Destination Type: Homebrew

Supplies for/samples from the DIY crowd

Zok’s Homebrewing & Winemaking

The Vibes

Classic homebrewing/winemaking shop. customers hang out and talk the hobby and bring samples of their craft.

The Story

Zoks has been in Connecticut 20 plus years. Worth a trip to see the place. Lots of stuff to see and talk about.

Brew & Wine Hobby

THE vibes

Brew & Wine Hobby is Connecticut’s oldest home brewing and wine making shop, located in East Hartford CT for over 40 years. Their products range from ingredients for beer (hops, barley, yeast) to kits (with instructions); from WinExpert and RJ Spagnol’s wine kits to Kamil juices (winery made European juices). They carry all the essential needs (and then some) for equipment. They’ve got a great staff, too. Thad has been brewing for 20 years and teaches our brewing classes and also handles the daily operations of the store throughout the week. Pat has been brewing for over a year year, and he’s become very knowledgeable in that time and is also available most days of the week. Chad comes in part time, but that doesn’t mean he can’t answer almost any question — that’s what they’re all here for: you enjoying the hobby better!

THE story

Rich and Bill have owned the store for five years, Rich has been working for the store for seven. While it had some ups and downs in those first year or two, the past few years have seen tremendous growth. We moved to 12 Cedar St. from the old Pitkin St. store a little over two and a half years ago (writing this in July of 2015). The expansion has been huge. It has allowed us to offer interactive classes, far more grain options, and a larger stock of wine juices… so much more still to come.