What does your LHBS charge?

[MarcusKillion]

My LHBS is 1.99 per ounce for all hops and 1.99 per pound of all grain. If you buy bulk base malts, they are 1.29 per pound. And the customer service is above and beyond.

So how much is a bus ticket to your town and where can I rent a house .
not really complaining about my LHBS as this is Wichita , ks and we are not real big even though the biggest city in KS . So there is not the volume of business here to support a big store that can buy more and sell for less . I still choose to buy almost all of my supplies from What's Brewin' . How ever if I had to pay 2.25 for a pound of 2 row I would buy it on line instead .

 

[MarcusKillion]

Honestly, for me, It's the quality of the ingredients. I can munch on some grains and see what the hops are stored like before I purchase. Might be some new hops in I have never heard of and they can point to a recipe that uses them. When you buy online you hope that they are doing the right thing with the ingredients. But when you can actually see and taste things then you KNOW they have done the right thing.

And I intend to treat them as awesome as they have treated me. They had someone new working the register last time I went and she rang up my 7 lbs of LME as just 1 lb. Next time I am in I will rectify the mistake because they are doing things right there. They aren't the cheapest but they are certainly the best value.

You are a good honest man indeed and I agree with everything you said .

 

[mcspanner]

As a former small business owner the only thing I'd say is you really should let him know that you won't be shopping there and why, you can even do it anonymously.

It can be really difficult in a small business to see the wood for the trees, you might be losing customers but not know why, and the more customers you lose the harder it can be to try and work out why. Speaking from experience, you then spend so much time fighting the fires of losing money and trying to meet increasing bills that you really don't have time to drill down and work out where you are going wrong.

It may be that he is covering costs and doesn't mind losing one customer if he has plenty that don't shop around, but it may be that he doesn't have time to price check against his competition and has no idea why he can't retain customers and stop the decline.

 

[JDGator]

My lhbs sells me crushed grains for 1.25/lbs and 1lbs for none crushed. Usually sells me hops for 10-15/lbs. since i started brewing this past winter, he sales have really gone up.

So he cuts me pretty good deals

 

[MaxStout]

Honestly, for me, It's the quality of the ingredients. I can munch on some grains and see what the hops are stored like before I purchase. Might be some new hops in I have never heard of and they can point to a recipe that uses them. When you buy online you hope that they are doing the right thing with the ingredients. But when you can actually see and taste things then you KNOW they have done the right thing.

To me it's a bit like buying lumber. I could call the yard and have them drop-ship a load of 2x4s and hope that there are enough serviceable boards to suit my needs. Or I can walk in and eyeball the goods, be selective and pass up the warped and split boards.

Same deal with brewing supplies. For perishables like yeast, hops, etc., I will always buy local. I don't want to risk having it go bad in a 1000-mile journey by UPS. I want to see that mfg. date and the conditions in which they are stored. It goes from their fridge or freezer to mine in 20-30 minutes. But then, I'm lucky to live in a town that has 2 major brewing supply companies: Midwest and Northern.

As for hardware and gadgets, I can go local or go Internet, depending on what is most convenient for me at the time.

 

[judsonp]

At my LHBS, they also charge about $1.75-$2.50 for grains (most base are $2, MO is probably $2.25), about $2.50/oz for hops, about $7 for Wyeast and $9 for White Labs, and about $3 for dry yeast. Grains are about $1.50/lb if you buy in 10-pound bags.

Of course, the local homebrew club does group buys and also stocks a "club store". That stuff is under $1/lb.

You can also consider, as others have suggested, ordering a few brews' worth of supplies at once online. That should get you cheap shipping (either free shipping by volume, or "cheap enough" shipping by amortization).

 

[MarcusKillion]

I bought wyeat over internet . came in 3 days but sat on my front porch in 103 degrees for x amount of hours till I got home . the ice pack of course was hot and I suspect that may have killed off a few yeast cells . Never again . I buy local .

 

[SteveHeff]

I agree with everybody on the yeast and hops. There is no reason to ship these ingredients to your home. I will most definitely buy those local...or have my brother in law overnight vacuum packaged hops to my house!

 

[IslandLizard]

Hops are way more resilient than yeast. I buy most of my everyday stock hops by the pound online and rarely less than 3 pounds per shipment at a time.

As long as you can buy or order the (liquid) yeast you want from your LHBS, you are in very good shape. Even if they price them a bit higher than online it is worth every penny. If I think of it, I bring a small cooler with an ice pack in it, but usually when I browse the yeasts and I see something I want, I buy it right then and there. Just keep it cool in the car.

