On Feb 19, members of the Underground Brewers and Brew Haven gathered with many others to raise a toast and celebrate 31 years of business at Maltose Express’ last Open House.
For those who do not yet know, Maltose Express is closing. Their landlord wants the space and will not renew their lease.
It is impossible to describe how important Maltose has been for homebrewing. Not just in our local area, not just for our club, but everywhere.
As the only homebrew supply store in the western half of the state, Maltose was our “home”. It is no exaggeration to say that the only Underground Brewers who did NOT start brewing with a kit from Maltose are those who were already brewing before they moved here. Along with ingredients, the staff dispensed copious amounts of advice, feedback, and, when necessary, pep talks.
I remember going to Maltose after I had ruined, and dumped, my very first batch. I was dejected and ready to give up. Tess sent me home with everything I needed to try again. The most important thing I carried out of the store was renewed optimism.
Soon afterward, I joined an online community of homebrewers. These were people from all over the world. One common topic of conversation was the cloning of commercial beers that we liked. The starting point for clone recipes was almost always one of the Szamatulskis’ books, Clone Brews or Beer Captured. It was startling to realize that my local resource for beer knowledge was respected internationally for their clone recipes.
Maltose has always supported this club without hesitation. When they opened a brewery, it quickly became a favorite place for meetings, both official and ad hoc. Mark and Tess also always supported our annual competition, SNERHC, providing essential logistical support on top of prize donations and advertising.
So, when word got out that this Open House would be the last, club members attended to celebrate 31 years of support and connection. They poured homebrew, raised toasts, and told stories.
There will be a huge hole in the local homebrew scene after Maltose’s last day. But the memories, and the brewers, that were created there will live on.