Beer Baron Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 2 hours ago, Beerlust said: If I had $43 & had a choice between a carton of commercial beer & BB's beer, I know which one I would buy & drink. The commercial beer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 I got into this hobby because I want to make beer from scratch, not to make it cheaply however it’s a bonus when it’s great and cheap. My brews cost anywhere between $30 and $60. I could not justify brewing a beer under $30 for a cheap beer if it was no good. I’m actually going to get myself a mill on my next break as I’m getting all my specialty malts from my LHBS, I pay quite a bit for it there but I like to support local. However I’m just getting sick of the attitude of the owner. So I’m going to buy specialty malts now and mill myself. Captain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 Might as well buy sacks of base malt and mill that too. Cheaper than buying it by the batch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 I do buy bulk base at the moment, just going to move to the lot now. Bulk purchase and store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 It's the way to go with AG. Never done it any other way, it's just really convenient when you plan a brew day knowing you've already got all the ingredients on hand without having to do a quick dash to the brew shop, which in my current location isn't all that local Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RepSpec Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 Most of my brews end up between $40-60 bucks for 24-28 PET long necks (depending on how i dry hop) For the type of beers i want to drink, this works out the best way. Takes a month to enjoy (from brew to drink)...but who cares! I enjoy the feedback i get from people too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 47 minutes ago, Otto Von Blotto said: It's the way to go with AG. Never done it any other way, it's just really convenient when you plan a brew day knowing you've already got all the ingredients on hand without having to do a quick dash to the brew shop, which in my current location isn't all that local Yep, completely agree, my local is a 45min round trip, otherwise it’s a 4 hour min round trip. I don’t go to the city very often but it’s worth it if ya getting bulk grain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 2 hours ago, The Captain1525230099 said: I’m actually going to get myself a mill on my next break as I’m getting all my specialty malts from my LHBS, I pay quite a bit for it there but I like to support local. I would like to buy from my LHBS but in my opinion he isn’t that good. I do buy from another homebrew shop but have to get it shipped. IDEA!!! Open my own homebrew supplies store!!! I’ll be rich!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porschemad911 Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 6 minutes ago, Beer Baron said: I’ll be rich!!! Yeah especially if you can get that Beer Baron guy to buy from you, he spends heaps on ingredients I heard! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porschemad911 Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 My next batch (11l of an English Dark Mild fermented with reused slurry) will cost about $13. In my local bottle shops you can't get one of those at any price! Cheers, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 Cost has never been an issue when i brew. I do save with bulk grains and yeast starters, but the aim of the game for me is producing a high quality beer that matches any beer i can buy at any bottle shop. The bonus is, its significantly cheaper than buying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 10 hours ago, Beer Baron said: I don’t drink or brew enough to buy bags I buy twice yearly but have some lesser used ones that can be up to a year old. no issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 A IPA I have just kegged used 270g of hops and 7.55 kg grain and cost $40.84 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 1 hour ago, Ben 10 said: A IPA I have just kegged used 270g of hops and 7.55 kg grain and cost $40.84 Wow....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 I really have to find a new supplier. I thought my guy was very cheap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 That bigarse stout I brewed used nearly 9kg of grain and about 100g hops and cost me $30 for 21/22 litres. Looking at around a 9% ABV for that one. Completely off topic but I found a check box in Beersmith 3 to get rid of those crappy looking new beer glass things in the recipe design things and go back to the old ones. It's in the Look and Feel section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSands Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 On 10/11/2018 at 2:14 PM, karlos_1984 said: A carton of Cooper's pale as a benchmark half decent mainstream beer is usually just under $50 anyway (in SA at least). It's a curious thing, and probably the only thing that's cheaper here in NZ than it is in Aus. Beer! Even the Coopers Pale Ale you mention - a 6-pack which can be bought for... 1 Dozen bottle cartons don't seem so common in Aus? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 I love going to nz and picking up a carton of speights for $29. And a pint for $5 at the pub. And avocados for $1 each or less on the side of the road stalls. Amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSands Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 39 minutes ago, The Captain1525230099 said: And a pint for $5 at the pub. And avocados for $1 each or less on the side of the road stalls. Amazing. Well, I don't think you'll find a pub doing $5 pints anymore! I generally avoid buying beer over the bar these days but I weakened the other night after a gig at a small Irish Bar and bought a Kilkenny. $11 And recently: "...Australians can buy our Kiwi avocados for $1.50, while here at home we're paying $6.99 for the good-fats privilege." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graculus Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 3 hours ago, BlackSands said: It's a curious thing, and probably the only thing that's cheaper here in NZ than it is in Aus. Beer! Even the Coopers Pale Ale you mention - a 6-pack which can be bought for... 1 Dozen bottle cartons don't seem so common in Aus? I presume the price difference is because your alcohol is taxed differently. I have seen the 1 dozen bottle cartons in Aldi. Not sure about bottle shops as I don't go in them that often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 @BlackSands yeah $5 pints are rare, the place I’m referring to is on the way up to the coramandel. Coraglen Tav. Happy hour pints. Most other places I’ve visited were a bit more but still reasonable compared to the prices in WA. My mother in law near Tauranga was saying that avocados are dear now but I didn’t think that much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristinaS1 Posted October 15, 2018 Share Posted October 15, 2018 As has been mentioned, hops are expensive. Want cheaper beer? Develop a taste for APAs instead of double IPAs. There is an insane amount of hops being put in a lot of beers these days. It was driven by craft brewers trying to differentiate themselves from mega swills. Now that everybody is using more hops, including the mega swills, they are driven to extremes. There is a certain amount of machismo to it, trying these hop bombs, as a special treat, for a special occasion. It is akin to how some people will go outside of their comfort zone when they are out celebrating and order a spicier dish than they normally eat, or a very peaty Scotch. Do it often enough, you get used to it, and like it. Here is an analogy: most people eat a lot of salt. We think salt makes food taste better, and we like it....I am sure we all know people who have been told by their doctor to cut out salt for health reasons. The ones that do as they are told get used to it. When they are in situations where they have no choice but to eat something salty again. I have heard them say, "There is so much salt, I can't taste the food." They don't like it anymore. There are diminishing returns at a certain point, in terms of bang for the buck. Does a beer with with 500gm of hops really taste twice as good as one with 250gm? Or five times as good as one with 100gm? I don't think these things go in a straight line. Cheers, Christina. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted October 15, 2018 Share Posted October 15, 2018 I agree Christina. I hop my beers largely according to style with a little personal taste thrown in. I don't brew based on cost and I don't care about hopping the shit out of beers just for the hell of it, I just brew what I enjoy drinking. It just happens that most of them are 'standard' ABV beers, with a low to moderate amount of hops depending on the style. I have begun increasing the amounts of cube and dry hops in my pale ales but not to extremes. They generally have around 150g of hops all up in them. Pilsners around the same depending on the AA% of the Saaz. Most of my other beers contain less than that. The red ale probably contains the least amount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSands Posted October 15, 2018 Share Posted October 15, 2018 1 hour ago, ChristinaS1 said: Does a beer with with 500gm of hops really taste twice as good as one with 250gm? Or five times as good as one with 100gm? I don't think these things go in a straight line. And I'm not so convinced that more hops necessarily tastes better nor do I necessarily think more hops are going to always taste hoppier. There's so many factors that come into play. I've brewed a few Golden Ales recently - and I was quite taken by one recently that received just a mere 25g of post-boil hops (Taiheke) which subjectively tastes just as hoppy on a slightly lighter grain bill as a previous Golden Ale which had a total of 75g flavour/aroma additions (of a couple of different variety hops that I can't quite remember now!). So, I think another strategy to help keep costs down is in part hop choice, and also utilising them in ways to achieve maximum 'bang-for-buck'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristinaS1 Posted October 15, 2018 Share Posted October 15, 2018 When you say lighter grain bill do you mean lighter in colour, or lighter in gravity, or both? For mean it means both. Using just a moderate amount of hops means you don't have to bump the gravity up to be balanced, so better for the waist line. I have switched from using the APA and Lager kits as a base to using the Cervesa kit. I find the lower IBUs means I can use lighter coloured crystal malts, and fewer of them, and still be balanced. My grain bill consists of Vienna, malted wheat, and 115-200gm of CaraVienna, or sometimes 65gm of Honey Malt instead. Most of my partial mash APAs these days are made with 60-65gm of finishing hops. Very tasty and balanced. How you deploy them also plays a role in how much you get out of them. Minimal boiling of late hops (to limit boil off of volatiles), hop stands, shorter dry hops. The experimentation and science on this keeps evolving. I have not given up on five and ten minute additions so far, in favour of bigger hop stand additions, but I may try that yet. Cheers, Christina. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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