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Posted: 12/7/2016 10:25:30 PM EDT
[#1]
Nope. Not one bit. However, it's a ton of fun and totally worth doing. That's been my experience with it. YMMV.
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Posted: 12/7/2016 10:27:35 PM EDT
[#2]
I will also add that if you enjoyed wine making you'll LOVE making beer. MUCH more involved.
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Posted: 12/7/2016 10:32:14 PM EDT
[#3]
First poster nailed it, twice.
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Posted: 12/7/2016 10:34:19 PM EDT
[#4]
Probably about as much money as you do reloading
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Posted: 12/7/2016 10:42:56 PM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Nope. Not one bit. However, it's a ton of fun and totally worth doing. That's been my experience with it. YMMV. I quit home brewing a few years ago. It is fun but can be time consuming too. And some people have more dollars than sense and go crazy with their equipment. If you do that then there's no way you're saving money. |
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Posted: 12/7/2016 11:25:46 PM EDT
[#6]
Thanks for the answers. I think I'm just looking for an excuse to have a new project.
I'll give it a try. |
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Posted: 12/8/2016 12:53:38 AM EDT
[#7]
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Posted: 12/8/2016 2:09:59 AM EDT
[#8]
lol. No.
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Posted: 12/8/2016 3:04:27 AM EDT
[#9]
let me do the math here on my savings ... nothin' and a nothin', carry the nothin'... yep, no savings. But lots of great beer and it's fun. I haven't brewed in almost a year now. I need to do a batch.
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Posted: 12/8/2016 3:02:32 PM EDT
[#10]
Once you factor in equipment, supplies, time etc probably not.
Think of it this way - the ingredients for a 5 gallon batch costs anywhere from $35-60 depending on the recipe. So call it $45 on a average. A 5 gal batch is about 50 beers, so you're at $.90/beer just for ingredients. |
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Posted: 12/8/2016 4:49:58 PM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Think of it this way - the ingredients for a 5 gallon batch costs anywhere from $35-60 depending on the recipe. you are doing it wrong. OP yes it can be a lot cheaper, but you have to have and initial investment, but that does not mean buying expensive gear. If you want the cheapest beer, you need have a all grain setup. I spent right at 34 dollars per batch but I'm making 9.5-10% IPAs which would cost 100-130 or so to buy it. |
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Posted: 12/8/2016 5:52:13 PM EDT
[#12]
Like reloading, there is a certain initial investment to make, materials, and a learning curve. Also like reloading, a lot of very simple steps have to be followed exactly for success. Pay attention to cleanliness and so forth. Horror stories of multiple bottles of beer exploding stem from easily avoided mistakes.
What you will be able to do is tailor the taste and alcohol content of your product to your preferences, and no other brewer can do that, except by chance. |
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Posted: 12/10/2016 1:53:51 PM EDT
[#13]
Once you have all your equipment and are brewing all grain you can brew decent beer for a decent price if you buy grain and hops in bulk. I usually buy my base malt locally in 50lb sacks and bulk hops from hops direct. Yeast washing saves some $$ too, but I no longer bother. |
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Posted: 12/12/2016 10:50:30 AM EDT
[#14]
Quoted:
So, does homebrewing save much compared to the cost of buying craft beers in the store? I can't really find a definitive answer using google. I'm gonna disagree with almost everybody here. Home brewing saves you no money when you compare it to, say, bud light or Yuengling. On "craft" beers, yes, it can totally save you money. Take this: So call it $45 on a average. A 5 gal batch is about 50 beers, so you're at $.90/beer just for ingredients. That's about what a Brewers Best Imperial Stout Kit costs (I'm new at home brewing and also a bit lazy). Even adding in a couple bucks for crown caps, well, there's no way it's costing me under $6 a six pack for any Imperial Stout at the store. |
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Posted: 12/14/2016 9:22:10 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I'm gonna disagree with almost everybody here. Home brewing saves you no money when you compare it to, say, bud light or Yuengling. On "craft" beers, yes, it can totally save you money. Take this: That's about what a Brewers Best Imperial Stout Kit costs (I'm new at home brewing and also a bit lazy). Even adding in a couple bucks for crown caps, well, there's no way it's costing me under $6 a six pack for any Imperial Stout at the store. Agreed, but factor time and KNOWN quality and things change. |
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Posted: 12/16/2016 12:35:20 AM EDT
[#16]
I'm in deep. Probably $1600 in equipment and I'm doing brew in a bag/basket with the brew boss. I'm probably 6 or 7 ten gallon batches in and finally making really good brew. I can make a 10 gallon batch that's 6% to 8% for ~$55. 10 gallons of beer last a long time.
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Posted: 12/17/2016 8:20:24 AM EDT
[#17]
No, because you'll always be buying something new and improved.
