February 4, 2012
In October 2011 they moved to a new, bigger, nicer location. The staff is still very friendly and very helpful. They have everything you need to brew, from starter kits to equipment including bottling, kegging, hoses, tanks, etc. They sell canned extract as well as bulk malt extract with refillable buckets. They have about 15-20 varieties of grains and at least a dozen hops. You can brew there, and they teach classes on Saturdays. This place is worth the drive from NOVA/DC area. I’m glad they’re doing well enough to move into their new digs!

June 28, 2011
A great place to visit if your learning on how to brew your own beer. The staff is very helpful.

October 23, 2009
The most accessible homebrew shop to me. The staff there are very friendly and always willing to give advice. They did a nice job of walking my friend through his first batch of brew on premises. The place is a bit of a mess, but hell, who cares! Whether you are looking for malt extract or grain, they have you covered. Definitely worth stopping by if you are in Frederick.

February 23, 2008
A laid back, grungy atmosphere... my kinda place. You have access to lots of malts, hops and all other things beery. Brew your own, while drinking whatever the friendly proprietor is offering up for free. Shoot the shit, drink beer, brew beer, drive home happy. Not much to the place, obviously, but that’s also where it excels. Loved my experiences there with scraff. It was like brewing beer with a buddy in his garage with a bunch of malts and hops to smell and taste, while drinking from a homebrewed keg or two. Excellent in it’s simplicity!

September 7, 2005 [ Updated October 15, 2005 ]
rdon’t know that much about home-brew to be honest. but I tagged along with friends. frederick is a great little town, worth checkin out even if you have to make the drive. hours are bad. aren’t open that often. its really messy in the back and disorganized throughout. but the staff is super friendly and helpful and knowledgeable. these guys can give you ideas on what you might want to brew. teach classes in the backroom. small and messy. but if you need a lesson why not? and they travel all over intl and canada to stay in the know of things. my favorite part is the little plastic containers of caramel and chocolate malts beause I like to smell everything. they didn’t mind. they even had a keg on tap and let you try a taste of their own recent homebrew if you like!

November 1, 2004
I was in the Flying Barrel to buy all the required equipment and ingredients for my first batch. The owner and staff were very helpfull and friendly. They looked at my list and got me exactly what I needed, while making a few expereienced suggestions about what to buy (like a funnel with filter). I was especially impressed when they twice recommended cheaper items to me because they knew they worked just as well as the more expensive things I had in mind. They easily could have sold me the more expensive bottle capper for example and I would never have noticed I was getting screwed. But they didn’t. Lots of different extracts, nice cheap canadian extract barrels, tons of yeasts, fresh hops, and a brew on the premises in the back complete with any malt you could want for self service. There’s also a mill and scales available for self service of grains and hops. Worth checking out.