www.fiftypoundsack.com - cheap bulk grain

[waldoar15]

Anybody buy any hops from them yet? I can get bulk grain much cheaper locally, but the hops prices don't look all that bad with the shipping included.

 

[Boodlemania]

Without searching this entire thread, are the fifty pound sack people in TN?

I just paid $58 plus the ridiculous 10% sales tax from the LHBS for Briess 2 row which I thought was very high. Commodity prices are going up though so it would stand to reason that barley prices will go up steeply.

I know the LHBS you speak of as I had them quote my bulk grain order (I buy grain once a year). A 50lb sack of Briess 2-row was $58.

For that very reason, I am driving to Goodlettesville from Oak Ridge this afternoon to pick up my order. I'm much more than covering the cost of diesel to run out there in the savings I'm getting.

 

[1234]

I know the LHBS you speak of as I had them quote my bulk grain order (I buy grain once a year). A 50lb sack of Briess 2-row was $58.

For that very reason, I am driving to Goodlettesville from Oak Ridge this afternoon to pick up my order. I'm much more than covering the cost of diesel to run out there in the savings I'm getting.

Make sure to grab something from the Kegerator while you are in-store. The Amarillo Amber is tasty!

 

[CidahMastah]

Anybody buy any hops from them yet? I can get bulk grain much cheaper locally, but the hops prices don't look all that bad with the shipping included.

Check hops direct as well. They (50#) didn't have some of the stuff I needed (Amarillo).

 

[1234]

Check hops direct as well. They (50#) didn't have some of the stuff I needed (Amarillo).

If they don't have it on one side of the house they will have it on the other side, Rebel Brewer.

 

[CidahMastah]

If they don't have it on one side of the house they will have it on the other side, Rebel Brewer.

Yeah but they aren't a good price (2.99 per oz). Then again, I think I snarfed up the last pound bag of amarillo at hopsdirect, just checked back and after my order they have updated the website to indicate no more amarillo until the fall/winter. Eeek!

Glad I grabbed a pound!

 

[1234]

Yeah but they aren't a good price (2.99 per oz). Then again, I think I snarfed up the last pound bag of amarillo at hopsdirect, just checked back and after my order they have updated the website to indicate no more amarillo until the fall/winter. Eeek!

Glad I grabbed a pound!

They are going to be adding some additional hops and grains as they go. Just make sure you check back from time to time if you are looking for a specific hop.

 

[Malticulous]

Some people don't understand what it's like living hundreds of miles from a decent homebrew shop. These prices are still reasonable for us. I can get better prices on some varieties but their selection is very good now.

As for hops I'm sticking with farmhouse. With no Amarillo or Simcoe I can't take this place seriously. But then farmhouse is 50¢ per pound for shipping grain so they are not as serious about grain.

 

[jturie]

In walks the guy from Illinois...I can't think of a tax we DON'T have...we pay all three you mentioned. Even got a 2% increase on income tax...

sorry, back to the conversation...

Not to lecture you...but you actually got screwed with a 60% increase in your income taxes. Ouch. Pennsylvania has been at 6% forever, but they don't hit food and clothing.

 

[jmferris]

Anybody buy any hops from them yet? I can get bulk grain much cheaper locally, but the hops prices don't look all that bad with the shipping included.

That is what I am starting with. I'll be putting in a hops order today. A pound of Saaz and a pound of Willamette for $30, shipped, is a price I just haven't been able to beat, looking around online. That is $0.83 per pound average to my door. I was hoping for Target, but the Willamette should substitute nicely in my upcoming blonde ale.

At those prices, I should be stocked on those two for a long, long time. I plan on putting my jelly jars and FoodSaver to work, with the jar attachments I got for Christmas. I might have to consider investing in a mini-freezer for long-term storage. Buying hops in bulk should help save a considerable amount for upcoming brew sessions. Next big savings point for me probably won't happen until I move to AG, but this will definitely help.

 

[integrator]

Indy - 50lb 2-row - $37.50
http://tuxedoparkbrewers.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_8_14&products_id=10

I'm not sure the shipping estimator works but you can call or email them. Luckily they are 5 minutes from my work.

 

[Malticulous]

I was hoping for Target, but the Willamette should substitute nicely in my upcoming blonde ale.

I used a pound of Target. I don't think there is a sub for it.

 

[1234]

According to the how to brew book Northdown is a sub for target, but they don't carry that one at this point. I looked and Northdown and subs are target and Northern Brewer. I guess you could possibly sub Northern Brewer which they do carry for 15.49

 

[jmferris]

According to the how to brew book Northdown is a sub for target, but they don't carry that one at this point. I looked and Northdown and subs are target and Northern Brewer. I guess you could possibly sub Northern Brewer which they do carry for 15.49

Thanks for the tip.

The Brew365 site lists Willamette as a substitute, and I have never tried it. I do have enough Target for my next batch, though, after looking at my reserves. Might just choose another pound of something to stockpile. I love Fuggles, and they do have that, as well. Perhaps the Saaz, Fuggles, and Northern Brewer, then. The more the merrier, I say!

