me is the one in Boylston. My go-to was Strange Brew, but they've been gone a couple years now - just missed the whole COVID boost.
Since then, I haven't gotten a ton of stuff, but I've gone online for most of it, other than a group buy through here.
I had a good experience ordering on line from Jasper's in NH; I still do like the idea of mom & pop shops rather than big ones, plus relatively local is good too.
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Yes Homebrew Emporium...not sure if the Cambridge store is actually closed yet, but they did announce it was closing. Weymouth and Boylston are on chopping block but not a done deal yet. Jasper's is good, have ordered from them and it's usually next day delivery. They just have limited grains and yeasts. I like Keystone in PA and Hop Craft Supply in Michigan...both have a lot of stock and ship fast (pre-Covid) and let you order grain in ounces if you need something for a recipe.
 
balrog said:
Beerology is a 45m drive, but what's the one in Westfield?!!?
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Unfortunately both of those are almost 2 hour rides one way from Braintree. I should have been clear, I meant only ones left in Greater Boston area ..but I forgot about Beer & Wine in Danvers, and I guess Independent Brewing in Plymouth has a small homebrew shop too.
 
Ive been trying to get news on this too because im up for a resupply in the next week or so and my other option Epic brewing seems to have gone online only.

Beermeister32 said:
The sad reality is that most of them are in bad shape and on the verge of closing.

Years ago a shop could make it based on the wine and brewing needs of a community.

Today everyone clicks away on their computers trying to shave two bucks off a sack of grain, denying the LHBS enough profit to stay open. Then brewers are sad because they have to close the store down.

The only answer is to buy locally, but that’s just not going to happen. It’s too easy to outcompete them buying online. It costs a lot to keep a business open.
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I dont believe this to be true after what ive seen the last few days trying to find new sources for bulk grain. Either maltose really was undercutting on grain or buying online is a horrible option. I had been getting 50lb sacks from them for $54 but currently they list it for $60(been a few months since i last bought bulk). Even at $60 its way cheaper from maltose than every single place ive seen online. The cost of shipping alone obliterates any savings per pound. The best i can find is northern brewer at $78 a 50lb sack with free shipping but its still 36 cents more per pound than what i've been paying.
 
UPDATE! Maltose is NOT closing! Not completely. They're going to operate out of the back of Veracious, their brewery next door. From a post on the FB page:

Once our wine concentrate kits are sold we will not re-stock them since we are moving to a smaller space in mid-March, in the back of Veracious Brewing.

It's been a little frustrating trying to sus out info from their posts. The never came out and said exactly what they were doing, and weren't answering questions on their FB page. I haven't had a chance to get up there to ask in person.

Anyway, GOOD NEWS!
 
Im a regular at maltose and was just there buying ingredients a couple weeks ago and talked to an unnamed employee about the closing. He had mentioned they were also losing the lease to veracious but not at the same time as the homebrew store and would be downsizing and selling remaining stock out of veracious once the homebrew store closed. Something could have changed in the last couple weeks but the news i got was this was a done deal and both buildings were done sometime in april. The real issue we talked about was how homebrewing in general is dying and sales are down across the board online and retail so there isnt alot of incentive i guess to force the issue on keeping things going. Also getting veracious up took them a couple years and effort from locals to push the town zoning to even let them in. Theres no way they could go through all that in time to move to a new town.

Its really sad because mark and tess went through a ton of effort to get veracious up and these two great people are stalwarts of the homebrewing industry having been in it for decades before a lot of people even knew what homebrewing was.
 
Ugh. That sucks. Their posts in FB have been maddening. I did not know about Veracious closing.
 
So my buddy went to Maltose today, and Mark told him they are moving what they can from Maltose to the back of Veracious for the time being. They need to be out of Maltose by March 31st and Veracious by May 31st. Mark is currently looking at options to move, but if nothing arises, they both are closing. So sad. I was there pouring some home brew on their 31st anniversary, and it was fun, but sad.
 
So, getting back to the original question, what's the nearest decent LHBS now? Maltose is where I've always picked up all my supplies too. Unless they can find a new location, I'm going to need a new LHBS too.
 
I'm very new to the hobby so I don't know if they are any good or not but there is a Homebrew shop in East Hartford and One in Willimantic. The one in Willimantic is called Zok's Homebrew, I don't remember what the East Hartford one is called. Both are a bit of a ride for you though. So far Zok's seems good.
 
