I want to order a sack of 2 row base malt from 50 Pound Sack.com. Their prices are very good, but I've never ordered from them before. Have any of you out there had any experience with this company? What are your thoughts. Thanks for your responses.
50 Pound Sack.com
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Nateo
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I've never ordered from them, but they're in the same building as Rebel Brewer, and I assume run by the same people. I know a lot of people have had good experience with Rebel Brewer.
Looks like shipping might be included but seems pretty pricey to me. A 50 Lb. sack of briess 2 row is $66. I can get it for $42 from my lhbs. If you have a lhbs near you i would check with them first to see how much a sack would be from them. It might be cheaper.
I've ordered hops from them, very quick service, and I have no complaints about the hops.
Nateo
Well-Known Member
Their prices aren't bad for what they are. If you can get wholesale pricing through a group buy, yeah it'll be half the price. If you're buying it through a retail store, it'll cost a lot more.
bigbeergeek
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never bought grain, have bought 6 lbs of hops. well packaged, dirt cheap, shipped fast, free shipping indeed.
bh10
Well-Known Member
I bought some Weyermann Sacks through them since it was cheaper then my LHBS, but they came with in a week, Id def. recommend.
It gets cheaper to the more you order.
It gets cheaper to the more you order.
Nateo
Well-Known Member
That's good to know. Just looked into it, and if you spend over $100 you get $10 off, and if you spend over $200 you get $25 off.
That's a bit cheaper than the closest LHBS to where I'm moving, and won't take over an hour each way to drive there and cost at least $20 in gas.
avidhomebrewer
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Just browsed there and I can get the same 2-row Briess for $20 cheaper from my lhbs. Rather expensive.
Nateo
Well-Known Member
Unless you have to drive several hours to buy it, then it's a bargain.
your lhbs's must be on the steep side. i get sacks of 2-row for $40 normal price from my lhbs
Nateo
Well-Known Member
Where I'm moving to, I'd have to drive a couple hours to get 2-row from the LHBS for about $40. It would cost at least $20 in gas (150 miles round-trip) and take most of half a day of my time to do so. So the "true cost" of a single sack of grain at the LHBS, for me, is more than it would cost to do mail order with free shipping. YMMV and so on. If you live near an LHBS that has good pricing, obviously that doesn't pertain to you.
"Standard" retail markup is 100%, meaning of the $40 you're spending, wholesale was probably around $20. When Country Malt Group was selling wholesale sacks to brewers, prices were around $25-27 per sack. So either the LHBS that sells for $40 retail is buying a whole bunch of grain at a time (which might be the case) or they're taking a hit on their margin.
I'm glad I don't own a home brew store. It seems like a lot of work to make less than $20 profit on a sack, not counting your rent/wages, other overhead and spoilage. I really don't see how they can stay in business with that margin, let alone make a decent living.
But, some things cost more in some places than others. Maybe rent is really low where you live so your LHBS's overhead isn't as high, or maybe that LHBS owns the building instead of renting, or they don't have much staff, etc.
bh10
Well-Known Member
I get all my gran from my lhbs, except Weyermann stuf (which I use more than most), and they have decent deals on Weyermann, especially since I dont have to drive into town to buy it.
Daybis
Well-Known Member
I don't have a LHBS, so I purchase all my grains online. I ordered Rahr 2-row from them a few weeks ago. Shipped the day I ordered and it was at my door step 24 hours later (Shipped from KY to MS). Shipping was included in the price. I'm happy with them so far.
1234
Well-Known Member
They are in-fact owned by the same people who own Rebel Brewer. The customer service is great and considering the rising price of oil I would say the prices aren't too bad.
Backporchbrewery
Well-Known Member
I've order from them and they were great! They shipped faster than I thought and were the best deal online.
Edit: Also, I've used the Malteurop pale malt in 4 batches now and it's been great. Don't let the cheaper price scare you off that one.
Edit: Also, I've used the Malteurop pale malt in 4 batches now and it's been great. Don't let the cheaper price scare you off that one.
I don't know how a company could give any better service. Their prices are good considering the freight is included. I would not hesitate to order from them. Have used Rebel many times and have had zero problems. It is a 3 hr drive for me to go to their store. I make a bulk buy there and go once a year or so. Good people. I got a few sacks of Malteurop and I liked it way better than Breiss, but not as well as Rahr. I get a bit more protein from the Malteurop. If you only use a few sacks I would have them deliver to my door. Their selection makes it nice. I can't get what they have at my lhbs.
