I'm angry, so I'm going AG!

The nerve!!! I was buying 33 pound Munton's LME at Bell's Brewery in Kalamazoo for $40. Last week I stopped in, the price is now $55!

The guys at GW Kent "Won't sell to homebrewers....." so all the cheap suppliers have gone away.

That means one thing.....I'm going AG. I've got the keggle almost done, my counterflow chiller built, and I can get a big rectangular cooler from my work (a Do-It Best hardware store) for $23.

Crankandstein has the smallest mill on sale for $69....boy, am I close to placing an order.....

Mid Country Malt in Chicagoland has grain for $20 a bag, and it's only a two hour drive.

:rockin:

nuff said!!! Git'r Done

Jim Karr said:

Mid Country Malt in Chicagoland has grain for $20 a bag, and it's only a two hour drive.

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Holy crappizzle!!!!! That is only like about 10 miles from my house. I had not idea they had a location there!!!!!

Will they accept walk up orders? Oh god oh god oh god!!!!!! I'm brewing with Maris Otter for about 50 cents a pound!!!!!!! :rockin:

You'll wish you had done this a long time ago. Once I went AG I used to think I would do extract every once in awhile but still haven't.

Seems like you guys are spending a lot on grains. I brewed a batch of stout a few weeks ago for $17 total. Thats with 12.5lbs of malts, some Nottingham and leftover hops. I don't really pay attention to what it is per lb.

a 55 pound bag of 2-row for $18.50!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


JimKarr, when are you going? I will be happy to buy you a beer at 3 Floyds or Flossmor Station as a thanks for the tip on where to buy malt... Just PM me and let me know...

$18.50!!!! Man I was screwed when I paid $33 for a 55 lb bag of generic pale two row the other day.

I was completely shocked by the price of the all grain supplies I bought. SO inexpensive compared to partial mash...and so much more rewarding!!!

Damn Squirrels said:

a 55 pound bag of 2-row for $18.50!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Hmm, do they ship???

No Kidding. I'm paying $1.30/lb at morebeer. That's about $1 more per pound than you are paying. Anyone know a cheap source of grain in SF Bay area?

Bernie Brewer said:

Hmm, do they ship???

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Yup. I'm sure the shipping is going to add another $30 at least though.

Seriously, shipping is a huge part of the cost. There's just no way around that except to start buying in HUGE quantities...

dantodd said:

No Kidding. I'm paying $1.30/lb at morebeer. That's about $1 more per pound than you are paying. Anyone know a cheap source of grain in SF Bay area?

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Are you buying it buy the 55 lb sack? If not, $1.30 is a good price for premium base malt...

Once you try All Grain, you'll wonder what was wrong with your brain.
And why you didn't switch sooner.

Damn Squirrels said:

Yup. I'm sure the shipping is going to add another $30 at least though.
Seriously, shipping is a huge part of the cost. There's just no way around that except to start buying in HUGE quantities...

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Not as bad as you might think. 40# Atlanta to LA via UPS is $20.00

At 18.50/sack that's still a good bit cheaper than $1.30/lb.

EdWort said:

Once you try All Grain, you'll wonder what was wrong with your brain.
And why you didn't switch sooner.

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Amen, EdWort. I made the switch and I'm wondering why in the heck it took me so long.

pldoolittle said:

Not as bad as you might think. 40# Atlanta to LA via UPS is $20.00

At 18.50/sack that's still a good bit cheaper than $1.30/lb.

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Are you talking about $1.30 for basic American 2-row? Or for Maris Otter? Or some other malt? I pay $1.50 for my Maris Otter and Pils and $1.00 for my American 2 row. If your LHBS is charging $1.30 for American 2 row, then I suggest you see how much they charge for Maris Otter. If it's only an extra twenty cents, then it's probably worth it.

Anyway, 55 lbs sacks of grain don't weigh 40 lbs.

Damn Squirrels said:

Are you talking about $1.30 for basic American 2-row? Or for Maris Otter? Or some other malt? I pay $1.50 for my Maris Otter and Pils and $1.00 for my American 2 row. If your LHBS is charging $1.30 for American 2 row, then I suggest you see how much they charge for Maris Otter.

