Cheapest & Best Extract Kits......

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end of... what's the best deal you've got on the best batch??

My best beer so far from an extract was not a kit. The cool part of brewing for me is putting together the recipe. I have done a lot of kits since I'm all extract (so far) but I get much more satisfaction from creating the recipe and selecting the steeping grains, hops/additions, adjuncts and gravity (and don't forget that the fermentation is a great way to control flavor in high gravity beer with the right yeast).

And... Don't be discouraged by brewers out there that will hate on you for brewing extract. You can make great extract beers!
 
My best deals have been with MW's extract kits (since I DON'T do AG, and the thread topic is EXTRACT beers). I have tried ordering some a la carte ingredients, but it's usually much more expensive that way. I've read people complaining about MW's shipping charges, but my calculations reflect that online vendors that have the flat shipping charges simply charge more for the various items they sell.
 
interesting...

looks like the price of bulk LME/muntons light is abotu $3.10/lb.... hmmm...wonder if i could get it cheaper....
 
I have used the Brewers Best Kits from my LHBS and I have really enjoyed them. I have tweaked the directions with Late Extract Addition and some other minor things, but overall, I really like them. They are really a 'complete' kit too; they come with LME, DME, Hops, Crushed Specialty Grains, a grain bag, Priming sugar and bottle caps. They range from 30 to 40$.

My LHBS has a lot of kit turnover so they don't sit on the shelves too long. I just did their Classic English Pale Ale and it was great.
 
+1 on Brewers Best Kits, the ones I've had are not pre-hopped extract and the price is less than putting it together yourself.
 
IMO the best deals on extract kits that I have found (online)is at Morebeer.com They have no shipping and handling charges. Austin home brew has a much better selection but costs 10-15 dollars more per order.

The best deals I have is from my LHBS. The place is billed as an "in house" brewing store, but they have a catalog to pick through in the store. They make the kit to oder so everything is milled right in front of you. The extracts are poured into quart containers on site not sealed in foil pouches like you get from most extract kits.
 
I didn't know they made Pre-hopped kits.

If you're talking about pre-hopped extract in kits, here's one:
yhst-17254560480715_2041_1202558


Here you can see the can of extract as "Hopped Amber" on it. I've got two of these kits (as a gift at home) from True Brew, both are pre-hopped. One has extra hops to add, one does not.
 
Briess LME @ $1.14.....DME @ $ 2.00 plus shipping
I've never used Briess extracts....but I think they have a decent reputation.

http://www.countrymaltgroup.com/pdf/NC_SalesBook.pdf

scroll about 1/3 down the page

The shipping is going to be pretty high on 50 or 60 pounds of extract, but if you could add it to a bulk grain buy it would only cost a few dollars to ship.

I like to formulate my own recipes and the best price for smaller quantities of LME is a sale at Morebeer this week. for 8 pound bags it is $1.84 a pound and shipping is free if you spend $60.

Here is the link to the sale info:
Brewing Stimulus Act | MoreBeer
you need to scroll down to this weeks deals
 
If you're talking about pre-hopped extract in kits, here's one:
yhst-17254560480715_2041_1202558


Here you can see the can of extract as "Hopped Amber" on it. I've got two of these kits (as a gift at home) from True Brew, both are pre-hopped. One has extra hops to add, one does not.

how does that work? Is it hops flavoring? Seems to lend itself to more processing.
 
The shipping is going to be pretty high on 50 or 60 pounds of extract, but if you could add it to a bulk grain buy it would only cost a few dollars to ship.

I like to formulate my own recipes and the best price for smaller quantities of LME is a sale at Morebeer this week. for 8 pound bags it is $1.84 a pound and shipping is free if you spend $60.

Here is the link to the sale info:
Brewing Stimulus Act | MoreBeer
you need to scroll down to this weeks deals

Any idea how long those would last in a fridge? (LME Bags)
 
how does that work? Is it hops flavoring? Seems to lend itself to more processing.

Heh, I have no clue. The first batch of beer I ever brewed was from pre-hopped extract, after a year I still find it undrinkable (drinkability = 0), nasty stuff IMO. The LBHS that sold it to my wife (and gave it as a gift to me) added no other hops to the ingredients. It was simply water, ~3lb of pre-hopped LME and ~3lb of DME + yeast.
 
The best deals I've found (and easiest kits to make) are the all-grain 'wort-in-a-bag' kit. There are two main brands I can get at my local homebrew shop: Festa Brew and Brew House. These are dump-in-a-fermenter-and-go so they're very easy, very cheap and very tasty!
a 23L kit usually sells for $27-$29 depending on the style.
 
to me it isn't about price its about quality of the kit. Kettle to Keg kits are great. They are from Suncook NH.
 
TO ME, it's about both.. how can I get the best beer for cheaper...

obviously, i'll be going all grain eventually, for for now i'm extract, and that's all i can do, and all i have time/equipment to do.. so, if I can come home with a delicious beer for $25... i'm goign to do that :)
 
It may not be the cheapest route, but I like to throw my LHBS a bone and buy from them. They are the ONLY brew store here in town and due to that fact they turn over their ingredients pretty quickly. I would be kinda upset if they had to close down w/the economy and all. They're open 7 days a week and it's nice to know you can go somewhere locally any time you need something especially in a pinch. They sell Brewer's Best kits as well as their own kits they put together. They are always very helpful and polite.
 
I have found the Grape and Granary to sell great kits at very reasonable prices. They put their kits together themselves, so the ingredients tend to be pretty fresh. They also use high-quality stuff and excellent recipes. Check out their website:

http://www.grapeandgranary.com/

If you order from them, remember that the kits don't come with bottlecaps, so you'll have to order them separately. Typically, they ship the kits with Nottingham Ale yeast, but you may want to check. Also, I usually request that they throw a copy of the ingredients in with the kit. The malt extract is usually labeled well, but you'll need the ingredient list to know what kinds of specialty grains they are using and what types of hops you've got.
 
TO ME, it's about both.. how can I get the best beer for cheaper...

obviously, i'll be going all grain eventually, for for now i'm extract, and that's all i can do, and all i have time/equipment to do.. so, if I can come home with a delicious beer for $25... i'm goign to do that :)

Try partial mashing. It's pretty much the same as steeping your grains and it will probably be cheaper, depending on what you pay for extract. See the thread in my sig.

EDIT: also, dry yeasts work just as well as (sometimes better than) liquid yeasts. Using S-05 instead of WLP001 in your beer will save you about $6 per recipe.

Making lower gravity beers that aren't hopped to hell is good, too. Hefeweizens are a great example of an inexpensive, flavorful beer.
 
I agree - but be sure to reduce the bittering hops by about 15% when doing full boils.

I'm planning on doing a full boil this weekend with a BB extract kit. Why reduce the hops? Would it be better to do a partial boil and use the full hops?
 
if I can come home with a delicious beer for $25... i'm goign to do that :)

I mostly use Windriver. Been buying from them for 12 yrs or so now & like there kits & ingedients. Not quite the selection of the big guys but they got what I need for the most part & good prices. If you check their internet newsletter you'll find some specials too. Right now there's a kolsch & a pale ale both under $25 with wyeast or under $20 with dry. Gonna have to restock myself pretty soon here.
 
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