I know people are conflicted about shopping at Northern Brewer, but I noticed they’ve recently starting selling Mecca Grade malts by the pound (for anyone, like me, who has been interested in trying them but didn’t want to commit to a full 50 lb. sack).
Thanks for the info. That does cause a dilemma.
I was conflicted also. Then I looked at FH Steinbart in Portland. https://fhsteinbart.com/craft-malt/ Got a total of 12 pounds of Mecca Grade malt at a cost of $7.99 shipping to Florida. It was less than $2 more than the same amount of Mecca Grade from Northern Brewer.
Not free shipping but worth it to me. And I supported a smaller, independent home-brew shop.
That is good to know
Yes, it is!
Man, coming in $1 higher than Weyermann, that’s pretty pricey.
IMO, SO MUCH better than Weyermann!
That’s quite the tall order
Obviously, it’s a subjective opinion.
Great, thanks for the info. They’re a lot closer to me than NB as well.
I’ve had beers made with Mecca and regularly buy from a local maltster here in Colorado (Root Shoot) which also makes excellent products. For my brewing needs I think these malts are leaps and bounds superior to Weyermann and most other malts regularly available on the homebrew market. I believe both of these small maltsters are using different varieties of barley from what is grown more industrially so it may not be an apples to apples comparison.
That said, Weyermann makes excellent products and if it is my goal to replicate large scale German brewing I would probably opt for Weyermann or another continental maltster.
Yeah, I’ve been using Root Hoot lately and I’m very impressed.
FWIW, I received an email from MG about new pricing and shipping rates. Haven’t had time to check it yet, boy it sounds like it should help.
Did it say when that new pricing will take effect? I just checked MG’s website, it’s still at the same pricing it has always been. I’m in NorCal, ground shipping charge for one bag of MG is ~$35. That puts the cost of a bag of one of their base malts at close to $100, about double what I’d pay for a bag/shipping from Morebeer (admittedly I live pretty close to Morebeer so shipping isn’t much).
Is MG malt really twice as good?
IMO, it’s a LOT better. Twice as good os subjective and up to you. Here’s the link they sent…https://meccagrade.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=8cf4d4c9f25bdb327d7b04b54&id=ce303e0b19&e=4a6bd04199
I’m thinking about brewing a SMASH beer with some Mecca Grade malts.
Maybe either:
Pils/Sterling/3787 for a Belgian Single; or
Pale/Sterling/2206 for a simple lager.
I’ve done both, but with different hops. That Pelton malt is really delicious in a SMaSH.
What hops do you prefer with it?
For pils or BPA, I use the best quality continental hops I have on hand. No specific favorites.
I wasn’t thrilled with the Saaz I was getting, which is why I bought this lb. of Sterling from Hop Heaven. I’ve been using it in my Belgian style ales, but I haven’t done a single hop beer with it yet.