How would you go cheap?

[Wyrmwood]

Interestingly, since I got into this hobby, I think I spend way more on commercial beer than I did before. I used to buy a case of beer from Costco, usually Sam Adams or New Belgium every few weeks or so, and I ran out all the time. Now, I buy all kinds of imports; Belgians, English, Scottish, et al and I buy all the locals, New Belgium, Bristol, Left Hand, Odell's, growlers from Trinity, Phantom Canyon, Colorado Mountain Brewery so, I guess I spend a lot more on beer than I did before home brewing, but I also appreciate it more and enjoy it. Do I spend more money than before? Probably not. I just spend it on beer now I mean, I'm working with the same discretionary spending as before But now, I'm never out of beer and have increased my intake to about a quart a day.

EDIT: You know, I came up with a "cheap beer" recipe a while back and I've never attempted to make it. I was curious if I could make something for < $10 that my BMC friends would like, but have never bothered to follow through. On the other hand, I have bought LME in bulk as well as hops, so my latest 6 batches are on average 6% ABV and ran me about $25/batch. That's including everything, so not too bad.

 

[badmajon]

I've probably spend $500 on equipment so far (including kegging system) and then another $500 on ingredients. So that's $1000. I've made 15 batches of beer, approx 45 bottles each after trub loss etc (I keg, but anyway).

That's $1.48 per beer including equipment cost, or $8.88 per six pack- which is just about what a decent six pack costs at the store where I live.

If you take out the equipment factor, the price goes down to about $0.75 per beer, or $4.44 for a six pack. Since I've already bought all the equipment, every beer I brew now costs me way, way less than going to the store.

So for me, it IS about money now. I can't even buy BMC for the price of my homebrews.

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

I think I figured that I am currently making beer at around $1-1.50 per beer when you factor in all the equipment and ingredients. That's pretty good for having brewed a little less than two years.

 

[bgruis]

you do it because you love it and its better than watching the crap on tv!

+1

 

[bigbeergeek]

I'm so tired of smug brewers saying "if saving money is why you brew, you're brewing for the wrong reasons." That's silly. There's a slew of reasons to brew (to intoxicate oneself, to express oneself creatively, to produce beer that better than your small town's poor commercial selection, to save money, community , etc). Don't elevate your motivation to brew over those of other people. I enjoy brewing as a pastime, but it saves me hundreds of dollars a year compared to buying comparable commercial beer. If my sole motivation for brewing beer was because it's the only way I can afford to drink well, what the hell's wrong that? If my primary concern was producing "cheap" beer, then it sounds like I'm in the RIGHT hobby doing things CORRECTLY. Suck it snobs. Let others value this hobby for the many different benefits it produces, and stop acting like there is a "right way" to value homebrewing.

 

[geezerpk]

I'm so tired of smug brewers saying "if saving money is why you brew, you're brewing for the wrong reasons." That's silly…

+1, Amen. Nice post. I see no conflict between brewing great beer and doing it in a manner that's easy on the wallet, too — if that pleases you. I came from a thrifty family, and inherited the trait. I find pleasure in finding ways and means of making tasty brews that balance the budget, too. Most of my AG efforts come in for $18-$20 for a 5 gallon batch. Of course I don't dive into any exotic ones that require 3/4 lbs. of hops, etc. I'm not super-cheap — but I estimate I've spent about $350 of basic equipment so far, and have probably recovered a major part of that investment already. Once that's cleared, I estimate that my per bottle costs will level out between 35¢ to 45¢ per bottle.

 

[bgruis]

Honestly when I got started again on Homebrewing I made the switch from cheap BMC beer and my budget was roughly $15 week for beer. One of the reasons I started again was I wanted the ability to drink "good" beer and not spend much more money. After the initial $400 or so on my all grain equipment I routinely brew 10 gallon batches of good quality beer for roughly $25.

I wash yeast routinely
I'm not a big fan of quadruple imperial double blow your socks of beers
I'm not a huge fan of monster IPA's (hops are getting expensive)
I buy my bittering hops in bulk..($1 per ounce)
I grow my flavor and aroma hops (essentially free)

All that in addition to the fact that I am crazy about beer and beer history and this is the most rewarding hobby I've ever had. I love to cook as well so this is kind of an extension of that. I really enjoy positive feedback, it is very rewarding to me!

Any who...that's my 2 cents!

 

[geezerpk]

Any who...that's my 2 cents!

With a little thought you could probably cut that down to a penny.

 

[bgruis]

With a little thought you could probably cut that down to a penny.

Ha ha ha ....thanks

 

[Boy]

Compared to the age of this thread and inflation I would say that at least for me, home brewing is far cheaper. Using craigslist and searching around my garage and work I got my AG setup for around 100$ I would say the biggest expense so far has been bottles.

Hardest part for me is trying to balance Gas vs Shipping. Do I sub an ingredient so I don't drive an extra 35 miles, do I order what I want online, or just get the local store to special order. Think I saved more money by working closer with my new LHBS on ordering than driving all over creation for a better deal.

 

[jrc64]

Well, I've noticed that the All Grain kits offer a good opportunity. For example, I just order the all grain kit for Ferocious IPA. Cost was $37.00

I was going to go to my LHBS to purchse the ingrediants for a SCALED DOWN batch (2 gallons) of the recipe. I would of spent around $35 for that!

I just ordered the kit, will use half and store the rest for future use. This way, I have the base recipe and I can fool around with additives, other grains etc. So, I will get 2.5 gallons for $18.50 versus $35 at the LHBS.

Personally, I think the kits offer the best deal when it comes to price. You can still always add and or take away from the recipe instructions to make it your own special "blend".

I just did this with a Pumkin Ale kit. I used the guts of the kit, but added many personal touches to make this my own recipe.

Problem is, you're going to need so many different base malts and speicalty grains, that to buy them all in bulk will simply cost a fortune.

Start with the kits, modify and keep notes. Once you have something you like, then order your ingrediant in bulk for that particular recipe.

 

[Golddiggie]

You don't need to get that many base malts. I have two, UK 2-row on hand. I use either one in all my recipes. The specialty grains are easy to get in small amounts, depending on how much you use them. If you're brewing styles that are all over the map, then you might need more base malts. Even then, you can probably brew 99% of the recipes out there with just a couple/few different ones.

 

[DrunkleJon]

base malts are just that, a base. You can sub pretty much any base malt for another and not affect the flavor all that much. Sure you may miss out on some breadiness if you trade out something like MO for standard 2-row, but it is the specialty grains that contribute the most flavor

 

[Locksmith]

Save an reuse your yeast.
Recycle your dry hops as bittering for another brew.
Buy in Bulk for base grains and Hops.
Learn to love adjunct beers and experiment with cereal mashing.
I can make a 10 gal batch of a splendid cream ale for about $15, this can be altered into a vienna style, IPC, IPL..you name it!

Also, make local brew friends who you can do bulk buys with and swap supplies and such.

good luck