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Best Resources For Home Brewers In OC

NY State Ends Tax Exemptions For In State Breweries After Lawsuit From Out Of State
(credit: John Moore/Getty Images)

Since the cost of everything always seems to increase, people are looking for ways to save money while still enjoying the things they love. Beer especially can be pretty costly at a bar, so one way to cut down on that expense is to brew your own beer. This allows you not only the opportunity to make your favorite beverage at home, but also to have your favorite style of beer in your refrigerator without going on a beer run. If you're looking to brew your own beer, here are some of the best resources in our fair county (and one in Long Beach).

O'Shea Brewing Company
28142 Camino Capistrano
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
(949) 364-4440
www.osheabrewing.com

If you're just getting started brewing your own beer, and if you're like most folks in Southern California living in a place with limited space, you want to keep things as simple as possible. O'Shea's is the place for keeping it simple. This place has all of the equipment you need, but what really makes this a great place to get started brewing is the home-brew kits. You'll find 36 different kits in a wide variety of styles that you can make in the comfort of your own home.

Eric Addison
(credit: Addison Homebrew Provisions)

Addison Homebrew Provisions
1328 E. Orangethorpe Ave.
Fullerton, CA 92831
(714) 752-8446
www.addisonhomebrew.com

If you have a little experience brewing at home, Addison is the place to go. Here you'll find all the grain and equipment you need to make a good home brew. You'll also find a very knowledgeable staff that can assist with all of your questions. One of the best things that Addison does is monthly brewing demonstrations. After all, you can read all you want about brewing beer, but you'll probably learn better if you see a demonstration.

Steinfillers_4c
(credit: Stein Fillers Fermentation Supply)

Stein Fillers Fermentation Supply
4160 Norse Way
Long Beach, CA 90808
(562) 425-0588
www.steinfillers.com

Stein Fillers isn't in Orange County. However, if you can make the drive to Long Beach, you'll find your reward at Stein Fillers. Namely, you'll find your reward in the wide variety of hops listed at this place (the website advises you to call for the availability of hop varieties). It also has a wide variety of malts, some of which are available in 55-pound sacks, which is probably way more than you need (or can store) in your home-brewing experience. The staff here is very knowledgeable and will help you as much as possible in your brewing endeavors.

Related:  Home Brewing Tips From An OC Craft Brewer

Garage Monk
(credit: Garage Monk)

Garage Monk (BXC Inc.)
34179 Golden Lantern St., Suite 303
Dana Point, CA 92629
(949) 677-7324
www.garagemonk.com

Let's say that you're not just going to brew your own beer, but also want to bottle it. You could easily go with plain bottles and caps, but if you want your beer to look as good as it tastes, you'll need some labels and caps that show the world the beer is yours. That is where Garage Monk comes in. He can create custom labels and caps for your beer, which is good considering Christmas is not far away and your custom beer bottles would make great gifts.

Micro-breweries Popularity Declines
(credit: Darren McCollester/Newsmakers)

Brewbakers
7242 Heil Ave.
Huntington Beach, CA 92648
(714) 596-5506
www.brewbakers1.com

Technically, Brewbakers isn't a home-brewing resource, although you do get to make your own beer...sort of. You choose the kind of beer you want to brew and as the website declares, you leave the mess to them. You will walk away from here with your own beer, even if it's not the same as brewing it at home. However, you can take what you learn here and apply it to your own brewing process at home.

Related: Best Orange County Bars With Local Beers

Gary Schwind is a freelance writer covering all things Orange County. His work can be found on Examiner.com.

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