elLachlano Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Hey guys apologies to mods if this is a breach but I found an interesting discussion over on another platform that I'd thought I'd share and see if I can get some takes from the folks over here. Cos I value your opinions. I for one agree with this being a catalyst for reigniting my homebrew interest last year. $60 per carton for borderline megaswill is ridiculous. No regrets at all and I can now brew great beer that I can share with friends and family. How does everyone else feel about this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Baron Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 I started brewing because I wanted a hands on hobby. The high price of beer at the time didn’t bother me but these days the price is ridiculous. I brew now because my beer is better than the megaswill. The government will definitely keep on increasing the price of booze and smokes. It’s all about the $$$$$$ Beer Baron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryano2 Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Yeah they know people will buy it that's the problem. We piss and moan when the excise goes up. But guess what, we keep buying it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris! Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 5 minutes ago, Beer Baron said: I started brewing because I wanted a hands on hobby. The high price of beer at the time didn’t bother me but these days the price is ridiculous. I brew now because my beer is better than the megaswill. The government will definitely keep on increasing the price of booze and smokes. It’s all about the $$$$$$ Beer Baron This! Well most of it! I started brewing for a hobby, the price and I wanted drink beers I preferred, sorry to say this but something that didn't have pride of Ringwood in it. as time went on my tastes changed and so did the beers. I love gathering data, by tasting, so sometimes I am flabbergasted, word of the day, by the price at a brewery/pub, $9 to $10.5 for what I know cost them pennies on the dollar....taxes! To be totally honest I don't mind vice taxes. America could be so much better if they also did this across the state's, but that is just my opinion, we all have one. I love Australia. So with that long winded fluff, If your aren't brewing your own your paying for everyone else and regulated to whatever price and flavours they offer. If that sounds good to you then keep buying whatever they offer while I drink what I want for half the price or less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Beer prices in Aus will forever increase until it gets to a point where the people stand up and say no more. I’m not going to get into the government side of things because I do not vote therefore I don’t have a say in how this country is run. Homebrew for me wasn’t about finances. It was simply about making my own beer and knowing what’s in it. I keep telling all my mates and anyone that’ll listen that making your own beer is so simple that literally anyone can do it and for great tasting beer that you don’t have to pay $90 a carton for. I will go and buy craft beer for sure as I love beer and I really like trying new stuff however, the little birdy in the back of my head says, Captain, do you really need to spend $20-$30 on a bottle of beer. Most of the time I swipe it away and say out loud in the bottlo, yes I do need to!!! Captain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris! Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 You so much more eloquent than me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 I started because I wanted to make my own, the price wasn't really a consideration back when I started. I was living at home with minimal expenses. Now though, it's different. A carton of my favourite styles is at least $60, usually up around $80. I find it hard to justify paying that with a mortgage, bills etc. now, especially when I can brew 70 odd litres of my own for the same price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Captain!! Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 1 minute ago, Norris! said: You so much more eloquent than me! Do you say out loud...... Eff off Norris, I’ll drink what I want!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris! Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Hahaha! I thought I was the only one who rationalised the beer costs out loud! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty_G Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 My reasons for starting were many: the price, while I don't object paying good money for consumer products as it is the price one pays for living in developed country which pays a living wage and has, in the main, great services, education,medial and roads etc etc .... I have travelled a huge amount and enjoyed 10c beers in Asia ...Where at the time the yearly wage was under $1000 US per year .... in Cambodia now pretty usual to get a beer for 50c and the wage is $1200/year ... no dole, no social security, no pension etc etc etc ... So paying good wage I am all for that ... A hobby: In the end of 2017 I retired and moved from the hustle and bustle of high rise apartment living in the Brisbane CBD back to the Sunshine Coast where we have bought a small farm, well acreage, but we call it the farm ... now have chooks, dogs, grand kids, lawn tractor and do all manner of building and handy man work around the property and home brewing just fits in ... , I am a collector: I have a good size wine collection, 400 bottles, and appreciate good quality wine made by small vineyard wine makes, it is bespoke, non commercial and it gives me a huge amount of enjoyment, drinking it, tasting it, talking it and buying it .... home brewing just fits in .... not really into the hipster, craft beer experience but love making my own ... love it when we have gusts and can offer a rang of beer from stout right through to Mexican beers or a couple of ciders that I have made ... The taste and variety: The way changing the a few ingredients that you add to a kit can change the flavour is just wonderful, currently turning a coopers lager into a Beer Lao ... and it tastes great The savings: this is the kicker it is cheap ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 I started because i wanted a hobby. Was really happy with my brews, all KK. Then it dawned on me that i could make better beer so i joined this motley crew. Experimented with dry hops, some good some not so. Based on threads here i went out and bought a freezer and inkbird and a grain bag. First BIAB i did was Kelsey's ace of spades porter. Wow result was chalk and cheese. Was so impressed that a beer i had just made was as good if not better than what i could buy. At that point i fell into the rabbit hole. Adding so much to the equipment profiles. I now look at commercial even a lot of craft beer and think, i can brew this. The beauty of homebrew is the blank canvas, its an art form, its a science, its a huge journey. Cost 50% of bought beer but does grab half a day of your time. Would i go down this road again? Fck yeah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I home brew for the satisfaction it provides, the cost savings are a benefit. Personally I have no problems with the taxing alcohol and cigarettes if it is spent wisely on healthcare etc. I just think it should be equal across all forms of alcohol i.e. no favours for the wine industry at the expense of beer and spirits. It should also be fair to all the different sized manufacturers. I have been to the US and drank ridiculously cheap beer but I would prefer a subsidised health care system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 13 hours ago, elLachlano said: Hey guys apologies to mods if this is a breach but I found an interesting discussion over on another platform that I'd thought I'd share and see if I can get some takes from the folks over here. Cos I value your opinions. I for one agree with this being a catalyst for reigniting my homebrew interest last year. $60 per carton for borderline megaswill is ridiculous. No regrets at all and I can now brew great beer that I can share with friends and family. How does everyone else feel about this? To answer the original questioner: Yes it will keep going up perennially. It's indexed every Feb and August. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackSands Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I got in to homebrewing initially just to save $, but then kinda got absorbed in the hobby so it became much more than that. I thought beer here in NZ was expensive until I checked out Australian prices.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I got into home brewing as a means to save money. I had built a house & taken on a mortgage on a single income. Money was tight (still is really). The diverse nature of beer styles & being able to sculpt the colours, flavours & aromas of a beer became very addictive, & I have a general curiosity about most things. It's what keeps me home brewing today. I DO have a problem with the taxing of beer, cigarettes etc. No other industry is burdened with such a tax of this nature. Over the last 20yrs I have watched the continued disintegration of the hospitality industry under the burden of this tax. The implementation of GST many moons ago was supposed to eliminate ALL other taxes. It didn't & we still have many of those taxes that were there when the GST was first introduced. The governments of this country are intruding far too deeply into the people's pockets these days for their revenue stream. What were once choices an individual was allowed to make for themselves & how they lived are now taken from them & the individual is made to pay for the greater good whether they want to, need to, or not. That free health care system will come in handy when I'm forced to sell my house & live on the streets. Cheers, Lusty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 1 minute ago, Beerlust said: I DO have a problem with the taxing of beer, cigarettes etc. No other industry is burdened with such a tax of this nature. Over the last 20yrs I have watched the continued disintegration of the hospitality industry under the burden of this tax. Pubs go broke! It's a concept that is really difficult to get your head around but it does actually happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Potatoes Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 A reason for taxing alcohol is that it’s a really good away of getting tax for governments. GST is also a good method too. Other methods, like taxing wigs or window panes are less successful, so have been abandoned. Income tax also has problems due to cost of getting returns done but is a good way of influencing the publics behaviour. I wonder what the ratio is for tax income generated on alcohol / costs alcohol causes. Hard to calculate but would be interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 14 hours ago, elLachlano said: I for one agree