What would you like to see in a brew shop

[tugger]

A bloke with a long beard.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Please...for the love of beer, let him not be a hipster

 

[manticle]

In Sale?

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

They are everywhere

 

[manticle]

Few and far between in the 'norch at least.

 

[manticle]

So that I'm not a totally off topic contributor:

It does depend a little on your target market and aims. All grain brewers are passionate, regular and usually reasonably knowledgeable customers. They are also a (growing) minority.

I will visit and revisit a shop that has a range of base malt, some well kept fresh liquid yeasts, a range of well stored fresh hops and various kegging accessories.

Add to that friendly staff who either know their products or are willing to help find information when requested, who listen to their clientele, aren't overly pushy and are willing to order stuff they don't carry on request.

A friendly, non elitist attitude to entry level brewers is also appreciated when I see it.

 

[Benn]

aren't overly pushy,
A friendly, non elitist attitude to entry level brewers

Word!

 

[Grainer]

Here you go heres my 2 cents.. A mini glycol recirculating pump system with fans that can fit into the keezer to keep my fonts cold !.. I am in the process of designing one but would prefer to go out and buy the bloody thing !

 

[spog]

Here you go heres my 2 cents.. A mini glycol recirculating pump system with fans that can fit into the keezer to keep my fonts cold !.. I am in the process of designing one but would prefer to go out and buy the bloody thing !

Start a new thread on the design and build,and lets all have a go.

 

[bradsbrew]

Here you go heres my 2 cents.. A mini glycol recirculating pump system with fans that can fit into the keezer to keep my fonts cold !.. I am in the process of designing one but would prefer to go out and buy the bloody thing !

A Tupperware container and a pond pump, sorted.

 

[Grainer]

A Tupperware container and a pond pump, sorted.

So unprofessional.. I want to see stainless bling I can visit alone at night !

 

[bradsbrew]

So unprofessional.. I want to see stainless bling I can visit alone at night !

Wrap it in alfoil.

 

[Lager Bloke]

Hi all,IMO the better shops(not just HBS)all have staff that are knowledgeable on what they sell + offer advice,but if they aren't familiar with something will get more info from somebody who does know about method/product etc.Gas swap/refills for sure.Yeasts and hops stored properly a definite plus.Best of luck with it all Kay.
My 2c worth,Rob

 

[mckenry]

May have been said before but my pet hates are;

1. No full sacks of base malt available on a drop in. (Have to order)
2. Out of date liquid yeasts where the retailer wont restock until all remaining sold
3. Hops and dry yeast on the shelf
4. Back to yeast - Stocks as many farmhouse belgian funky stuff as he/she does 'normal' ales, which gets us back to 2.

So address those and youre a winner in my book.
And do gas bottle refills or at least swap,n,go

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Liquid yeast is always going to be a problem for the smaller HBS

At best they will only have a few brewers among their customers that would want them. The reality is that most brewers who go to HBS are there to buy a tin.

To have a large range of liquid yeast for a small number of customers just isnt worth it, and any decent brewer will only buy it once and re-culture it. Along with the fact that most brewers only really use a few different yeast and not the whole range available.

I would stock a few basic popular liquids but even then I would expect them to sit for a while in the fridge

And to be honest, it would work out cheaper for the cust to buy on-line direct and get it mailed than get it from a shop that still has to put a margin on it.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

One thing I would do is to offer kit packs similar to what Grumpy's did years ago.

They where designed to go with a hopped tin and you boiled/steeped the pack of grains and malts. Dead simple and made great beer. Got many a brewer into AG beck then.

The trick is putting in the time to develop the packs and getting them right

 

[antiphile]

Here's a really off-the-wall idea, and it probably has plenty of legal implications too. But just as a "thinking out loud" exercise...

Many of the customers that use liquid yeasts are (or become) quite adept at handling them, propgating them etc.

I wonder if a smaller LHBS could pick, say, half a dozen or a dozen of the most popular liquid yeasts and set up a yeast bank. Make a starter out of each and refridgerate and/or freeze the crop into smaller vials. That could alleviate the storage problem somewhat. Then, they could sell the vials directly to people who have the smarts to make their own starter, or for a few bucks more and with 48 hours or more notice, create a new starter ready for pitching.

Of course it would require an investment in money and time, and there are obviously many potential pitfalls,

Then again, maybe I just need a few more beers and a good lie down.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

I cant see any real legal issues with that idea, as long as you didnt try and flog it as the original packaged product in original packaging.

Be no different to buying a sack of roast barley and making up 1kg packs to sell

As long as you where open and transparent about what you are doing it should be fine.

Good idea though

 

[sstacey]

Hi Kay,
Thanks for asking. Not many brewshop owners have.

In AU there hasn't really been any brewshop that has championed cask conditioned ales. Not like UK Brewing in the USA or other places in the UK. If I were establishing a brewing business I would look for a niche and this really seems the be a wide opening. Some other shops do sell some components but almost none provide an extensive range or show what they can supply on their websites. I have had to ring and ask and beat down doors to get cask supplies and most don't ring back...

Yet, cask conditioned ales (google CAMRA real ale) is a very commonly discussed topic on this site yet is VERY underserviced in Australia.

I am sure more brewers would be convinced to give cask conditioned ales (or even lagers) a go if a local brewshop took it seriously and championed it locally.

All the best with the business.

 

[djsmi4]

Hi Kay,

I bought (from memory) a can of Black Rock apple cider from you back in December. I'll be back soon for some English Bitter (Coopers or another brand) and advice on what kind of brew enhancer to go with it. I'm keen to do my next brew day when I've got some free time

Looking forward to that EOI sausage sizzle I'd signed up for, once you get the numbers.

Cheers

Dave