Cameronl said:
Maltose Express in Monroe, CT just announced they've lost their lease. Their FB post implies they are not relocating (they haven't responded to any questions about that), nor did they mention the fate of Veracious Brewing next door. This makes me sad. It also made me try to find what HB shops remain in CT. A very old post here is pretty much out of date. I looked at the list of HB shops on the AHA website, and half of them come back with bad web links (they are also an hour or more away from me in Stratford).

So Nutmeggers... who is YOUR LHBS, and what do you think of them? Or am I going to be stuck with mail order?
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My new LHBS is my home. I saw the writing on the wall and knew that I needed to do something, so I purchased some Vittles Vault containers and a bunch of smaller containers for specialty grains. I purchased all of my grains, both in 55 lb. sacks and the specialty grains in 5 lb. quantities and store them in my basement brewery. I harvest my yeast, so buying yeast is not a problem. It's been working well since Maltose Express closed in May.
 
i also stocked up on ingredients but the one thing i couldnt was my co2. Ive been scrambling to find a place to get it and for me in newtown theres airgas in brookfield. Thier problem is they are only open from 8-4 m-f which is right smack in the middle of my workday and probably for others as well. It also took me a month to even find out thhey do tank swaps because i called twice and asked about it and they told me no they dont do co2. Then my brother who has a mobile liquor business said they use airgas in bridgport for tank swaps so then i call brookfield a 3rd time and got a different person who said they do in fact do swaps but didnt have any at that time. So i may have found a new source but until i find time to go down im not completely sure yet.
 
nogoer said:
i also stocked up on ingredients but the one thing i couldnt was my co2. Ive been scrambling to find a place to get it and for me in newtown theres airgas in brookfield. Thier problem is they are only open from 8-4 m-f which is right smack in the middle of my workday and probably for others as well. It also took me a month to even find out thhey do tank swaps because i called twice and asked about it and they told me no they dont do co2. Then my brother who has a mobile liquor business said they use airgas in bridgport for tank swaps so then i call brookfield a 3rd time and got a different person who said they do in fact do swaps but didnt have any at that time. So i may have found a new source but until i find time to go down im not completely sure yet.
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Hocon does swaps on Payne Road...been going to them for years...whats the price? I swapped two 10's for 45 I believe
 
nogoer said:
i also stocked up on ingredients but the one thing i couldnt was my co2. Ive been scrambling to find a place to get it and for me in newtown theres airgas in brookfield. Thier problem is they are only open from 8-4 m-f which is right smack in the middle of my workday and probably for others as well. It also took me a month to even find out thhey do tank swaps because i called twice and asked about it and they told me no they dont do co2. Then my brother who has a mobile liquor business said they use airgas in bridgport for tank swaps so then i call brookfield a 3rd time and got a different person who said they do in fact do swaps but didnt have any at that time. So i may have found a new source but until i find time to go down im not completely sure yet.
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I go to Stuart L White Fire Protection,
543 Boston Post Rd
Milford CT 06460-2635
(203) 878-6311

They will FILL your 5 lb tank for $15. If your tank needs recertification, they’ll test it for an additional $18.
 
Sammy86 said:
Hocon does swaps on Payne Road...been going to them for years...whats the price? I swapped two 10's for 45 I believe
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Thanks for the tip. Thier hours are basically the same as airgas but they are actually right down the road from me so probably more conveniant.
ct0166jrg said:
I go to Stuart L White Fire Protection,
543 Boston Post Rd
Milford CT 06460-2635
(203) 878-6311

They will FILL your 5 lb tank for $15. If your tank needs recertification, they’ll test it for an additional $18.
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This would have been great because i worked down in stratford, but now my office closed and im perm remote back at home in newtown
 
Sammy86 said:
Hocon does swaps on Payne Road...been going to them for years...whats the price? I swapped two 10's for 45 I believe
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well i just called them to see if they had tanks and they said they sold thier co2 division to airgas and dont do swaps anymore.
 
Look locally for fire extinguisher services. Around here, W. MA, they'll do CO2 refill, sometimes swap, sometimes recert.
 
Reviving this thread.. I bought a few sacks of grain when Maltose closed last summer and almost out. I'm looking at online purchases but full sacks cost too much in shipping. Nearest store to me is Zoks or Brew & Wine Hobby, both of which are over an hour away. I'm in southeast Fairfield County. Which stores have Maltose regulars been using since the closing for bulk grain?
 