 

[Malticulous]

A mix of Willamette and Northern Brewer would be close I think.

 

[Rich_S]

Awesome idea, but their recent price increases basically kill it.

 

[jmferris]

Awesome idea, but their recent price increases basically kill it.

Didn't notice the grain price increases until you just mentioned it. Very happy with my hops order, though.

 

[bigbeergeek]

Indeed, some of their hop prices were the cheapest among the big reliable retailers... but the grains are a joke. Too bad.

 

[Rich_S]

The whole situation makes no sense. The homebrew market is huge. Someone needs to figure out how to make bulk grain purchases cheap and easy without requiring group buys.

I can go to Amazon.com, order a 40lb bag of dry dog food, pay the exact same price as I get at my local pet store ($35-40) and get FREE shipping. No one is going to convince me 50lb sacks of grain can't be shipped for anything less than $30 on top of an already inflated base price for the grain.

 

[1234]

Don't forget that grain is a commodity much like oil. It is bought and sold everyday for a different price. If the crop looks good then prices stay low but i fthe crop report comes in and it is bad then prices go up. Don't forget that businesses are in the market to make a little money. Let's say that shipping a 50lb sack is 20 then the price of te grain is at 1 per pound. That is not terrible. Same mark-up as your cloths and much lower than the shoes you wear on your feet!

 

[Steelers77]

That is what I am starting with. I'll be putting in a hops order today. A pound of Saaz and a pound of Willamette for $30, shipped, is a price I just haven't been able to beat, looking around online. That is $0.83 per pound average to my door. I was hoping for Target, but the Willamette should substitute nicely in my upcoming blonde ale.

FYI, at farmhousebrewingsupply.com you would have paid $29.15 for that order.

Cheers,

John

 

[jmferris]

FYI, at farmhousebrewingsupply.com you would have paid $29.15 for that order.

Good to know, John. I will have another hops order coming up soon, as I am starting to stockpile a bit for the season. You'll have my next order, sir.

 

[TheAleMaster]

Wow. I can get a sack of Gambrinus for $39 at my LHBS (but I think they are the leading importer of Gambrinus and supply a lot of the breweries around Seattle).

These guys don't have Great Western Malt either, whom I like to support because they are more or less local for me. Check out http://brewbrothers.biz/ if you want to try some Great Western. Their prices are RIDICULOUS cheap ($30.75 for 2-Row or Pale). Call them up and they'll quote you a shipping price.

 

[Rich_S]

A lot of people keep saying to just buy bulk grains from your LHBS because it's cheaper.

My experience with LHBS is that most of them aren't real interested in selling you 55lb sacks. They want to sell it to you by the pound at retail prices. Of course, most of the LHBS places I've been to have been little hole in the walls where they have a few bins of grain, a few shelves of equipment, and a little refrigerator case with a box of hop pellets and a box of yeast packs. They probably don't have more than a few sacks of grain in inventory at any point in time. Maybe some of you guys are just lucky enough to live where the big boys like NB, Austin, Rebel, MidWest, etc. are your LHBS.

 

[Austinhomebrew]

It's not, and if you are closer to Forrest, you are subsidizing his customers who are farther away. Not to get preachy, but this methodology does not result in an efficient use of resources in the economy and why I'm not a fan of flat or free shipping. Charge a reasonable markup and actual shipping and everyone wins, well, other than the guy up in Alaska who's shipping you are paying for.

You have to compare your total order plus shipping from one store and your total order plus shipping from another.

I just sent out an order that was $450 but we paid over $300 dollars to ship. Yes, we lost quite a bit of money on the order. Just compare apples to apples and buy at the best price. Just make sure you compare your total order plus shipping, not each individual item without shipping.

Forrest

 

[joety]

So if you lost money on that order you have to make it up somewhere else. That's my whole point.

 

[Austinhomebrew]

So if you lost money on that order you have to make it up somewhere else. That's my whole point.

That is false. You make the assumption that all homebrew stores make the same margin. That is not true.

Walmart makes 3.6% margin while Target makes 4.2%. Walmart is cheaper, where are they making up the difference? They don't both have to make 4.2%

You have to compare your total cost of your order plus shipping versus another store plus their shipping. We ususally win. Obviously why the person ordered the $450 order from me. I didn't make it up on him somewhere or on anyone else somewhere.

If you charged $100 for an item plus free shipping and your competition charged $100 but charged $12 shipping, you would make less margin and you wouldn't be making it up somewhere. Certainly not on the person that saved $12. Stores that charge shipping make a larger margin. They make it up by charging shipping.

Forrest

 

[joety]

I'm making no assumptions other than that what you said is true, that you lost significant money on a sale related to shipping costs. Obviously you need to make money to stay in business, so by losing money on one sale you will need to make up for it on another. Someone is subsidizing someone else because you are charging two people the same for something that has much different costs to you.

Understand?

 

[Ace_Club]

Basically the "free" shipping is not free in that the costs are spread over the other products throughout the store, thereby raising their prices ever so slightly.

 

[integrator]

How did this conversation evolve into this...... I see both points but I don't know that you are both talking about quite the same thing.

Next.