We recently caught up with Jimmy McMillan and Nick Less, co-owners of Philly Homebrew Outlet, while they shopped for a new truck for their growing business, which includes a recently opened West Philly location at 47th and Woodland.

McMillan and Less used to shop for home-brew supplies in the late 1990s in South Philadelphia at Barry’s Homebrew Outlet. The owners decided to sell after 15 years in business, and McMillan and Less jumped at the chance to go from customers to owners. They moved the business to South Kensington and continued to develop a sizable fan base in West Philly after five years through internet sales and occasional visitors from the other end of the El.

So they decided to open a second location.

“That was the first place we saw. The price was great, the location was great and we liked being next to the West Philly Tool library because we have a D.I.Y. customer base,” said McMillan.

Being a neighbor to the University of the Sciences and its Brewing Science Certificate program can’t hurt business either.

At any given day, the new location sells more than 45 different varieties of hops, over 45 different varieties of yeast and some 40 different types of barley or grain. There’s also a brewing facility to host home-brew club members who need space to brew. In addition to brewing supplies, the shop also carries a variety of winemaking and cheesemaking supplies along with kombucha, kefir and yogurt kits.

“The session IPA kits are one of our best sellers,” McMillan said. “It’s a low alcohol IPA beer where you can drink three or four of them without worrying about falling down the stairs.” 

They also offer free classes and clinics on making everything from beer to wine to cheese every Tuesday at 6 p.m. and every Saturday at 3 p.m. that guide you through the process and give you recommendations.

A class schedule and business hours can be found on their website: www.phillyhomebrew.com

– Rana Fayez (Photos courtesy of Philly Homebrew Outlet)