ImperialDrHops said:
Reviving this thread.. I bought a few sacks of grain when Maltose closed last summer and almost out. I'm looking at online purchases but full sacks cost too much in shipping. Nearest store to me is Zoks or Brew & Wine Hobby, both of which are over an hour away. I'm in southeast Fairfield County. Which stores have Maltose regulars been using since the closing for bulk grain?
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Delta Brewing Systems...free shipping on sacks of grain. Also, 40 LBS from Morebeer for everything else.
 
Sammy86 said:
Delta Brewing Systems...free shipping on sacks of grain. Also, 40 LBS from Morebeer for everything else.
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Thank you!! Just ordered a 50lb sack of Briess with free shipping at a reasonable price. Unfortunately a 55lb sack came with flat rate $20 shipping so mileage varies.
 
ImperialDrHops said:
Reviving this thread.. I bought a few sacks of grain when Maltose closed last summer and almost out. I'm looking at online purchases but full sacks cost too much in shipping. Nearest store to me is Zoks or Brew & Wine Hobby, both of which are over an hour away. I'm in southeast Fairfield County. Which stores have Maltose regulars been using since the closing for bulk grain?
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I know it's a long drive, but Brew and Wine Hobby is a great place. Often thin on inventory, so I always call before heading up. Also, you might want to think about joining a Brew Club. I'm in Brew Haven, and we do a bulk grain buy 1x a year. You can usually coordinate with someone about pick up. I got 2 55# sacks for a very good price.
 
Underground Brewers of CT have done two group buys since Maltose closed down. The last one was from Thralls in Windsor, CT. Usually posted on the FB group page.
 
For those of you within a reasonable distance of Brew And Wine Hobby in East Hartford, Please stop ordering online and buy from them if you can. They are literally on the edge of closing. If you're worried they might not have what you need you can call ahead and check. They recognize what they've been doing wrong and are trying to stay afloat but they do need some business. I've never been to Zoks, and the place in Torrington is always closed. Skyline doesn't really do any home brew supplies... they told me it just takes up too much space these days and Phantom Brewing is closed. There is nobody else! I actually thought about doing a small supply out of my garage if all else fails.
BAWH has a Instagram account that they would love for everyone to follow, and they are putting together some pre-order specials that will be announced on there.
 
sallgoodguy said:
For those of you within a reasonable distance of Brew And Wine Hobby in East Hartford, Please stop ordering online and buy from them if you can. They are literally on the edge of closing. If you're worried they might not have what you need you can call ahead and check. They recognize what they've been doing wrong and are trying to stay afloat but they do need some business. I've never been to Zoks, and the place in Torrington is always closed. Skyline doesn't really do any home brew supplies... they told me it just takes up too much space these days and Phantom Brewing is closed. There is nobody else! I actually thought about doing a small supply out of my garage if all else fails.
BAWH has a Instagram account that they would love for everyone to follow, and they are putting together some pre-order specials that will be announced on there.
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Awesome guys! I frequent them when I can. I always call ahead though, because their stock is so low, and I've driven 30 min to get there to find out they don't have what I need. They do a group brew day the day after Thanksgiving. Come if you can!
 
That really sucks. Thanks for the note. I haven’t been brewing as much with so many decent breweries around, but I need to stop in and see if they are still surviving. Maybe buy a few sacks.
 
wepeeler said:
Awesome guys! I frequent them when I can. I always call ahead though, because their stock is so low, and I've driven 30 min to get there to find out they don't have what I need.
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Yes, I always call ahead, especially if I am looking for yeast or a full sack of malt.
 
Another former Maltose Express customer here in Fairfield CT with the same need for giant heaps o' grain. I've bought at least one sack from an Ace hardware store near Mamaroneck (can't recall the name) which has some brewing stuff in the basement. However they are kind of surly and you really need to check the dates on any consumables you buy there.

If anyone's up for a bulk buy, count me in. I was even thinking of calling up some of the local breweries (Two Roads, Spacecat, etc.) to see if they might let me buy a spare sack or two just out of brewerly love since I'm sure it won't do much for their bottom line.
 
Sauls said:
Brew & Wine Hobby is the East Hartford store. Home
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...aaaaaand closed.
We are looking to make some fundamental changes to re-open in the near future.

Wishful thinking? I had not had a chance to get there to check them out. Frankly, it's too far for me to even call them my local homebrew store.
 
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