What’s Brewing?

By Susan Gibbs, Record Reporter
Published: July 17, 2008

Bob Cuddeback took to brewing his own beer 14 years ago.
“I drank good German beer while stationed in Germany with the Army,” explains Cuddeback, a retired Army Warrant Officer. “When I got back to the States, I wanted the same quality.”
His friend and partner Randy Nunes, who says he’s not a “beer guy,” talked Cuddeback into making wine as well.
Getting supplies for their hobby often required a 220-mile trip, and when gas prices started to rise, the trek became quite expensive. So they decided to open a store to sell beer and winemaking equipment and supplies in Ruckersville.
They chose a name:  “The Fermentation Trap.”
Located on Route 29 North, it officially opened its doors on April Fool’s Day, a detail that affords Cuddeback and Nunes a good laugh. 
“We figured if we failed, we’d have enough inventory to make beer and wine for a couple of years,” says Nunes, chuckling. Their wives, Tresa and De encouraged them.
Now, the business is receiving orders for equipment and supplies from all over the country and beyond.
“We’re shipping to California, Florida, Iowa, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Vermont, Washington State, and more,” says Cuddeback.
People call from everywhere - even the Bahamas.
It wasn’t what the two expected.
Cuddeback settled in the County five years ago when he retired from the military and went to work at Rivanna Station. Nunes, who had become a fast friend when the two served in Haiti together, followed Cuddeback to Rivanna Station when he moved south from Washington, DC.
They decided on New Year’s Day to open the store on condition that it would not, as Nunes says, “ruin their friendship.”
Cuddeback and Nunes wrote a business plan. He estimated that there were about 1,600 people who already shared an interest in their hobby in the greater Charlottesville metropolitan area.
Now, many of them are “coming out of the woodwork to get supplies,” says Cuddeback.
Cuddeback and Nunes rented a space in Ruckersville and set some strictly part time hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m.; Saturday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.; and Sundays from noon until 5 p.m.
“We’re not going to be millionaires,” Cuddeback remarks. “We just enjoy sharing our knowledge with other brewers and winemakers.”
He adds, “It is a love of hobby that we felt we could share with others, without having to pay excess prices in order to get started.”
The partners explain that beer brewing consists of four ingredients; barley malt, hops, water, and yeast. Brewing can be conducted in various ways with a variety of techniques.  Using liquid and dry malt extracts quickens the brewing process, compared to all-grain brewing.  Adding specialty malts provides unique, “quaffable” flavors all around, they say.
Winemaking is normally associated with grapes, but other fruit growers are making their way to The Fermentation Trap for equipment and supplies also, says Cuddeback.  Elderberries, raspberries, and plums have come into season and make excellent wines, he adds.  “This process is not difficult either,” they say.  “Just press the juice from the fruit add some yeast, and it is fermenting.  Letting it sit in a cool dark place allows it to clear for bottling and, of course, drinking enjoyment.
Mead makers are also coming to the business. (Mead-making, the process of brewing honey into wine, is a growing hobby in the area, according to Cuddeback.)
Supplies for sale at The Fermentation Trap include beer and wine books, chemicals, equipment, ingredients, and equipment and starter kits. Beer enthusiasts can buy kegs; wine enthusiasts can buy labels and barrels. 
The Fermentation Trap also sells kits for cider and lemonade enthusiasts. And, “bread makers even buy yeast here,” says Cuddeback.
The store’s website, located at http://www.fermentationtrap.com, also features an online monthly newsletter called the GHRUB - Grapes & Hops Raw Unedited Banter. Contributions from readers are invited. .
Beginning September 20, Cuddeback and Nunes will be teaching a one-day home winemaking class through Piedmont Virginia Community College.
“It’s part of PVCC’s (winemaking - viticulture and enology) program … so we’re going to have some credentials,” Nunes quips.
One thing neither Cuddeback nor Nunes does is take themselves too seriously. 
“We’re bad salespeople,” says Cuddeback, laughing.
And they enjoy learning from experienced brewers and winemakers as well.
Cuddeback himself has advice for all would-be beer and wine makers.
“We always suggest that our customers first read about beer and wine making before purchasing, as it costs between $150 and $200 to get started,” he says.  “We want them to know how to do it before they commit to spending money on it.”