How Much Money Is There To Be Saved?

[logan3825]

Immersion chiller? Probably not necessary but I bought one anyway. Like it better than ice. Saved money unless I would go through the hassle of making my own ice.

 

[bottlebomber]

I guess im just not a dedicated enough alcoholic to try to do this as a cost reduction technique... I know people who have though, and by using all grain brewing they have made beer very inexpensively. Personally I would never even occur to me to try and crunch what a 22 is costing me compared to a similar bottle of Hop Stoopid @$3.99. When i make a lasagna at home it costs me almost $40 in ingredients compared to Stouffers for $10. I personally think you can brew beers that you could never realistically get your hands on at any price. THAT'S the appeal to me. I haven't ever seen a three year old bottle of smoked scotch ale fortified with Talisker whisky available at any price. But I do admire how this thread has developed, I think its an excellent subject.

 

[Malticulous]

I'm in less than a grand and I could brew a Bud Lite type beer if I so wanted. All you need to do is make a good standard lager and add water. It dosen't get any cheaper. BMC laughs. MGD 64, Bud select 55, who can add the most water?

 

[iaefebs]

I have all my cost's for ingredients entered into Beersmith. I am doing a Centennial blonde next because I am testing out a new system and am using my older 10 gallon Rubbermaid round cooler with a different hose braid. If it works OK I will use it for my 60qt cooler and move to higher gravity brews. My cost's for a 10 gallon batch is $13.88. If my math is right that equals $4.45 a case.

 

[malweth]

I guess im just not a dedicated enough alcoholic to try to do this as a cost reduction technique... I know people who have though, and by using all grain brewing they have made beer very inexpensively. Personally I would never even occur to me to try and crunch what a 22 is costing me compared to a similar bottle of Hop Stoopid @$3.99. When i make a lasagna at home it costs me almost $40 in ingredients compared to Stouffers for $10. I personally think you can brew beers that you could never realistically get your hands on at any price. THAT'S the appeal to me. I haven't ever seen a three year old bottle of smoked scotch ale fortified with Talisker whisky available at any price. But I do admire how this thread has developed, I think its an excellent subject.

I'd love to see that lasagna recipe!
Through a friend, I have an expensive Mac & Cheese recipe (which uses smoked Gouda). While homemade M&C is always going to be more expensive than the box, at least there's cheese in it. If I were to make Lobster Mac w/ shaved truffles, I bet I could begin to approach (or even surpass) $40.

There's something to be said for quality of ingredients. On the other hand, poor quality, mass-produced foods will probably be what kills me in the end. A focus on "real" food costs a lot of money. And, while growing your own hops can save money, growing your own vegetables is not as easy to do (and can cost as much up front as making your own beer with less ROI).

 

[bottlebomber]

I'd love to see that lasagna recipe!
Through a friend, I have an expensive Mac & Cheese recipe (which uses smoked Gouda). While homemade M&C is always going to be more expensive than the box, at least there's cheese in it. If I were to make Lobster Mac w/ shaved truffles, I bet I could begin to approach (or even surpass) $40.

There's something to be said for quality of ingredients. On the other hand, poor quality, mass-produced foods will probably be what kills me in the end. A focus on "real" food costs a lot of money. And, while growing your own hops can save money, growing your own vegetables is not as easy to do (and can cost as much up front as making your own beer with less ROI).

With parmegiano reggiano sitting smugly at $20 a lb and 2 pounds of high quality ricotta coming in at $12, good god I bet its more than $40... only thing cheap is noodles.
Here in northern california vegetables really grow themselves while you watch. I have a 5000 sq. Ft fenced vegetable garden, the upfront cost was large but I built it up over three years and now the only cost is labor, electricity to pump well water and perhaps $150 in soil ammendments and fertilizer. Keeps me in tomato sauce and salsa for the whole year so its one of my few easily justified investments.

 

[themashedone]

It may cost more but its fresh and you can make any beer with any type of flavors you could ever imagine i made a cherry brown ale that took the top of my head right off where else could you buy that kind of beer ive never seen a cherry brown ale in the stores.

 

[BigB]

I haven't read all of the posts to see if someone scared him off, but hasn't anybody noticed that the OP hasn't been on for 2 weeks?

 

[logan3825]

you can make any beer with any type of flavors you could ever imagine.

I think that is the biggest advantage of homebrewing. I like to make beer styles I have a hard time finding. I live in a podunk town and need to drive 30m to get anythign other than basic styles or New Glarus. If I want a Belgian I have to drive so I like to make my own.

 

[Transamguy77]

Immersion chiller? Probably not necessary but I bought one anyway. Like it better than ice. Saved money unless I would go through the hassle of making my own ice.

I don't have an IC, I make my own ice. I bought cheep plastic containers and fill them with water and put them in the freezer the night before brew day.