 

[matt08wrx]

I pay $1.75 for specialty grains and $1.09 for basic like pale 2 row etc etc. Usually $24-28 to get grain for imperial beers.

 

[SteveHeff]

Starting this thread up...again. In October 2014, my wife and I moved back to NH after being away for the last 8 years. I'm happy to report that I pay substantially lower prices here than any where else. The original recipe, listed on the first post, cost is around $26. This includes yeast, hops, crushed grain...everything I need. I'm quite happy with this. The LHBS owner takes very good care of me, and any body else in the store. Good to be back in NH.

 

[Teromous]

Congrats on getting cheaper ingredients haha. It's always cool to see a followup on a thread. Just for kicks I decided to price out your recipe for my LHBS (HomebrewUSA)

8# 12 oz maris otter - $2.38/lb - $20.83
1# 12 oz flaked oats - $2.79/lb - $4.88
1# C60 - $2.38/lb - $2.38
1# carapils - $2.39/lb - 2.39
1# Chocolate malt - $2.49/lb - $2.49
6 oz Roasted barley - $2.49/lb - $0.93
1 oz fuggles - $2.29/oz - $2.29
1 oz EKG - $2.49/oz - $2.49
1 wyeast 1084 smack pack (WLP004 because they don't carry Wyeast) - $8.75/vial - $8.75
-----------------
$47.43 before tax
(really it would cost more because they don't sell specialty grain by the ounce, but I parted out the cost because I could always use the leftover grain in another batch)

 

[HopinJim]

Actually, HBUSA will sell you the specialty grain by the ounce...at least over here in the Hampton store they will...I've had them actually open a 1# bag to give me 4oz for a recipe...plus, they offer 10% off for AHA membership. I priced this up, and with the discount it came to just under 38 bucks before tax.

 

[russell58]

Nice price got me wondering so here is my LHBS pricing

8# 12 oz maris otter - 1.95/lb - 17.06
1# 12 oz flaked oats - 2.75/lb - 4.82
1# C60 - 2.35/lb - 2.35
1# Carapils- 2.40/lb 2.40
1# Chocolate malt - 2.35/lb 2.35
6 oz. Roasted barley - 2.15/lb .80
1 oz Fuggles - 2.35/ oz 2.35
1 oz EKG- 2.50/oz 2.50
1 WLP004 ( substitute) 6.95


Total 41.58
Tax 2.50
Discount -4.16
Grand Total 39.92

 

[Owly055]

My LHBS charges $1.75 a pound for most grains including crystal, two row, Pilsner, Marris Otter, Munich, etc.... out of the bins. I just bought a 55 pound bag of Munich for $1 per pound, so it pays to buy bulk!! I just bought a 50 lb bag of American two row for $23.50 from my local micro brewer....... His cost delivered to him. I was paying $20 last year but this year was a poor barley year.... too wet.

H.W.

 

[chawn]

I had to compare as well. Phoenix LHBS as follows:
Maris Otter - $1.69/lb
11¢/oz
8lbs 12oz = $14.84

Flaked Wheat - $1.59/lb
1lb = $1.59

C60 - $1.69/lb 1lb = $1.69

Carapils - $1.69/lb 1lb = $1.69

Chocolate malt - $1.89/lb
1lb = $1.89

Roasted Barley - 12¢/oz
6oz = 72¢

Fuggles - $2.29/oz 1oz = $2.29

EKG - 2.49/oz 1oz = $2.49

WLP004 $7.99

Total $32.70

 

[Oginme]

Starting this thread up...again. In October 2014, my wife and I moved back to NH after being away for the last 8 years. I'm happy to report that I pay substantially lower prices here than any where else. The original recipe, listed on the first post, cost is around $26. This includes yeast, hops, crushed grain...everything I need. I'm quite happy with this. The LHBS owner takes very good care of me, and any body else in the store. Good to be back in NH.

Welcome back to NH!

 

[Bobby_M]

SteveHeff, you never did mention which two shops in NJ you were going to. We get $1.50 for Maris and $1.10 for American 2row.

 

[SteveHeff]

SteveHeff, you never did mention which two shops in NJ you were going to. We get $1.50 for Maris and $1.10 for American 2row.

I'm not going to bash any particular LHBS...I figure customers can figure out the good from the bad. However I ended up going to the Keg and Barrel in Berlin. I always found the staff incredibly eager to help.

 

[oogaboogachiefwalkingdeer]

That is double what I would pay. Check out The Home Brewery Ozark MO.