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$1.30 is for maris otter row/lb
Domestic 2 row is $1.20/lb

domestic 2 row in 50 lb bags is $.67/lb
maris otter is in 55 lb bags is $.82/lb

my LHBS is morebeer so I always thought it would have excellent prices on malt but that's about 50% more than the prices talked about here.

Damn Squirrels said:

Are you talking about $1.30 for basic American 2-row? Or for Maris Otter? Or some other malt? I pay $1.50 for my Maris Otter and Pils and $1.00 for my American 2 row. If your LHBS is charging $1.30 for American 2 row, then I suggest you see how much they charge for Maris Otter. If it's only an extra twenty cents, then it's probably worth it.

Anyway, 55 lbs sacks of grain don't weigh 40 lbs.

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I was just using a price tossed out earlier in this thread. As for the shipping, UPS rates drop off sharply after 20# and get progressively cheaper as weights increase. I ship 40#'ers alot, but I would only expect 55# to be a few $ more. And that's using Atlanta to Los Angeles as a sample.

Anyway, my point was that UPS was not as expensive as one might think. And even if UPS rates were double, $18.50 + $40 is still cheaper than $1.30 * 55.

Philip

dantodd said:

$1.30 is for maris otter row/lb
Domestic 2 row is $1.20/lb

domestic 2 row in 50 lb bags is $.67/lb
maris otter is in 55 lb bags is $.82/lb

my LHBS is morebeer so I always thought it would have excellent prices on malt but that's about 50% more than the prices talked about here.

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Except for the by-the-pound Domestic 2-row, those prices are ALL better than my LHBS. I would consider the Maris Otter a very good deal, whether buying bulk or by-the-pound.

Anyway, remember, we're talking about buying from a distributor here. It should be no surprise that they are quite a bit cheaper (where do you think the LHBS' profit margin comes from?). But it should also be no surprise that not everybody has a distributor just up the street.

If it were possible to get it to your door for significantly less than the LHBS charges, don't you think the LHBS would be buying grain from them?

Tell ya what, I just noticed they have bulk shipping. Up to 42 bags. For California, the cost is about $350 with all fees included ($250 plus fuel surcharge, gate fee, hazmat fee, etc). So if you and 14 other people buy two bags a piece, the shipping works out to $12 per bag in shipping costs.

If it's really important to you to save the last nickels, get in touch with a homebrew club. I'm sure you could find a dozen takers on this deal...

Bellybuster said:

nuff said!!! Git'r Done

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nuff said is good enoough, larry the cable guy quotes are horrible....lol

pldoolittle said:

Not as bad as you might think. 40# Atlanta to LA via UPS is $20.00

At 18.50/sack that's still a good bit cheaper than $1.30/lb.

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For a 55 pound bag that cuts your cost in half at $0.70/lb. I'd say that is a bargain!

- WW

Damn Squirrels said:

If it were possible to get it to your door for significantly less than the LHBS charges, don't you think the LHBS would be buying grain from <a distributor>?

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If the LHBS can't get it to their door for significantly less than they charge, it's not much of a business...

wilsonwj said:

For a 55 pound bag that cuts your cost in half at $0.70/lb. I'd say that is a bargain!

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58# delivered to my house is $28.60. Add in $18.50 for the grain, and it's $47.10 ($0.85/lb) to my front door. That's a bit more than DanTodd's pickup prices, but less than LHBS for many of you. And I'm not located in the city or particularly close to the distributor. It won't work for everyone, but it's worth a look.

Edit: Today I shipped a 94# package from Atlanta to Virginia. Cost $44.50. So UPS is about $.50/lb for heavy stuff.

Damn Squirrels said:

If it's really important to you to save the last nickels, get in touch with a homebrew club.

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I found your post a little irritating. I am not looking to simply save "the last nickels." I frequently purchase from the morebeer because they are good guys and do take the time and expense to stock their store for us.