O'Haggerty
Well-Known Member
Price is a little high, even shipped.
Some of the more complex / euro grains might be more competitive, but if you want sacks of american base malt, there are much cheaper options like:
www.ritebrew.com or many of the HBT vendor sites (austin etc)
Some of the more complex / euro grains might be more competitive, but if you want sacks of american base malt, there are much cheaper options like:
www.ritebrew.com or many of the HBT vendor sites (austin etc)
Nateo
Well-Known Member
I checked out Ritebrew.com on your recommendation. Briess Pils malt - $42.49. Shipping would cost me $24.68, total = $67.17.
Fiftypoundsack doesn't carry the same Briess products, but they have a Briess 2-row for $66 shipped. They have a Rahr pils malt for $62 shipped. So fifty is actually slightly cheaper than ritebrew, at least to my ZIP, and fifty has better selection of whole sacks.
If I wanted to buy 6-row ritebrew would be a little cheaper, but I would never buy a sack of 6-row.
O'Haggerty
Well-Known Member
I just looked, he must have a small inventory because breiss 2row was 29.99 + ~15 shipping = 45 shipped to my door. I don't see 2row on his site now. Must have updated the inventory since I looked last.
Oh well. I'm still convinced there are cheaper ways of getting malt than paying 68+. I've been on the prowl for my new malt source lately. I may actually just get a EIN/TIN for wholesale ordering from mid country and save myself the future headache.
Oh well. I'm still convinced there are cheaper ways of getting malt than paying 68+. I've been on the prowl for my new malt source lately. I may actually just get a EIN/TIN for wholesale ordering from mid country and save myself the future headache.
Backporchbrewery
Well-Known Member
I've almost ordered bulk grains from other places like Austin HB, but most of their sacks are cut to 40lbs. So their marris otter would end up at $1.91/lb where 50poundsack ends up at $1.44/lb. The ritebrew place was close but shipping to me was over $25, which made the price just a little higher. If I had a lhbs, I'd definitely go there but the closest one to me is about 2hrs away.
Looks like a decent deal to me. My LHBS only caries Briess 2-row currently at $64 a sack + tax and it's 40 miles from my house. Not near as good a deal as I get on a once or twice a year group by we do from Country Malt Group, but if I need a bag or two in between then I would consider ordering from them.
This is why if the LHBS has something, and the price difference is negligible or only a couple bucks more then online, I'll purchase from the LHBS. Its great to have one nearby, for ease of purchase and to have a local brewing gathering point.
Scooby_Brew
Well-Known Member
I don't get it. $66 (+shipping) for a bag of Briess 2-Row? I get that at my LHBS for $55, and right now it's on sale for $45.
Check again. The shipping is free and like I said my LHBS store charges $64 for briess plus tax and it's 40 miles away from my house so I could have this shipped cheaper. It's nice you can get it for $45, but a lot of the country can't.
FredTheNuke
Well-Known Member
Yup - this site makes sense for me! My LHBS (ebrew.com) wants about the same price BUT I don't have to sit in traffic with net orders!
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Some of you clearly don't understand the prices and distances that some of us contend with regarding out "local" homebrew store.
Just enjoy how fortunate you are rather than rubbing our noses in it.
Just enjoy how fortunate you are rather than rubbing our noses in it.
DavidJP
Well-Known Member
Might also be worth checking around a sack of 2 row is $36 at my local LHBS and if you add in shipping to oklahoma thats $20 extra for $56 total with shipping. Just typed in random oklahoma zip code so might not be directly applicable but worth looking at.
http://morebeer.com/products/domestic-2row-50-lb-sack.html
Thats for a great western product, i see rahr 2 row is $68 at fifty pound sack
http://www.fiftypoundsack.com/products/Rahr-2-Row.html
Not sure if they are directly compatible but the GW product is good
I used to live in the Boonies and ordered from 50lb Sack all of the time. I have nothing but good things to say about them and considering the fact that any homebrew store was a 4 hour drive, it made a lot of sense. Now that I live somewhere that I can get in on group buys or pick up a sack or two at the lhbs, I do that. 50lb sack really is pretty reasonable given the distances that I was dealing with.
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Basic grains like that can be had for a reasonable cost if one finds themselves in Oklahoma city. It's things like Weyerman, Crisp, or other premium malts that are either unavailable or cost prohibitive at low volume stores.
Good looking out though. If I didn't occasionally have to drive the two hours for other reasons, I might need to do that.
