Brewing on a Budget: Extract, Partial Mash, or Wine

What are some good recipes for brewing on a budget? I've only done an extract batch so far, but I would be willing to try partial mash. I'm also open to trying wines. I've got a batch of apfelwein bubbling away, and I'm thinking about trying banana wine.

Before you guys say "HOMEBREW IS NOT A CHEAP HOBBY GO BUY A CASE OF NATTY ICE," let me explain that I'm a college student who loves to cook and can food. I like the process and the learning I get about microbiology along the way. I love the craft, but until I get a job, I can't afford to spend too much cash on ingredients.

I'm into stouts and porters, but I also have a tiny palate, since I've only been legal to drink a few months. Any good recipes that could make a 5 gallon batch for between $25-40 would be great. Also great is if it's stuff that's not too challenging for inexperienced palates, as my mom and friends aren't exactly hopheads.

Definitely go with Partial Mash... A partial mash recipe is always going to be cheaper than a comparable extract recipe. BTW IMHO anybody that would be so snobby to tell you to go buy some crap is just a jerk. Homebrewing can definitely be much cheaper than buying commercial beer. Just don't go out and buy every gadget imaginable. An excellent stout is Deception (click link in my signature). Just do the PM version of it. It will end up being under $40.
Edit: Deception is great for the inexperienced palates. I have several friends who don't like most good beer and only drink BMC's, but I have yet to find a person (craft beer drinker or BMCer) who didn't like it.

In my experience making wine is more expensive because you have to buy the juice which adds up. Apfelwein is great b/c apple juice is so cheap but anything else you're looking at a heavy price up front for most things...unless you press your own or it grows in your back yard. Most of my beers cost me 20-30 bucks but my wines so far have averaged 40+. In my opinion beer is much more forgiving than wine is when it comes to taste, aging and ingredients.
-Jefe-

Definitely PM.

Depending on how much you can boil you might want to start making your own recipes though. Several of the PM kits that I picked up only included about 3 Lbs of grain, so cost wise it was almost as expensive as extract. Doing the conversion from pounds of extract to pounds of grain is pretty easy.

It's also pretty easy to do 3 gallon AG batches on your stove. If you've already got a cooler of some sort (doesn't have to be dedicated to brewing) all you'd need is a grain bag (which you'll need for PM anyway) and your normal siphon.

JefeTheVol said:

In my experience making wine is more expensive because you have to buy the juice which adds up. Apfelwein is great b/c apple juice is so cheap but anything else you're looking at a heavy price up front for most things...unless you press your own or it grows in your back yard. Most of my beers cost me 20-30 bucks but my wines so far have averaged 40+. In my opinion beer is much more forgiving than wine is when it comes to taste, aging and ingredients.
-Jefe-

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2nd the apfelwein easy cheap and way to get into the hobby

Clearly All Grain is the cheapest way to go. However, it has a larger up front cost. Doesn't Partial Mash require some additional equipment as well? If so, is it still cost effective?

I would recommend checking out Austin Homebrew. They have a "$.50 Beer Kit" selection:

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php?cPath=178_452_378_379

They have extract and partial mash. There is also a good variety. I am currently brewing their promotial english IPA. It was $20 for the all grain kit, minus the yeast.

Are you new to the hobby?

eljefe said:

Clearly All Grain is the cheapest way to go. However, it has a larger up front cost. Doesn't Partial Mash require some additional equipment as well? If so, is it still cost effective?

Click to expand...

Partial mash can be as simple or as elaborate as you want. A grain bag may be all of the additional equipment needed. When I first started with partial mashing, I lined my bottling bucket with a big grain bag and did it right in there. I just wrapped the bucket with a sleeping bag to help maintain heat. You can also do it in a pot in the oven, a kettle on the stove, etc. It doesn't have to be anything expensive.

Not only does PM cost less than all-extract, you can do beers (like oatmeal stout) that require a mash.

I really like Jamil's recipe in "Brewing Classic Styles" for a nice PM oatmeal stout.