Someone posted a price of $18.50 for base malt, my LHBS (morebeer) charges about 50% more than that for the same grain. I don't see 50% as being non-consequential. I merely posted mmorebeer's price on grain by the pound because I didn't see their bag prices at the time and asked if anyone knew of a local source that is cheaper.

By giving people our business when they offer better prices we encourage everyone in the business to optimize their operations to be able to compete at the same price level. I see nothing wrong with that.

Do you really think that the LHBS pays the same for their grain from the distributor that I would pay buying a bag or two?

dantodd said:

I found your post a little irritating. I am not looking to simply save "the last nickels." I frequently purchase from the morebeer because they are good guys and do take the time and expense to stock their store for us.

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Well that's good on you, then. Personally, I'm trying to save the last nickels. To each their own.

Someone posted a price of $18.50 for base malt, my LHBS (morebeer) charges about 50% more than that for the same grain. I don't see 50% as being non-consequential. I merely posted mmorebeer's price on grain by the pound because I didn't see their bag prices at the time and asked if anyone knew of a local source that is cheaper.

By giving people our business when they offer better prices we encourage everyone in the business to optimize their operations to be able to compete at the same price level. I see nothing wrong with that.

Do you really think that the LHBS pays the same for their grain from the distributor that I would pay buying a bag or two?

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I'm all for competitive pricing, but I think it's hard to compete with a company that never has to place their malt on a truck- that does all their shipping by train. That $18.50 price is without the malt ever touching a truck. If you look at the address on mapquest/google, you will notice that the distributor is located on the train tracks. That reduces loading/offloading costs. I'm not surprised the cost goes up a buck or two the minute you toss it onto a pallet, shrinkwrap it, and drive that pallet onto a truck... not to mention having to drive it somewhere and pay that driver.

It's an $11.45 difference. Why so much? Well, a quick search of California Maltsters turned up zilch. Seems to me the problem is that all the maltsters are either in Europe- which would ship goods to the east coast, or else in the East or Midwest. Either way, it's still got to get shipped to California. You all have nice weather out there, but you aren't very centrally located (politically or geographically).


Good luck finding cheaper prices though. Maybe you can search for maltsters in other nearby states? Or, I've heard that some breweries will let a few bags of malt out the door for cost....

Maybe I'm missing something, but the Mid Country Malt price lists on the web all show prices for #1000 lb orders (like that might be the minimum).

Does anyone know if they'll actually sell single bags (or multiples, but less than #1000) to homebrewers?

If so, this is just another reason I can't wait to move back to Chicago

EDIT: never mind, the North Country Malt site is the one for homebrewers. But still, Maris Otter prices there are $0.52/lb (Hugh Baird) or $0.54/lb (Fawcett). Still a good deal, but I don't know where the $18.50 price came from

Bike N Brew said:

Maybe I'm missing something, but the Mid Country Malt price lists on the web all show prices for #1000 lb orders (like that might be the minimum).

Does anyone know if they'll actually sell single bags (or multiples, but less than #1000) to homebrewers?

If so, this is just another reason I can't wait to move back to Chicago

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I called this afternoon. They will sell single bags on a pickup basis. If you click on the homebrewers side of the site and then select "shop online" they have a way to order stuff. It's not a very good website, but then, with those prices, it doesn't have to be.

Damn Squirrels said:

Good luck finding cheaper prices though. Maybe you can search for maltsters in other nearby states? Or, I've heard that some breweries will let a few bags of malt out the door for cost....

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Nearby States!?!?! I'm not making that drive for a little malt. $11 in gas only gets me about 70 miles so if it isn't pretty close it's no real savings over morebeer for 1 or 2 bags. We do have one of those "brew your own" businesses in town though, it might be worth going down and introducing myself. That would also be about 20 miles closer than the nearest LHBS.

Some of you all are getting stuck by your LHBS. My LHBS in Grand Rapids, Michigan charges .90 a pound for Maris Otter or 38.00 for a bag. I consider this to be very fair for a store price.

Picked up a bag of MFB Pils for $24.50. :rockin: