Why are homebrew people SO cheap??

[Calder]

Today I brew because I can make a decent beer to rival some of the best craft beer out there for the price of Busch. If I could not make it significantly cheaper, then I would just buy it from the store.

I am from the UK in the days when CAMRA started. I came to the US and the only beer available was the standard tasteless American Bub/Miller/Coors lager. I started brewing so I could have beers with some flavor, and have been brewing ever since. Back then there was no craft beer industry here, Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada were just starting, but they only sold their beer locally, so were not in my stores; occasionally you cold get some UK beers, but it was a 50/50 chance the beer was skunked.

One of the products of brewing beer is understanding a lot more about the product, how it is made, how you get different flavors, and even understanding the differences between different beers, and it is fun to brew and create something original. However, if it was costing me over $1 a bottle, I would see no reason to be brewing, and save myself a lot of time.

I freely admit that I brew because I can make good beer for a lot less than it costs me to buy. I can pretend there are reasons, but if the cost were higher, they would not be enough to keep me brewing.

 

[Blazinlow86]

Everyone that I know personally myself included that have homebrewed started off with the goal being to make the cheapest beer possible. 80% of them gave up after tasting the cheapest beer possible lol and the other 20% changed there goal to the best beer possible regardless of cost. Cheers

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

. These days i have a house collection, a car collection and more income than i can spend.

Thats so F'n awesome...PM me and we'll talk about how you could spend it

 

[Homergah]

Speaking of cheap. AIH has pin lock kegs two for $59.

 

[skyhawk50]

Right on brotha. Save where you can, so you can spend where want!

Many will say that I'm a cheap bastard. And their right, but it this cheap bastard is escaping the Seattle winter in sunny Costa Rica for a couple of weeks! [emoji41] [emoji111] View attachment 612936

Right on. We’ll be there in April
[emoji924][emoji924][emoji924][emoji924]

 

[Blazinlow86]

I can honestly say that i cared a lot more about saving money when i first started because i didn't have a lot of disposable income. These days i have a house collection, a car collection and more income than i can spend (+1 great financial decisions earlier in life). I don't piss away money but i will spend it where there is value.

Same thing happened to me. I was fortunate to own my home and had a rental property as well. About 5 years ago Vancouver got a huge influx of dirty money from China and the real estate market went out of control. Long story short I cashed out by fluke at the perfect time and walked away with just under a 2.5millon profit from those sales. I'm now renting temporarily as there predicting the market will crash and possibly back to were it was. Cheers

 

[Yooper]

Right on brotha. Save where you can, so you can spend where want!

Many will say that I'm a cheap bastard. And their right, but it this cheap bastard is escaping the Seattle winter in sunny Costa Rica for a couple of weeks! [emoji41] [emoji111] View attachment 612936

And this cheap old lady spends every winter in the south. Today I got sunburnt a little because of the bright sun rays and working at a festival with some friends. I have to go home in a month though. Next winter, we'll be here about four montsh.

But I can make an 11 gallon batch of cream ale for $18!!!!!!!!

Edit- and I happen to have 3 houses, two decent cars, a trip to Italy when I get back north, followed by least two more domestic trips.

the reason I have a lot of "stuff" is because I'm thrifty, retired mostly at age 46 because of that. I don't spent much money on clothes, food out, entertainment, etc- I spend on what's important to me like travel and good beer.

 

[6Tap]

And this cheap old lady spends every winter in the south. Today I got sunburnt a little because of the bright sun rays and working at a festival with some friends. I have to go home in a month though. Next winter, we'll be here about four montsh.

But I can make an 11 gallon batch of cream ale for $18!!!!!!!!

Ale Yea!!

 

[SteveH aka shetc]

Last time I checked, making homebrew is a hobby. My version happens to pretty good (or so I am told) and I'm a cheap bastard EXCEPT for yeast.

C'mon down to Ft. Lauderdale, Ms. Yooper [emoji3]

 

[Bilsch]

....and drink about a gallon a day,

Thanks for making me feel just a little bit less guilty about the liter of beer I drink a day.

