differences in brewing costs

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rhoop

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I'm noticing a lot of people saying how they have spent $70-$90 on ingredients for a HG all grain batch. I live on the prairies, so maybe I'm lucky, and can buy 50lb bags of 2-row for $22, and even if I'm buying specialty malts by the lb from my LBHS, I'm not paying more than a $2.50ish a lb. I've never spent more than $50 on a 5G batch.

My question is, do grain prices vary that much throughout North America? Or am I just missing something? How do you spend that much on a 5G batch?
 
Cheapest I can find US 2 row around here is about $60 per sack. Maris Otter would be close to $80! From my LHBS I pay between $2.99 and $3.15 for specialty malts per pound. White Lab yeast is $10 per vial.
A big beer could add up really fast. Thankfully I brew mostly 1.040 to 1.060 beers.
 
Rhoop, if you're in Canada, that may have something to do with it. My brother lives in Winnipeg, MB and reports that the Canadian dollar is stronger than the American dollar at the moment, so prices on certain things are cheaper than here. It really depends on what it is, though -- gasoline is higher, for instance. And since MB only sells beer through the government stores, it's higher there, too.

Anyway, what I'm getting at is that you're a) closer to the source and b) your money is worth more, so your grain prices are a bit better.
 
My LHBS 10 miles away in decorah has very good prices, plus, no shipping for me if I get stuff there. Although, they also have good shipping prices (not sure about sacks of grain though) for those that are not local.

2Row is $38ish I think for 50lbs. Pilsner, munich, other bulk malts, etc are around $50 for 55lbs.

Specialty malts are maybe $2-$2.50 I think buying by pound.

$7 for yeast. (although I usually get 2-4 beers per yeast by building starters or saving yeast).

Hops by the pound for $10-$20 for the most part.

The big thing is no shipping makes a huge difference, plus, the ability to buy sacks of grain relatively cheap. The only way I have ever come close to $50+ on a batch is huge beers like Belgian Dark Strong or Barleywines. Typical beer maybe $20-$30 for ingredients.

Anyone spending $50-$70 per batch on all-grain really needs to seek out group buys, better options - It would be worth driving a couple hours to pick up 200-300 lbs of grain and 10+ pounds of hops to stock up for 6-12 months at a time.
 
LHBS sells MO for $90/sack. I don't understand their pricing when I can get it shipped from halfway across the country and pay $75/sack including shipping.

Where are you getting grain for $22/sack?
 
Think of other things that may be added into the batch.

I made a 10 gallon batch of a chocolate cherry porter (racked 5G on 3#s of cherry and 5G on 6#s of cherry) The 3 cherry purees alone cost me $50.

Then I wasn't buying grain in bulk so using 20#s of grain cost me $40 then $14 in yeast because i wasn't making starters, and another $8 in hops

So the total for just that was $112.

I also made a 5G Gulden Draak clone that was $40 in grain $20 in hops $14 in yeast $10 in candi syrup... i was looking at $85ish for 5G...

granted now that i own a mill and buy grains and hops in bulk and make starters and harvest yeast i could make that same batch for around $25, but thats when i was learning. I was trying to make crazy complex and big beers and was just throwing money away...
 
The most expensive AG 5 gallon batch I've made was a 1.074 IPA and that was only $30. If it cost me $90 for a batch I might not homebrew.
 
Group buys save a ton of money. I paid about $50 for around 80 lbs of various grains and less than $10/ lb of hops in my last one. With reusing yeast I can do a batch for around $10-$15 lately.
 
I spend about $90 dollars a batch for 10 gallons. Not to bad. Grain is already milled and ready to go. Someday I'll buy bulk, but until that time, this works for me.
 
I'm noticing a lot of people saying how they have spent $70-$90 on ingredients for a HG all grain batch. I live on the prairies, so maybe I'm lucky, and can buy 50lb bags of 2-row for $22, and even if I'm buying specialty malts by the lb from my LBHS, I'm not paying more than a $2.50ish a lb. I've never spent more than $50 on a 5G batch.

My question is, do grain prices vary that much throughout North America? Or am I just missing something? How do you spend that much on a 5G batch?

Maybe their LHBS has high prices? There's not one in my town but there is one about 30 miles down the road and their prices about 1.5x more expensive than online. Makes me glad it's so far away that I don't feel morally obligated to patronize it.

Otherwise, I have no idea. I just put together a 1.092 IIPA with 8 ounces of hops for $65 including yeast and shipping. And that's extract. It would be slightly cheaper if I did AG.
 
US dollar growing weaker has changed a lot of the pricing structure in this industry. I know that the cost per bag we have been paying for milled grains has gone up a bit as well as hop and yeast costs.
 
Without trying to complain too much...

Pricing has been creeping up at my local store, which is a bit of a letdown. It's become a balancing act of should I buy something online and deal with the absurd $12 shipping fee (ie. for a pack of yeast, come on!) or feel like a sucker and pay a totally overpriced amount at the store, and only save a few dollars by walking instead of convenience of delivery.