 

[bottlebomber]

I haven't read all of the posts to see if someone scared him off, but hasn't anybody noticed that the OP hasn't been on for 2 weeks?

I don't think its really a question of scaring him off... if you'll notice, he has made a total of 3 posts on this forum, and he clearly doesn't make beer so its understandable that he doesn't show up here often. When he gets back im sure he'll be impressed with all the play his post got...

 

[BigB]

I don't think its really a question of scaring him off... if you'll notice, he has made a total of 3 posts on this forum, and he clearly doesn't make beer so its understandable that he doesn't show up here often. When he gets back im sure he'll be impressed with all the play his post got...

Yes, I realize that he only made three posts. But usually if someone was actually serious about something, they would at least check things out more than for 2 days. I am just surprised that people continue to answer his question when he clearly doesn't care what the answers are. If I had to guess, he got all the information he needed in the first 10 posts.

 

[nefarious_1_]

My batches usually come out to about $1.00/beer so you would save nothing. Don't brew to save money, brew because Budweiser sucks.

 

[logan3825]

I don't have an IC, I make my own ice. I bought cheep plastic containers and fill them with water and put them in the freezer the night before brew day.

Yup, not really necessary. I only have a freezer in the fridge so it would be a huge hassle to make ice.

 

[nefarious_1_]

Sorry, I've had too much whiskey. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion...
But seriously, price should not be a determining factor: brew to make better beer. The beers will most likely cost 25 - 50% less than most micro-brews, but not less than the cheaper beers on the market. Once you taste the difference, you won't be sorry (hopefully.)

 

[AdamWiz]

When I started brewing, my story to SWMBO was that it was going to save us a ton of money(and I still use that line to justify whenever she notices that the amount of carboys I have has grown yet again) But the truth is, it takes a lot of batches brewed before you even break even from equipment purchases. One of these days if I can ever stop buying equipment, I might actually save some money. But really I think that most of us would brew our own even if it was more expensive than buying it. There's nothing more satisfying than drinking a beer you made yourself. As for people trying to clone BMC type beers, I have no idea why anyone ever homebrews light lagers. I honestly think that a lot of advanced homebrewers who make lagers do it strictly for the challenge, and not because they are actually good beers. Even the best lager in the world is a dull, worthless, waste of space(other than a few of the darker German styles like Vienna). I certainly don't have any interest in a style where, basically, flavor is considered a flaw. I always recommend that light beer drinkers brew cream ales and blondes instead of wasting their time trying to do lager. Most of them end up liking it better. Just the other day, I gave one of my cream ales to a friend(a Miller Lite drinker). She took one drink and told me it was alright, but nothing she would normally drink. The next day, she called and said that she had just drank a Miller and was not really liking it now that she had drank a light beer that actually had flavor. The misconception is that any beer that is not a light lager has to be either insanely hoppy, high alcohol, or heavy and thick. People for some reason think that if they don't like extreme beers, then light lager is the only beer to drink. There are plenty of good, interesting craft beers that are also light.(something more microbreweries should remember-it seems they only want to make beers that either have the word "imperial" or "India" in them)

 

[estoppel]

I have $550 into my AG equipment (Barley Crusher, Cooler MLT, 75ft Immersion Chiller, Keggle, Propane Burner, 8 carboys, thermometers/brew gadgets) and $450 into my kegging system (6 cornies, picnic tap kegerator, 20lb CO2 tank, Regulator).

A 5G batch costs me about about $31.50 for 55 Bottles (depending in the grain bill and Hop Bill)

55 Bottles of craft beer at my Liquor Board Store @$14.00/6 pack would cost me about $128.30.

So I save a little cash but have to brew a lot to recoup my equipment costs and never really get there because I keep buying new stuff. Although my set-up is decent, I am going to buy a a cooling tower for my kegerator and build a fermentation chamber in the next few months.

 

[gregiscool]

a 4 pack cost me about 10$ at the store, so when i can bring the price down to about 1$ per 12 ounce serving, its not bad, but im also leaving out the cost of water, propane and ice for chilling wort.

 

[cg17]

Yes, I realize that he only made three posts. But usually if someone was actually serious about something, they would at least check things out more than for 2 days. I am just surprised that people continue to answer his question when he clearly doesn't care what the answers are. If I had to guess, he got all the information he needed in the first 10 posts.

Wait...youre not suggesting that we are merely posting to 'hear' each other post, are you? That NEVER happens here

 

[bottlebomber]

I have $550 into my AG equipment (Barley Crusher, Cooler MLT, 75ft Immersion Chiller, Keggle, Propane Burner, 8 carboys, thermometers/brew gadgets) and $450 into my kegging system (6 cornies, picnic tap kegerator, 20lb CO2 tank, Regulator).