 

[A_McG]

I like to brew cheap beer to pass freely among friends and expensive brews to enjoy in moderation and share with those who appreciate the difference.

I still buy a decent amount of beer, usually expensive or types I'm not easily able to brew. But I do get extreme satisfaction from brewing a good beer for real cheap

 

[FunkedOut]

Right on brotha. Save where you can, so you can spend where want!

Many will say that I'm a cheap bastard. And their right, but it this cheap bastard is escaping the Seattle winter in sunny Costa Rica for a couple of weeks! [emoji41] [emoji111] View attachment 612936

¡Pura Vida Mae!

 

[lslbrew]

You would probably be better off making the meth yourself too.

Actually, probably not so much these days. When states started legalizing marijuana it cut into the illicit drug trade. Many of them moved to making meth in an industrial level. You can get Mexican meth cheaper than the ingredients to make meth yourself.
In all seriousness there has been an ongoing decline in home cooked meth. It just isn’t with it anymore.

 

[Tom Foolery]

Brew cheaper to brew more and better! [emoji3]

 

[Moose_MI]

I see it EVERYWHERE on hbt and it's driving me insane. ....ways around well known longtime good vendors to save $10. That kills me honestly......
Am I insane?

Good News!!!!

...there is a thread on “Booger Beer” here on HBT and there’s no mention of fiscally responsible brewing. That means it’s not “EVERYWHERE” on HBT!!

Sooo...that means you’re not insane ...inflammatory, and loose with the facts, yes...but not insane

I hope Ive helped you in some small way

Cheers

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

^^^ go to the picobrew thread, people aren’t making cheap beer there at $20+ a pack yielding about 12 tallneck bottles.
Edit: But, they wish they could have a brew day for less.

 

[seatazzz]

I brew my own beer because I am absolutely in love with the process of it, and being able to step out to my garage/brewery and pull a pint instead of having to run to the store, not because it's cheaper. Is my beer inherently cheaper than what I can buy at the local? Maybe, maybe not. Include the price of gas, what I've spent on equipment over 3 years, and ingredients, probably not. Currently we are between paychecks and have less than $200 in checking; but I'm sitting here on a Saturday night smelling some awesome smells from my brew rig and have another couple of hours to go before I'm finished, and that to me is a PERFECT way to spend a weekend night. If someone here is in to this hobby/obsession because of $$, more power to them.

 

[lschiavo]

Actually, probably not so much these days. When states started legalizing marijuana it cut into the illicit drug trade. Many of them moved to making meth in an industrial level. You can get Mexican meth cheaper than the ingredients to make meth yourself.
In all seriousness there has been an ongoing decline in home cooked meth. It just isn’t with it anymore.

I quit recently because the quality just wasn't there anymore.

 

[bracconiere]

I heard a radio cli

Curious how your a homeowner rent/mortgage free at 14K a year without somebody handing it to you...I need that

it was handed to me! witch is why out of my 14k, i donate about 2k a year to collage scholarships, and cancer kids, red cross and what not...figure, if i'm saving so much drinking homebrew why not

Thanks for making me feel just a little bit less guilty about the liter of beer I drink a day.

Damn man, i'll drink two gallons today....wish you the best! (my beer is 8% too)

My liver enzymes are all good too! drink up!

 

[AzOr]

Sometimes when people brag about how cheap they can brew beer, the subtext is actually how much of the process they can do themselves.
For instance I have a few hop bines(produces maybe 1.5 lb of dried hops annually) so when I brew using those hops, I’m pretty quick to brag about how much the batch cost to produce. Since I also harvest/wash yeast, I only pay for the grains on those batches.

The cheapskate bragging rights really mean that I’m doing as much of the process myself.

Now if I had some acreage to grow barley, I’d make a T-shirt that said, “5 Gallons of Beer costs me $2”

Ps- I’m sending in my HBT dues this week.

 

[bracconiere]

I brew my own beer because I am absolutely in love with the process of it, and being able to step out to my garage/brewery and pull a pint instead of having to run to the store, not because it's cheaper. Is my beer inherently cheaper than what I can buy at the local? Maybe, maybe not. Include the price of gas, what I've spent on equipment over 3 years, and ingredients, probably not. Currently we are between paychecks and have less than $200 in checking; but I'm sitting here on a Saturday night smelling some awesome smells from my brew rig and have another couple of hours to go before I'm finished, and that to me is a PERFECT way to spend a weekend night. If someone here is in to this hobby/obsession because of $$, more power to them.

$200? damn baby, you need to act like the gangster homebrewer you are! save, save! the marketers don't have nothin' on us!

 

[bracconiere]

Sometimes when people brag about how cheap they can brew beer, the subtext is actually how much of the process they can do themselves.
For instance I have a few hop bines(produces maybe 1.5 lb of dried hops annually) so when I brew using those hops, I’m pretty quick to brag about how much the batch cost to produce. Since I also harvest/wash yeast, I only pay for the grains on those batches.

The cheapskate bragging rights really mean that I’m doing as much of the process myself.

Now if I had some acreage to grow barley, I’d make a T-shirt that said, “5 Gallons of Beer costs me $2”

Ps- I’m sending in my HBT dues this week.

i like this statement

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Actually, probably not so much these days. When states started legalizing marijuana it cut into the illicit drug trade. Many of them moved to making meth in an industrial level. You can get Mexican meth cheaper than the ingredients to make meth yourself.
In all seriousness there has been an ongoing decline in home cooked meth. It just isn’t with it anymore.

Sh*t...I just got my lab goin...looks like I missed the boat...again

 

[Bilsch]

I quit recently because the quality just wasn't there anymore.

Uh.. quit what ?

 

[Homergah]

Might should rename this the "blue light" thread.

 

[z-bob]

My equipment is fairly inexpensive, and I buy most of my malt in 50 or 55 lb bags (usually at the LBHS), and I order hops in 4 oz or 1 lb packages online when they are on sale. I try to brew the best beer I can while minimizing the cost and still patronizing the two LHBSs. I don't know what the electricity or natural gas costs, I just know it's cheaper than propane; when I brew in the summer I might worry about the propane costs.

Sometimes I explore the cheapness angle a little too much (like the no-hops sour beer brewed with just pale malt and wheat flour) but even those batches are drinkable -- that one might actually be good, it's just not a style I like as much as I thought I would. And I had fun brewing it. The two best beers that I've made were simple and inexpensive: one was a SMaSH beer with Belgian pilsner malt, Sterling hops, and K1V1116 wine yeast. The other was a recent porter (90% pale ale malt, 5% C20, 5% black patent, Willamette hops, yeast harvested from Bell's Oberon) That porter will be in my regular rotation now.

 

[bracconiere]

Sh*t...I just got my lab goin...looks like I missed the boat...again

damn brother, if wasn't for the po'poe , we could start a forum about it! have all the newbies asking what molar weight was!

 

[PapaGanj]

The OP is right.

Im 99% sure that all the brewers putting more money into the hobbie than us are, -that figure of money spent- × more satisfied and happy during the whole process.

Ive created a formula for this

(A bunch of money you spent × total finished brew volume)
ABMYS×TB=how much better you MUST feel.

Heres an example;
Lets say you just bought the grain father all grain system.
It costs roughly 1200$, and you plan to brew 4 batches in it, totalling around 20gal.

(Abmys) (TB)
1200$ × 20gal = 24,000.

Thats a mathematically guaranteed 24,000 times more excitement and feel goodness-that we all know comes from homebrewing.

[emoji485][emoji485]

 

[topdog149]

For me it's all about the hobby and the cash and space and of course great beer

 

[grampamark]

I posted in What silly things frugal brewers do! a couple of months ago on this topic.

TL;DR-I can brew the kind of beer I like for the price of an equivalent amount of Busch Lite, all in, ingredients and equipment.

Is that cheap? I think it's practical. YMMV.