Costs of DME and LME at my LHB

[Canadian_Brewer]

Hello,

I visited my LHB today and they were selling 1 KG of pale malt extract (DME) for $7.00, and about the same for DME that was only 500 grams.

What's the deal? I'm better off just buying a beer kit eh?

 

[Onihige]

Buy it.

 

[Canadian_Brewer]

It seems to me that I may have been mistaken in assuming that brewing with extracts are cheaper than with a kit. Can someone confirm this?

 

[danb35]

Extracts and kits are not an either/or proposition--there are kits that are all extract, kits that are extract plus specialty grains, and kits that are all grain. If you could be more specific about the comparisons you're making (which varieties of malt extracts, which brands and styles of kits), the folks here might be able to provide more useful responses.

 

[Canadian_Brewer]

Extracts and kits are not an either/or proposition--there are kits that are all extract, kits that are extract plus specialty grains, and kits that are all grain. If you could be more specific about the comparisons you're making (which varieties of malt extracts, which brands and styles of kits), the folks here might be able to provide more useful responses.

Hi thanks for your reply,


I wasn't aware that there were different kinds of kits. The kit I bought today is an all extract kit. That is, there are no steeping additions/all grain ingredients. It was $34. It's a pale ale from a company called "The Brew House"


Also the pale ale extracts (both DME and LME) were the ones I was talking about that were around $7, for 500 grams and 1 KG, respectively.

 

[chickypad]

If you are asking if you save money buying ingredients separately over buying a kit, I don't think you really do unless you are buying in bulk (just quickly reviewed a couple kits on morebeer and NB and they seemed about the same as ingredients added up). Seems the main advantage of a kit is you have everything already together and you don't end up with odd quantities of ingredients.

 

[billpaustin]

I found a kit I really liked, and then bought those ingredients in bulk. 50lbs of DME, the others in ratio, etc. It is a little cheaper.

 

[mattd2]

I agree with the above. Think about it from the shops perpective, it doesn't make any difference for them if you buy your specified recipe of 5# of LME, 3 oz of hops, yeast, etc. or you use their recipe for 5# of LME, 3 oz of hops, yeast, etc. - it cost them the same and they have to make the same margins. Recipe kits I see as a service that the LHBS offer to make things easier for the customer that want it.

 

[andy6026]

I recently made the switch from extract to AG. Although I had to build a mashtun which required a modest investment, only after going AG have I found making beer to be noticeably economical. Other than 1 AG batch that had a ridiculous grain bull, I'm finding that by AG brewing I'm now able to see light at the end of the tunnel in terms of paying off my startup costs. Not there yet of course, but AG has helped make a major step. Of course everyone has preferences and restrictions, but I'm just saying how surprised I was by how much cheaper it is.

 

[unionrdr]

A pound of Munton's plain DME goes for $5-$6 around here. So your price isd a hair high,but close. I too have found that deperate extract ingredients cost roughly the same as a kit. But I have the satisfaction of brewing my own recipe. By going to partial mash,partial boil biab,& washing yeast,I can cut the cost to about $15.50 for 5 gallons. Buying yeast,it goes up to as much as about $20. Price also depends on what kit you buy. Some cost more than others,depending on what & how much is in it.

 

[JDGator]

i'm in Canada too and it's cheaper to buy the ingredients then buy kits. i'll give you an example. Yoopers DFH 60min cost me $30 at my LHBS and that is buying the exact ingredients needed. they put everything in individual bags and labelled. if i buy a kit, i'm over $40 plus shipping. Look at the prices say from Ontario Beer Kegs or Toronto Brewing.

The best thing to do is buy hops by the pound if possible. and learn to wash yeast like uniondr mentioned. this will save you $5-10 a batch.

if i'm looking for cheap and quick, i make a Coopers IPA. Costs around $20 if i don't use hops and $22-25 if i hop it up. i also get the Coopers Cans for $17.

 

[IslandLizard]

Hello,

I visited my LHB today and they were selling 1 KG of pale malt extract (DME) for $7.00, and about the same for DME that was only 500 grams.

What's the deal? I'm better off just buying a beer kit eh?

Briess, Muntons DME etc. is usually sold in 1# (~$5) and 3# (~$13) bags. In Canada those may be rounded to the nearest 1/2 kg.