However, while trying to put together a simple recipe with 11lbs of grain, 2 hop varieties and S-04, did a price comparison on 4 sites vs my local shop. It came out about ~$35-40 including shipping, or for the local price without shipping. So, I guess that's just "the price" for a batch, as there are no other options for my lack of storage space.
 
The first shop I went to was through the roof. I didn't know any better at the time. They charge 17cents per ounce of grain. Sounds cheap huh? Until you do the math and figure there is 16 ounces to a pound and you need 10-14 pounds of grain. $20 for a hydrometer $12 for a smack pack $2.50ft for beer line. Thank god I found the shop I go to know before I got turned off from the hobby. Prices like that it would have been cheaper to stick to mr beer. It was ridiculous paying $70 for a 5 gallon batch of 5% beer
 
Jayhem said:
The most expensive AG 5 gallon batch I've made was a 1.074 IPA and that was only $30. If it cost me $90 for a batch I might not homebrew.

Agreed. The local microbreweries I've looked at to buy 5 gallon kegs are usually around $80-90 depending on the beer. If it was that high I'd rather just get my kegs filled
 
Another thing I'm concerned about is stepping up to 10 gallon batches. I have a few house brews I try to brew consistently. Usually never over $40. But if I have to double the ingredients I don't want to have to double the price. I'm reusing hop sacks and growing my own hops. Going to wash yeast for the first time at the end of this week. Trying to pinch every penny I can to keep this hobby viable. Last summer I was accepting donations from guys at work in exchange for growlers in which I would give them free beer. I was selling empty growlers at $12 a pop and filling them with whatever brew they wanted. I self 2-3 and that paid for my next batch. Currently looking into some other equipment to branch out to help pay for the hobby.
 
This thread makes mefeel glad I live where I live - lots of local brewing tradition mean readily available sources if you're willing to buy bulk. A local microbrewery charges 1€ per kg of grain (pilsner, vienna, munich) - that translates to 45 cents (european) per pound. If I pick up a 50kg (=110lb) sack of the same malts at a local maltster, that'll cost me 30€. For a pound of Hallertauer Tradition the hop farmer charged me 3.60. Dry yeast is a couple bucks, even American produced liquid yeast is way cheaper online than what I read on here.
All in all, my latest 6g batch of an oatmeal porter cost me about 6-7€, including water.
 
I guess im cheap, i made only 2 batches with ingredients at regular prices and since then im getting much better at getting cost down ie next pale ale im making (10gal, og 1.055):
grain 21lb=$16 (base from group buy for around $0.6/lb+ 2lb of crystals)
Hops 5oz (1oz of magnum for bittering, 2oz cascade for late additions and 2oz for DH) ~$4, group buy
washed yeast+ starter from 2nd sparge running that i freeze=free
NG system= almost free
Looks like 10gal of good beer for $20 ;)
 
i pay from $50 to $90 per 5.5G batch, this is buying mostly in bulk. Welcome to both the mexican industry of no-LHBS & the economy!
 
My beers are usually between 20-30$ for a 5 gal A/G batch. I find that it's not the grain that runs up the bill, for me it's the extra hop additions, oak coils, specialty yeast. I know these aren't required for all of my brews but when I want to get a little wild it hits my wallet first.
 
Fair enough, I didnt think about all the fancy additions. I don't generally play around with anything but the basics, so spending $50 on cherries didn't cross my mind ;).

I usually bulk purchase base malts, then buy some specialty stuff by the lb. I buy hops in bulk online, and yeast from the LHBS.

I guess I've taken the availability and price of grains for granted! I will now appreciate it much more. I buy malt direct from Western Canadian malting. They have a warehouse about 45min north of where I live, so I make one trip a year and buy a few bags that I split with brew buddies.
 
2 row $.70
C 60 $1.33
Munich $.81
Pilsner $.93
Vienna $.81
Black Patent $1.31
CaraAroma $1.46
Marris Otter $1.19

Some sample prices from my goto brew shop. This is not bulk prices - it's by the lb (in 1/10 increments). It's online so I pay shipping. I usually order enough for 3 to 4 batches with each order - that makes shipping cheaper than flat rate for a single batch!

http://www.brewbrothers.biz/
 
2 row $.70
C 60 $1.33
Munich $.81
Pilsner $.93
Vienna $.81
Black Patent $1.31
CaraAroma $1.46
Marris Otter $1.19

Some sample prices from my goto brew shop. This is not bulk prices - it's by the lb (in 1/10 increments). It's online so I pay shipping. I usually order enough for 3 to 4 batches with each order - that makes shipping cheaper than flat rate for a single batch!

http://www.brewbrothers.biz/

Great prices for malt (if local, shipping kills the deal) can find hops for cheaper but still ok
 
I paid $22 and change for my last 10 gallon batch of stout. (1.065 OG). Never really tracked how much the individual grain cost, really....
 
