Kits- I don't get it

[cheezydemon3]

I have NEVER done a kit and find it hard to believe they are cheaper!

I no longer shop my LHBS because they are on average $10 more per recipe than the mega store. My point being that prices vary, you can find a discounted kit that is cheaper than the ingredients at an overpriced LHBS, but apples to apples, ingredients are cheaper.

 

[McGarnigle]

At all the online sellers, I believe kits are cheaper than buying the same ingredients. It think from the vendors standpoint, it's easier to assemble a given recipe that others have bought many times before. Or maybe it's the equivalent of a bulk discount.

Now, you may find Vendor A ingredients beat Vendor B kits, and of course True Brew, Brewer's Best, et. al. may cost more as they're being re-sold. But apples to apples, I'm pretty sure kits are cheaper.

 

[mr_bell]

But apples to apples, I'm pretty sure kits are cheaper.

When I have priced out (online) ingredients for the recipes I've created, they've come out more expensive that a kit. Kits from my LHBS are definitely more expensive, that's why I've never bought one from there. Oddly, kits and ingredients are more expensive (at my LHBS vs. online) but other items, like carboys, tubing and some other equipment, are cheaper.

For me, kits save time and money--and time is money right?. By using a tested recipe, I can focus on getting my process down, and I've nearly got it to where I want it to be. (If anyone in the NW suburbs of Chicago has a spare fridge to get rid of, please PM me!)

 

[cheezydemon3]

I really liked my LHBS, but with the megamart being so much cheaper, it became a no brainer.

I assume any talk of "online" includes shipping?

Is shipping more on individual ingredients bought on the same order?

 

[bam]

from what I've noticed, shipping varies between online suppliers. Some charge a simple flat rate regardless, or even offer free shipping if you order x$ worth. I don't think you pay individual shipping per ingredient, but rather per order. So, for online ordering it is usually best, if you plan on purchasing a lot of stuff to get it all at one time and only pay one shipping charge.

For me, I'm going to stick with "kits" - as we are calling them - simply because a.) I wanna get the process of brewing down pat without much worry; learn the process, get comfy with it, then advance to the next level b.) I can't afford to buy the extra equipment needed to go all-grain, and it makes more financial sense, in my situation, to continue with extract/steeping grains for now, just buy kits and save some money to get the equipment for an all-grain setup and start buying ingredients in bulk/individually.

or at least somethin like that lol.

either way, beer is made and beer is good.

 

[Yooper]

I really liked my LHBS, but with the megamart being so much cheaper, it became a no brainer.

I assume any talk of "online" includes shipping?

Is shipping more on individual ingredients bought on the same order?

No, but you can't always buy 2 ounces of this, and 4 ounces of that. If you want a recipe with a variety of specialty grains in odd amounts, sometimes you're "stuck" with buying a whole pound.

If you price out the Northern brewer kits, vs the very same ingredients but not in their "kit", the non-kit costs a little bit more. Shipping is the same flat rate, no matter what, so that takes the shipping cost out of the equation.

 

[McGarnigle]

I think the difference is, if you buy from an online vendor, they have to have someone running around picking up the items you order whether it's a kit or indy ingredients.

An LHBS will often have a 'serve yourself' element. You do the running around, maybe milling the grains, etc., so it's cheaper for the store if they don't have to assemble a kit.

Cheezydemon, maybe you answered this earlier in the thread, but what do you mean by "megamart" in the context of homebrew supplies?

 

[dc_x]

My advice with kits is to make sure you buy them with fresh ingredients. I bought a few kits from my LHBS that I think had sat on their shelves for a few months. The beers didn't come out well at all.

The online places seem to have good kits because I think they assemble then when you order. So you are getting fresh extract, freshly crushed grains, and fresh yeast.

 

[RushN24]

I just brewed a blonde ale based on a kit recipe, I tweaked it to make it my own but I followed the kit's pattern.

Kit Cost $39.89
My Ingr. $41.40
Diff = $1.60

Not much of a difference but I think its only a small price to pay to know I got my choice of hops, specialty grain, and yeast and my choice of brand. Infact if you factor in that I still have 1oz of hops leftover there's pretty much no difference.

I'm not sure why the difference though. I would have to say that logically you would think a kit cost more based on the extra processing involved, and additional packaging/marketing costs.

I'm probably not doing the kit producers justice when I say that I think you can easily take a kit recipe and sort of shadow it with your own choice of ingredients for plus/minus 10% of the kit's original cost and have the confidence of knowing you chose the ingredients. The only additional cost I can see here is bottle caps and sanitiser which for a single batch should average around $2.00 - $1.50 per batch more (based on 5gal), give or take depending on quantity discount. And don't worry it will still come conveniently packaged in a nice box, just without the colorful pictures, unless your retailer uses tie-dye shipping labels. I'm not sure about your retailer but at the online retailer I use I've compared a few recipes and found the 10% fluctuation in cost to be pretty accurate assuming your buying small quantities. If you by bulk it will be even and even more narrow variation.

In fact I think shadowing kits is an ideal way to start easing into creating you own recipes; you adjust the kit recipe and make it your own, down the line you adjust this recipe to correct for inadequacies (be there any) thus further customizing it, and before you know it your pretty much making you own original beer. That's how I plan on progressing. The experience alone IMO is worth the minor cost.

 

[brewagentjay]

I have only done one kit and I have second kit ready to go. I did a cider but it was a simple juice deal so I guess that's not a kit.

Seems to me that it's like anything else you do what you like to do. Some like kits, some don't, and some like it both ways............

Make beer, drink it, and be happy.

 

[Austinhomebrew]

Marking this thread with the words Austin Homebrew so I can track it.

Forrest

 

[BigB]

If you order a kit from Ikea, then you will probably get beer that looks like a coffee table.

ROFLMAO I'm going to remember this one!
EDIT: Sorry, couldn't resist adding this to my signature!