Brew Market and Beer Garden draws area home brewers and beginners [photos]

From left to right: Alan Cummings, Eric McGaffic and Chris Wallace preparing the grain at the Brew Market and Beer Garden's first home brew extracting class for beginners on Father's Day. The Brew Market and Beer Garden opened at 1510 Riverside Drive in Chattanooga in May and started offering classes for $30 a person this month.

By Allison Shirk June 24, 2018 6 min read

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Home brew…Brew Market and Beer Garden draws area home brewers and beginners

Eric McGaffic leads the first extracting class at the Brew Market and Beer Garden on Father's Day, June 17. McGaffic has been a home brewer for the past six years.

Chris Wallace smells some roasted malts at the Brew Market and Beer Garden extracting class on Father's Day, June 17.

The Brew Market and Beer Garden at 1510 Riverside Drive opened in May in a converted gas station. The home brew supply store also has beers on tap and a beer garden in back.

Chris Wallace pours malt extract in a pot during a beer extracting class while Alan Cummings mixes it in.

The Brew Market and Beer Garden has several ingredients available for purchase for home brewers in the area.

If you can boil water then you can brew beer.

At first glance, home brewing beer can seem a bit intimidating when trying to learn about the different grains, hops and yeast and how it all works together.

Chris Arnt, president of the Barley Mob Brewers of Chattanooga, said it can actually be quite easy to start, though.

“If you can boil water then you can brew beer,” Arnt said. “The fastest way to learn is to watch somebody or take a class.”

Chris Calhoun doesn’t brew his own beer, but he thought if he opened the first dedicated home brew supply shop in Chattanooga then he could learn from his employees and customers.