$40/50 lb 2 row and under $2/lb for most specialty grains. I buy hops by the lb so less than about $/oz for most and I'm going to start growing. I just ordered my first rhizomes.
 
Brewitt said:
$40/50 lb 2 row and under $2/lb for most specialty grains. I buy hops by the lb so less than about $/oz for most and I'm going to start growing. I just ordered my first rhizomes.

Sorry. Didn't finish that one. Starting from there:

I recover most of my yeast from bottled beers I like. When I do buy I grow a bit up from the dregs of the vial and freeze for later use. Almost never pay for yeast. Biggest expense is hops in a big IPA and the malt extract I use for starters.
 
2 row $.70
C 60 $1.33
Munich $.81
Pilsner $.93
Vienna $.81
Black Patent $1.31
CaraAroma $1.46
Marris Otter $1.19

Some sample prices from my goto brew shop. This is not bulk prices - it's by the lb (in 1/10 increments). It's online so I pay shipping. I usually order enough for 3 to 4 batches with each order - that makes shipping cheaper than flat rate for a single batch!

http://www.brewbrothers.biz/

I checked out the brewbrothers site. Really liked the $29 price for 2-row. Did a shipping estimate for South Carolina — $60.00 plus. Just doesn't make sense, but perhaps I'm missing something.

Guess I'll continue to pay a little over $1/pound from MoreBeer and get free shipping for any order over $59. My only semi-local option would be a small craft brewery about 40, hard miles away. I'm not sure that their pricing would be that much better. FWIW, most of my 5 gallon batches come in at about $20 to $25. ABVs are in the 6.5 and under range, and most are relatively easy on the hops and used recycled yeast.
 
For me it's the hops that hit the most, so if I'm making a beer that's low on hops like belgian blondes or trippels , etc it will be significantly cheaper than a very hoppy IPA with 8-12 oz of hops. Right there we're talking about 16-20$ difference in the batch price
 
My LHBS charges $2.70/lb for 2-row or any other of their limited grain and $3.25/oz for hops. Brewing with LME from them is cheaper then AG because it's $9/L (3.15LB). I'm not sure I could afford to be an alcoholic at those prices so I mail order most of my stuff and go there is I need one or 2 things.
I'd prefer to support local business but between selection and price it's hard, but I could see how people would get those numbers using 15lbs of base malt at those prices.
 
for me here in uk, 25kg maris otter is £20 > $32
100g hops is £2-3 > $3.1-$4.7
yeast 11g pack $2 > $3.1

a typical bitter beer costs about £10 for 5uk gallons
 
matteroftaste said:
for me here in uk, 25kg maris otter is £20 > $32
100g hops is £2-3 > $3.1-$4.7
yeast 11g pack $2 > $3.1

a typical bitter beer costs about £10 for 5uk gallons

Where do you get it for £20? I have only seen it £33
 
Where do you get it for £20? I have only seen it £33

£33 is expensive, i get mine from a microbrewer contact when i can, but this place is pretty good when times are hard, the mill seems a little fine, i tend to loose about 2-5% efficiency with this at the top of the sac, but the price is right no? yeast and hop prices great here too.
 
matteroftaste said:
£33 is expensive, i get mine from a microbrewer contact when i can, but this place is pretty good when times are hard, the mill seems a little fine, i tend to loose about 2-5% efficiency with this at the top of the sac, but the price is right no? yeast and hop prices great here too.

Thanks for the link. I usually get my supplies from "the home brew shop" online or my LHBS who seems to be very expensive. :)
 
In Anchorage Ak LHBS:

50lb domestic 2-row: $69.99

55lb Maris otter: $89.99

All grains per pound: $2.19

Hops, most types: 2oz-$4.99, 4oz-$8.99

5 gallon carboy: $44.99

6 gallon carboy: $49.99

All in all, expensive as hell. But a good selection of yeasts, grains, and hops. Also a lot of expensive equipment and books.

Worst thing I bought was a $14.99 stir bar. It's like $4.00 everywhere else. And don't tell me it costs anything to ship.
 
Dude I buy from arctic brewing supply also and I bought one of those $14 stir bars too! I though it was crazy, you can get one for $2 on eBay, more with shipping. But really! $14?
Yeast costs $10 or $12 per vial which I think is also pretty steep. Problem is that shipping to Alaska costs just as much as going to ABS for a kit. Also, found cheaper DME online and will start buying in semi bulk with free shipping. I do like that the kits at ABS are a little better quality than most of the kits you can get online as far as extract is concerned. Nice to have a knowledgable staff and brew store in town as well.
 
1.50 grains per lb. Includes specialty too so it all evens out, and it works out great when you get 14 lbs of grain and a beer tasting for 14 bucks lol.
 

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