with this being a catalyst for reigniting my homebrew interest last year. $60 per carton for borderline megaswill is ridiculous. No regrets at all and I can now brew great beer that I can share with friends and family. How does everyone else feel about this? For me, what started out as a new common pastime to share with my son has now become a mainly, solo hobby. He still likes to drink a few of them though. Previously I would have bought at least a slab a week of megaswill brands, so I'm saving about $2K p.a. at least and drinking some pretty good beers to boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 9 minutes ago, Potatoes said: Other methods, like taxing wigs or window panes are less successful, so have been abandoned. Income tax also has problems due to cost of getting returns done but is a good way of influencing the publics behaviour. I've deferred buying a merkin because they've taxed them out of my price range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamus O'Sean Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 Like a lot of us, I got into brewing because I got the Coopers kit one Father's Day. I had dropped hints to the family for a while, but was not so motivated as to buy one myself. I think in the end my son did some calculations to work out costs and told my wife it would be cheaper for me to brew that to buy. Hence they lashed out and bought the kit. It actually took me six months to get around to making the first brew and like most of us it was drinkable, but hardly top quality. The family got me a few more brew cans in the meantime, so I had to make something with them, got some ideas from watching Fast Homebrew, made a good one (Easy Pale Ale), and the rest, as they say, is history. Now I enjoy the whole process from recipe selection, buying ingredients, brew day, fermenting, bottling, conditioning and finally drinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thirsty Jim Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 I reckon many people get involved in home brewing to make cheap beer - then discover, to their delight, that they are also making better beer, and it keeps getting better the more they make it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karlos_1984 Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 4 hours ago, Shamus O'Sean said: Now I enjoy the whole process from recipe selection, buying ingredients, brew day, fermenting, bottling, conditioning and finally drinking. I enjoy all of the above, except bottling. Bottling sux and is a PITA. It's the only part I dread doing because of the stuffing around sanitising and filling, capping and packing away etc. Takes up the whole kitchen for a good couple hours from start to finish. SWMBO has more patience than I give her credit for. And before anyone suggests it, no I can't change to kegs. Not enough room or cash to get it setup at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 Kegs mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 It's an interesting situation. On one hand you have the government and health bodies telling everyone that excessive alcohol consumption is bad for your health (which it is), and everyone knows cigarettes do nothing but harm, but it reminds me of telling kids not to do something. As soon as you say it, they want to do it and most likely will, rebellion as it were. Maybe it never really leaves us, and as adults we "rebel" against the authority in other ways. I sometimes wonder if they relaxed all the regulation around these things and removed the perceived taboo, whether or not people would still do it as much. When they switched to plain packaging on cigarettes it made no difference to me and I doubt it stopped kids taking it up. I don't disagree with taxing it, but at the same time I think it's over taxed. Alcoholics are gonna buy it regardless so they aren't stopping people who are already there. Joe Bloggs who likes a couple of beers on a Saturday is paying through the nose for no reason. He isn't harming his health. This is why I buy the $35 cartons of whatever lager if I run out of my own. Most times it's better than local megaswill, and obviously cheaper so it doesn't break the bank or make me feel like I'm wasting a heap of money. I realise the breweries have costs they have to recover but the ridiculous prices are mainly because of the overtaxing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ocean's of Ale- Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 Interesting thread mates, *Personally i got into brewing helping my grandfather making his beer back in the 1980's, not exactly 21st century child care practices granted, but it helped me to connect with him & it sent me down a road of knowledge- understanding that what we made was- well more than the sum of it's parts, shall l say. *Theses days i brew for a combination of reasons.. pleasure, (unachievable )-perfection & sentimental reasons. I don't really brew to save money because l still buy loads of wine & cognac etc- but there can be no doubt, that the average brewer must be saving a small fortune- money that can better spent on family & home loan(s). *a 1.7kg kit + be2=$.. probly could be made for .80c a litre, cheaper than milk by the litre iam sure & better value for tha pint/schooner & "atmosphere " at your local. Having mentioned all this l hope the fine people at Cooper's brewery don't suddenly review there price structures- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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