“Think of us as an adult candy store, except that unlike candy stores where the candy is already made for you, here you make your own for a fraction of the price.” This is how Nepenthe (Baltimore’s wonderful new beer and wine making supply shop) describes what they do. And color us charmed. Anyone in the Baltimore area who’s dabbled in home beer brewing or winemaking knows that up until last month, that meant driving down to Maryland Homebrew in Columbia (which is a great store, don’t get us wrong—but for what  you pay in time and gas, you could just buy an imported six-pack and call it a day). So we are so, so, so happy to welcome to town Nepenthe—a new shop in Clipper Mill that has everything you need to brew your own—including classes, recipes, and even equipment you can use on site.

Nepenthe opened their doors last month, and some things still aren’t completely ready to go. For example, their “Brew on Premises” facility—where you can do your own brewing on their equipment and not have to worry about clean up, etc.—won’t be open until next month. But in the meantime, those of us who prefer to do our fermenting at home can still make this our local stop for sugars, yeasts, hops, carboys, and more. These folks are friendly, welcoming, and more-than-excited to share knowledge and advice (wouldn’t you be if your job was just making beer and helping other people make it, too?). And we should all be excited about this new addition to town. After all, what could it mean but more locally made brews for all of B-more’s citizens?

Nepenthe is located at 3600 Clipper Mill Rd. Suite 130-A in Baltimore. For more information, visit www.nepenthehomebrew.com.