"I take delight in the juice of the barley and courting pretty fair maids in the morning bright and early" There is something about listening to Irish music that makes you want to brew your own beer. A year ago, after listening to this song in my car, I decided to try my hand at beer making. I headed to the Oak Barrel, bought a starter kit and a beer kit (Nut Brown Ale). The gentleman there talked me through what was in my kit, what I need to do, and helped me out to my car. Excellent service. I brewed my beer and was generally happy with the results I have since brewed several batches and really got into it. Oak Barrel is my main hub of supplies. Their supplies are well organized, they have an excellent selection of ingredients, and they keep things fresh. The guys who work there are anywhere from solid to very helpful. My advice to people is to ensure you ask as many clarifying questions as you can. Their answers are often short, and sometimes they don't realize that you truly have no idea what you are doing. If you take the time to ask more questions they open up and are very helpful. If you are a brewer, and know the basics, this is the place to be. Whack fol the daddy-o , there's homebrew in jar!!!! read more

The guys at Oak Barrel are great. They are knowledgeable and helpful. They have the ingredients and equipment you need for wine making. the only problem is that if you get there more than 20 minutes after they open on the weekend, its a zoo. Way too popular. read more

Oak Barrel is a one stop shop for wine, beer and vinegar making supplies. The store even sells vineyard grapes during the harvest season.

Bay Area mainstay and collective knowledge depository for brewers and other odd crafts. Once saw a seminar on how to make your own balsamic vinegar here. Do they still have sample kegs? read more

This place just feels right the moment you walk through the door, which is always wide open, for you laddy. It smells great, and the guys in there are extremely helpful and informative. I just brewed my first batch of beer ever, a pale ale, and became convinced that the yeast hadn't done it's job, so I went back to purchase more and had a nice long conversation with one of the guys about gravity ratios and bitterness and sourness and cleanliness and water temperature at pitch time. And then he told me everything'd be fine and gave me another packet of yeast and refused to accept payment for it (as if it was the yeasts fault and not mine, allegedly) and I went forth, and... all is well, and I will be back, again and again, whenever I'm in the neighborhood, and I can find many excuses to be so. read more

For anyone who wants to learn about wine making or beer making then this is the place. This is one of the first places I visited when i had first started brewing beer. The entire staff has been there for a long time and really know what they are talking about and are very friendly. All of their ingredients are very fresh and well taken care of. This place has become almost a second home for me. read more

So happy this place is here. Good, all around shop with great winemaking and brewing supplies. You can even buy crushed grapes every fall sourced from up north, and new and used barrels. read more

Great!! I have been a loyal customer for about 5 years. They have smart, knowledgeable, friendly staff, especially Bob and Homer. Never brewed before? Have no fear, Oak Barrel will take care of you. Better than other home brew supply stores i have been to. read more

Homer, Bob and Bernie form the trifecta of Berkeley brewing! Thundercats, ho! These guys are a great source of knowledge whether you are brewing beer, fermenting wine, or growing hops. read more

Beautiful selection of specialty grains. Came here buying stuff to innovate. They had bulk organics, really cool!!! So many types of black malts and different international varieties! Unfortunately there is a hop purchase limit, so I had to look elsewhere but I totally get why and it's all good. More of an excuse to visit the cool guys at More Beer San Leandro! Basic yeast selection, not as many varieties as other stores. My man got the tap for his kegerator set up. The only thing I'd say negative is that not every girl is a rookie, they could do less mansplaining :) My man didnt get nearly as much "help" as I did haha n they tried to teach me how to use a grain mill like it was new and upsell me on over priced items I already have. read more

Great selection, friendly staff. Talk to Homer - he'll get you what you need (and he's an expert on the Bay Area beer scene).

Brewing beer is a lot of fun. There is a big learning curve which is why it is nice there is such a knowledgeable staff at Oak Barrel. Brewing can be very easy...just follow the recipe. But to understand the process and start making informed decisions about your brew you need to talk to the people who have been doing it for a while. read more

I walked in to get a new primary fermenter (6 gallon food-safe bucket with lid) for my beer brewing. The atmosphere was nice. Looked fancy and what-not. But the staff kind of made me feel like I didn't belong in there. Kind of brushed me off, and when I had a question, they made me feel like it was something "I should have already known." Most importantly, the lid that they sold me with the bucket was horrible. The lid had an o-ring seal on it, but it was one of those one time use only lids. Meaning after my first brew with the bucket, I had to get a brand new lid. There are reusable lids, and they are about the same price. Other brew shops that I've gone into sell them. It's unfortunate that they sell this item to consumers to seemingly get them back in to buy more of their one-time use products. Unfortnutely, I had not read the person's 1 star review for this place before going. It's is sad that they have not changed their product after all this time. DO NOT buy primary fermenters from this place. read more