A 5G batch costs me about about $31.50 for 55 Bottles (depending in the grain bill and Hop Bill)

55 Bottles of craft beer at my Liquor Board Store @$14.00/6 pack would cost me about $128.30.

So I save a little cash but have to brew a lot to recoup my equipment costs and never really get there because I keep buying new stuff. Although my set-up is decent, I am going to buy a a cooling tower for my kegerator and build a fermentation chamber in the next few months.

14 bucks a six pack?? Who brews it, God?

 

[gregiscool]

14 bucks a six pack?? Who brews it, God?

14$ for a 4 pack of St.Bernardus ABT12, and its damn delicious.

 

[estoppel]

My Canadian province has a heavily regulated and well-taxed Liquor board. Even the BMC stuff is $40-44/24 pack. Hell the discount BMC brands still run about $38/24.

I called them the otherday to order in some DFH and Rogue stuff, and they wanted $120/24. That's not a typo. Actually the Palo Marron was $148/24.

Even the local western canadian craft brewery's stuff is very expensive.

 

[BigB]

Wait...youre not suggesting that we are merely posting to 'hear' each other post, are you? That NEVER happens here

LOL... good point!

 

[ruffdeezy]

I first started with cooper's kits 2.5 years ago thinking it would be fun and I could save some money. Now about 4 grand later, I don't think I've saved much, if any, but I'm loving it.

 

[Skarekrough]

Much depends on what it is that you're brewing.

I got bit by the Craft Beer bug eight years ago when I was given a bottle of "La Fin Du Monde" for my 30th birthday. It was a bit of a joke in the name but the beer intrigued me. Not long after I tried an Imperial Stout and got hooked on that as well.

With something like "La Fin" I come out ahead of the game in materials. For a five gallon batch I'll save money.

However, if all I was paying for was the brewing materials then it would be a no-brainer. But you also need to consider brew kettles, fermenters, kegs, a keezer, CO2, etc.

In time I believe I will come out ahead of the game. But for the short game it's a solid loss I'm absorbing.

 

[AdamWiz]

You just have to consider the fact that any hobby is going to cost you a little money. But what other hobby leaves you with something that you would have otherwise bought anyway? When you think about it like that, it really is kind of a money saver.

and now let's take a break for......................dancing banana parade!!!!!!!!

 

[LostBavarianMan]

Saving money is what I tell my wife. LOL
I got into homebrewing because it seemed after 2 or 3 BMCs I would get a headache.
Hoembrewing = no more headaches. (unless I drink 1 too many.) I can control every part of my beer from the grains to the bottles. And I make much better beer than any of the macro swillerys. Its about the hobby the love of beer. And alot of guys say that they calculate the labor involved. It dosent work like that. ITS A HOBBY. If I wasent brewing beer I would have more guns. I think 18 guns is enough. LOL.

 

[Malticulous]

But what other hobby leaves you with something that you would have otherwise bought anyway?

There is no way I would have bought as much as I brew...that would make me some kind of a alcoholic.

 

[AdamWiz]

There is no way I would have bought as much as I brew...that would make me some kind of a alcoholic.

very true. If I weren't a homebrewer, it may seem a bit strange that I have at least 7-8 cases of beer in my house at any given time:rockin:

 

[tpitman]

"Don't brew to save money, brew because Budweiser sucks."

Yup.

"When I started brewing, my story to SWMBO was that it was going to save us a ton of money(and I still use that line to justify whenever she notices that the amount of carboys I have"

That's still a good excuse to use. Just make sure you "lose" the receipts.

Decent beer from a store is getting more expensive all the time, mainly because folks are willing to pay for it. I know I am, but if I can brew something I like for the price of swill that I won't drink, and enjoy the process, I'll likely save a little in the long haul and have fun to boot. I've got a decent homebrew store just a few miles from my house with competitive prices, so I save on shipping, too.

Pitman Graphics
www.pitmangraphics.com

 

[SpottedDogBrewing]

I'm new here and I am considering brewing my own beer. I normally drink Bud Light... Alright no criticism or comments on how it taste like piss and what not haha. I grew up drinking the stuff and am just used to it. To each his own. But if I brewed my own beer I would definitely try a bunch of new kinds.

A 24 case (cans) of Bud Light here costs around $22 after taxes and all. For my first brew I'm going to try THIS recipe. I was wondering, not counting the cost of equipment, how much the supplies would cost? Basically how much money would I be saving?

Also I'm 100% new to brewing and had another question. I seen you can get some starter kits and what not. Do you guys recommend getting one of those, buying everything separately, or creating homemade items? Any sales I should know of? I'm looking for a good cheap way to do this.

Equipment is the $$$$$ part!
If you buy bulk on hops and grain, You could get a bud lite tasting beer for about $12-15 a 5 gallon batch: 50ish 12oz bottles!!