McCall St. Brewer
Well-Known Member
Are homebrewers, as a group, tightwads? Think about it. How many threads have you read here where one of us posts to brag about their new MLT that they cobbled together for $3 out of parts that they found on the road on their way home from work? Or, how many efficiency threads have you seen where someone stays up for three days straight worrying about why their sparging technique is not getting that last 2 or 3% out of their grain (when 2 more lbs of the stuff would cost them $3 at their LBHS)? We make brew kettles out of old sanke kegs when professional grade SS stockpots that cost less than $100 can be had that will last years and years.
In contrast, if you go to forums for, say, photography, people there think nothing of spending $800-900 for a new lens and sometimes thousands of dollars for a new camera body that, in the digital age, will seem obsolete in 2 years. They buy stacks of the latest, biggest and fastest memory cards, all kinds of processing software (the new Photoshop will cost about $600 or 700 I think).
My wife just bought a new camera and two lenses. We felt that we got a good deal when we paid just under $700 for it. Can you imagine the fancy setup I could have bought for brewing beer for $700? Yet, if I had gone out and spent that money on a brewing setup and posted pictures here, I'm afraid people would think I'm some rich guy who has too much money to blow.
In a sense, though, it is refreshing, isn't it? So many hobbies nowadays are all about spending money on the biggest, newest, shiniest toys. Brewing, for most of us, seems to be an entirely different animal. It is a peaceful pastime. It really is more of a craft that, which a little bit of knowledge, experience and care, almost anyone can become pretty good at. It's not about having the coolest equipment, but rather about making good beer and enjoying it.
In contrast, if you go to forums for, say, photography, people there think nothing of spending $800-900 for a new lens and sometimes thousands of dollars for a new camera body that, in the digital age, will seem obsolete in 2 years. They buy stacks of the latest, biggest and fastest memory cards, all kinds of processing software (the new Photoshop will cost about $600 or 700 I think).
My wife just bought a new camera and two lenses. We felt that we got a good deal when we paid just under $700 for it. Can you imagine the fancy setup I could have bought for brewing beer for $700? Yet, if I had gone out and spent that money on a brewing setup and posted pictures here, I'm afraid people would think I'm some rich guy who has too much money to blow.
In a sense, though, it is refreshing, isn't it? So many hobbies nowadays are all about spending money on the biggest, newest, shiniest toys. Brewing, for most of us, seems to be an entirely different animal. It is a peaceful pastime. It really is more of a craft that, which a little bit of knowledge, experience and care, almost anyone can become pretty good at. It's not about having the coolest equipment, but rather about making good beer and enjoying it.