One of my favorite places to go along the San Pablo stretch. As an avid beer drinker and beginning beer brewer this place has become my Mecca. The prices are reasonable, and I have found all the staff to be very helpful whenever they are asked a question. It smells fantastic walking in through the open doors, and seeing grains and tools abound is enough to make my heart beat faster. If you're in the East Bay and interested or participating in the hobby of home brewing I cannot recommend this place enough. Also the greatest part about the staff is if you're unsure of whether or not to buy something they will be completely honest. I've seen my friend talked out of buying extra materials that were unnecessary. read more

Great place to pick up beer brewing supplies! They've always been very helpful, which is great, as I'm still pretty new to brewing. The only thing that cost them a 5 star rating is that they've forgotten to give me my hops twice when buying ingredient kits and it's disrupted my brewing plans. read more

Awesome service from Bernie!! He was kind enough to speak with me about finding someone to maintain our newly planted backyard vineyard. I'm looking forward to buying winemaking supplies. read more

Great products, helpful staff. I've tried beer kits from a mail order place before knowing about Oak Barrell and they aren't as good or as reasonably priced as the ones here. read more

This is the place to go for anyone interested in learning how to brew beer, cider, wine etc... The key to this place is that their staff is all very knowledgeable and all very willing to help. When I make a batch of beer that doesn't come out as good as I think it should, I bring a cup in to the store. They are happy to try your home brew, and tell you some of the off flavors or what you may be able to do better next time. I can't wait until I bring in a good glass of beer, and they go WOW! that is great beer! That would make my day/week/year. read more

This place is so knowledgeable and extremely helpful! I think they are an amazing asset to the bay area! I would spend all my money here if only i had more time to brew. :) read more

So grateful this place exists. San Francisco has spotty supply resources for the home brewer. This store always has what we need plus the staff are knowledgeable and friendly. Especially great if you need a CO2 tank replacement in a pinch. read more

I am not often moved enough by a company or store to write a review about it. But I just went to the Oak Barrel to get some very basic ingredients for making my first batch of strawberry mead and had the greatest help and advice from an employee named Tom! The store is well organized and they seem to have everything you could possibly need for beer-, wine-, mead-, and cheese-making. Prices seemed reasonable, atmosphere was friendly and EVERYONE who worked there seemed very knowledgeable. I'll definitely be back again--so glad this place exists! Thanks, Oak Barrel. read more

Pricey but convenient. They have an ok selection, but the staff pressures the first time winemaker to buy an overpiced kit instead of helping to figure out what individual supplies they need. I'd go back, but not for the service. Pretty expensive considering what you get. read more

Bought my first beer kit and supplies for a brew of an American Pale Ale. Came out to $237 total. The staff is super helpful and friendly, they have beer on tap to drink for free, and they will help crush your grains! Love it, looking to brew, come here! read more

Awesome service, good prices and nice, knowledgable guys. My husband brought me here and I bought some cheese making supplies and a half wine barrel. This place rocks! read more

great selection of stuff brew stuff, they also have cheesemaking supplies, they give tastings too. Staff is mostly well versed but they lack more obscure supplies, no one is perfect. read more

A very excellent homebrew shop, where I buy almost all of my stuff. There's high turnover so fresh ingredients, and reasonably priced hardware. Though you may be able to save a few dollars by bargain-hunting online, it's nice to go to a neighborhood shop. The staff is great, and they know a lot, having helped me work out details on many beers.Though I don't know how this compares to other homebrew shops, I have absolutely no complaints. read more

These guys are great, all of them. They are friendly, knowledgeable and well informed and would often give valuable feedback. At Oak Barrel Wine Craft you can buy almost anything to brew home made beer, make small batches of wine, mead, soda or cider, even special order a small distiller to make your own cognac from your own wine or beer. In addition to equipment and beer or wine kits or primary supplies they also maintain a small bookshelf with good books. This is one of my favorite stores in the whole Bay Area. If they work on lowering their prices a bit i would be happy to give them a fifth star. What this store is missing is a community board to post. I recommend Oak Barrel. read more

Helpful staff. Decent selection of ingredient kits. Beer on tap is a nice compliment.

Friendly staff. I just needed some corks and an air ---- lock. They had everything and were very helpful, no pressure.

I love this place, the only brew store for me. Free samples, helpful staff, and great refurbished kegs. I have been going there for over 5 years and have never been disappointed. read more