That 1 kg of DME may have come from their own bulk stock or some (other) generic company, maybe not. There's probably no brand label on it, just the LHBS sticker. $7 for 1 kg sound like a decent price, as long as it is good and fresh.

When you look at most beer kits, the prices are usually in typical retail increments, like $35.99, $39.98 etc. rarely do you find $31.15, so there is some price shuffling and marketing going on. Many LHBS package their own kits from their bulk stock.

If you look at the kits' ingredients, and piece them together yourself you may save a few bucks. Buying larger quantities (50# sack of extra light DME in a bulk buy, hops by the pound etc.) will definitely end up saving more per batch. Plus you can customize the recipes to your setup and taste, and definitely brew recipes from HBT and other resources that are not available in kits.

The flip side is you may end up with some leftovers at some point, like 1.75oz of Cascade, .35# of Crystal 40 etc. I'm sure you can find a use for them in the next brew.

 

[DaNewf]

I'm in Newfoundland so I usually pay a little more for most stuff than the rest of Canada (shipping?).

500gr of DME costs $9.20CDN at my LHBS. A kilo of LME costs between $11 and $13 depending on color. 1.5kg cans of Black Rock LME are $19.95.

I am currently examining doing 3 gallon all grain batches using the BIAB method on my kitchen stove top. I think this would reduce the cost of ingredients without requiring any new equipment since I already have a 20l pot and a couple 5 gallon paint straining bags.

 

[unionrdr]

One pound equals about 454g,& I've seen metric countries selling them in 500g weights. That's half a kilogram. I can get a pound of plain Munton's DME for $4.99 from midwest,& the lhbs about $6. So location def matters as to actual cost. Shop around fro the best price vs getting it now or waiting for shipping.
A couple days ago I coulda got BOGO on better bottles at midwest,but had 45 Cooper's PET bottles I wanted to get rid of for a BB to secondary in occasionally. So I did the trade with a member out in Wyoming. Less clutter & getting something I have more use for,supposed to be today.
So it's a matter of what you need & what you're willing to give up to get it.

 

[woozy]

It's weird that your store sold kg and 500 g for the exact same price. One would expect the kilo to be at least a dollar more.

Kits vs. bulk. Stores pretty much do what they want and I don't think there's too difference or too much effort on either the store or the customer.

Lemme think about my LHBS, hmmm... The charge a flat $34 bucks for an extract kit which includes:

6 lb LME = 13.20
1 lb DME = 3.90
1 lb speciality grains = 1.95
Various hops usually 1 1/2 to 3 oz.: 7.50 (based on three oz)
dry yeast = 4.95
priming sugar = .95
dipsosable grain bag = $1.00
whirlfloc tablet = .30

total: 33.75. Wow.... that's pretty darned close...

=== later ===
Actually the kits are only $32 and the specialty grains are $2.25/lb. Not that anyone cares but I stated information and later gave the LHBS name so for the sake of accuracy...

 

[BinghamtonEd]

6 lb LME = 13.20

Wow, can you tell me where I can find that? I'm paying that much for 3.3 lb cans.

 

[unionrdr]

Cooper's cans have gone up a bit. They did have some big wildfire down there not too long ago. The Thomas Cooper's selection Heritage Lager can costs $24.95 just about everywhere I looked. The other cans weren't much cheaper.

 

[woozy]

Wow, can you tell me where I can find that? I'm paying that much for 3.3 lb cans.

Oak Barrel in Berkeley Ca.

LME in bulk for $2.20 a lb (+ some charge for the container). Online it's $2.30 a pound plus shipping. It's not vacuum packed. They get it in large drums and from the drums you or they fill food grade plastic jars.

They're a really good store with great people. Their prices on extract and grains are really good although for yeast and hops not so much.

 

[BinghamtonEd]

Wish I had something like that around here. Shipping kills the deal for me (in NY).

 

[woozy]

Wish I had something like that around here. Shipping kills the deal for me (in NY).

I'm new to this hobby so I didn't realize it was that unusual at first. Shipping kills *everything*. But you could stock up 24 lbs increases the shipping to 20 for $75.20 for $3.14 a pound for enough for 4 batches and... Oh, I don't know. Keep looking.