It’s been coming for awhile: the owner of the property here in Bend that houses The Brew Shop and the Platypus Pub is planning to raze the building to put in a drive-thru coffee stand and retail space. The Brew Shop is the region’s sole homebrew supply store, and unfortunately the owners have been unable to find a new location (so far). The Platypus is already closed, and the lease on the building expires at the end of the month, so after the 31st there will be no homebrew store in Bend.

(I don’t know if the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic accelerated the closure.)

Central Oregon has a thriving, active homebrew community, and The Brew Shop has been here in various forms since the 1990s. So this begs the question, where is the community going to gets its homebrew supplies? So I thought I’d put together a list of ideas and resources to help keep the homebrewers active while we wait for The Brew Shop to reopen (if/when it does).

And of course, with current closures and social distancing in full effect due to the pandemic, you may not be able to follow up with these yet. At the very least, call ahead.

Malt and Grain

This is a big one, particularly when it comes to specialty grains. Central Oregon is fortunate to have its very own maltster, Mecca Grade Estate Malt, located in Madras. Mecca Grade offers five base malts, two caramel or crystal type malts, two wheat malts, and a rye malt, all grown and malted right there on the farm. Mecca Grade also sells several raw grains as well.

No, it’s not a wide selection, and you’re limited if you’re looking for things like biscuit or aromatic malt, chocolate and other dark and roasted malts, other grains like oats and corn, and so on. But it’s fresh and local and provides an authentic Central Oregon terroir you won’t find elsewhere. If you’re adventurous you might try your hand at roasting your own malts in the oven for those darker colors and flavors.

And as far as oats and corn go, you can buy both at the grocery store. I’d suggest trying instant corn grits which can go directly into the mash.

Malt Extract

It’s unfortunate, but there are no local options for either liquid or dried malt extract for extract brewers. You’ll either have to travel a few hours to another homebrew supply store (I’ve listed some below), or order this online (also listed some resources below).

Hops

Homebrewers often seem to have an abundance of hops on hand—I have a bunch in my freezer—and there’s a good chance that come summertime there’s ready access to home grown hops. For the rest of the year, you can try contacting one of the various local hop growers and see if they have hops available for homebrewers. They include:

• Tumalo Hops. The oldest among the local farmers, they grow five varieties: Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Nugget, and Kent Golding. The website currently appears to be down, but they can be contacted at (541) 388-5626 or tumalohopsco -at- gmail -dot- com.
• Cascade Hop Farm. No direct list of hop varieties but what I can see on the site for previous years included Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Crystal, and Nugget.
• Smith Rock Hop Farm. One we haven’t heard much from recently but still around. I reached out and found that there are currently no hops available; check back later in the year.
• Fernweh Farm. I haven’t vetted this, but this farm near Sisters has a page to purchase hops, with whole leaf Cascade and Chinook listed.

Yeast

Unfortunately there are no local sources or purveyors of brewing yeast. Oregon is home to both Wyeast and Imperial Yeast, who offer a wide selection of liquid yeast starters, though neither sells direct to homebrewers. If you want a particular type of yeast from either company, you’ll need to go online or visit another shop a few hours away.

When it comes to dried yeast, same limitations apply. Unless you want to get really adventurous—the grocery stores do stock dried bread yeast.

(And if you want to get really, really adventurous, you could always try to culture wild yeast, something like a sourdough starter.)

Another possibility—after the COVID-19 crisis has passed—is to acquire yeast direct from a brewery. Many breweries are happy and able to draw a gallon (or however much) of yeast slurry for you to take home and use; just reach out and ask.

Equipment

There’s no way around it when it comes to acquiring non-ingredient homebrew supplies—you’ll need to visit another store, order online, or scour sites like Craigslist and the like if you need equipment. Or, fabricate your own.

Need CO₂ or oxygen? OXARC in Bend is a good source and offers deals to Central Oregon Homebrewers (COHO) members.

Speaking of COHO membership, consider joining the club: we have a club brew stand with kettle, mash tun, and everything you need to brew a batch of beer on (except propane, fermenters, and ingredients) that is freely available to members to use. In addition to that, the club also has extra equipment available to members to check out, things like corny kegs, carboys, a Blichmann beer gun, and even two jockey boxes. It’s well worth your while to become a member!

Other Regional Homebrew Supply Stores

There are other homebrew supply stores within a few hours of driving if you’re heading over the mountains. Here are a few of the closest:

• F.H. Steinbart – Portland
• Portland U-Brew & Pub – Portland
• Homebrew Exchange – Portland
• The Hoppy Brewer – Gresham
• Above The Rest Homebrewing – Tigard
• Bridgeview Beer and Wine Supply – Oregon City
• Salem Brew Supply – Salem
• Homebrew Heaven – Salem
• Corvallis Brewing Supply – Corvallis
• Home Fermenter – Eugene
• Rising Moon Makers Store – Eugene
• Harvest Store – Winston
• Rogue Valley Brewing Supply – Grants Pass

Order Online

Here is a list of online homebrew supply stores you can order from:

• MoreBeer!
• Northern Brewer
• Adventures in Homebrewing
• HomebrewSupply.com
• Midwest Supplies
• Love2Brew

Finally, if you have any suggestions, please leave a comment below.