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Posted: 12/17/2016 2:45:43 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
10 gallons of beer last a long time. that's what i used to think 
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Posted: 12/17/2016 2:55:38 PM EDT
[#19]
1st post kinda confirmed my hunch ( never been a brewer here )
Its a lot easier to invite over a bunch of buddies for a poker game and usually you are left with twice as much beer as you started with 
Unless your friends are a bunch of moochers 
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Posted: 12/17/2016 11:35:06 PM EDT
[#20]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
that's what i used to think Fortunately I don't have any friends that like the type of beer I brew. |
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Posted: 12/18/2016 8:52:38 AM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Fortunately I don't have any friends that like the type of beer I brew. said, the chances of that happening are pretty low. That's what I started thinking I was going to do. Didn't pan out that way.
Right now, the only way I save any kind of money is when I throw parties. Make a cheap, simple recipe. Bottle half, keg half. Have everyone bring something to the party. Have a good time for less than it would cost for me and the wife to go out to eat. THAT is the only way that home-brewing saves me money. And it has no where near been enough to pay for the keg, let alone the beer ingredients.
But its not about that. Its about enjoying the hobby and spending time with friends. It is sort of like reloading in that if you don't like doing it, then you should just buy ammo, because your time is worth more than theoretical savings. |
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Posted: 12/20/2016 9:43:50 PM EDT
[#22]
Yes. No doubt about it.
IF you go into with that intention. You can make excellent, all-grain beer for cheap when compared to similar styles which cost $10+ a 6 pack. All grain, reuse your yeast, grow your own hops, keep your equipment simple. If you think you are going to save money over buying 30 racks of A-B/MC, than no. |
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Posted: 12/20/2016 9:48:49 PM EDT
[#23]
Sounds like an excuse to drink more beer. Which is good and bad depending on who you ask lol
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Posted: 12/20/2016 9:54:32 PM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
that's what i used to think Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
10 gallons of beer last a long time. that's what i used to think A little over 100 bottles. At a case a week, that would last me a month. |
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Posted: 12/22/2016 12:41:34 AM EDT
[#25]
If you have an addictive personality like I do then brewing at home costs a heck of a lot more than buying it at the store. By addictive I mean, always looking for a new piece of equipment to save time or labor on the next batch. I swear, every time I brew another batch I think of building a new gadget or try to convince myself to buy some other piece of equipment. On the plus side, I haven't brewed in over two years-which has allowed me to "build"/assemble two AR15's!
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Posted: 12/26/2016 7:58:56 PM EDT
[#26]
Homebrewing has never been about saving money to me. It's always been about doing things myself, and having control in the process.
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Posted: 12/26/2016 8:24:25 PM EDT
[#27]
You can make fine beer at about 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of bottled stuff. Key is buy in bulk and brew in bulk and doing all grain vs extractds
I used to do all grain 10 gallon batches. I'd save yeast from a smack pack in a test tube for the next batch of beer |
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Posted: 12/28/2016 6:20:01 PM EDT
[#28]
A decent 6-pack of craft beer is $9-$12 for 72 oz of beer.
Let's say $0.125 / ounce ($9 / 72) You can brew 5 gallons of similar quality beer for $30-40 ish Low end $0.05555 / ounce So while technically cheaper per ounce, the cost of equipment and extras quickly eat away at this advantage. It's not really cheaper though, in the long run. |
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Posted: 1/8/2017 9:46:48 AM EDT
[#29]
I have my own brew kitchen and even grow hops and other brew fodder.......NO FREAKIN way can I produce a quality beer for what I can buy it for. I have several awesome microbreweries that have weekly growler specials for $5-8 and they get it right. Beer brewing has an amazing industry support with pros doing more experimenting than you could ever afford. I now brew wine, cider, kombucha, water keifer, ginger beer plant, and ginger ales.
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Posted: 1/8/2017 9:38:25 PM EDT
[#30]
It saved me at least $500 if you don't count the $1200 in equipment, LOL. Beyond money, how much garage space can you afford?
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Posted: 1/11/2017 3:35:16 PM EDT
[#31]
Just like reloading. You just end up drinking more.
Here's my numbers: Spent about $1700 in equipment (my own brew stand, carboys, kegs, etc). Without boring you will all the number crunching, I spend about $300/year on beer ingredients. I grown some of my own hops and reuse yeast. The equivalent volume of beer if I bought craft beer would be $990/yr. Therefore I save $690/year. Factor in equipment and I broke even in 2.5 years. Reality is I drink 87% more beer because I homebrew. |
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Posted: 1/14/2017 11:21:07 PM EDT
[#32]
you CAN do it cheaper. Buy gear at garage sales, estate sales, craigslist etc. Turkey fryers go on sale frequently at Academy, etc. Instead of one big brew pot, but two that will do the job. Brew in the kitchen instead of buying burners if you can't find any cheap ones. Paint strainer bags from home depot instead of brew bags from the brew store.
There are ways to keep costs down. Gear does NOT have to come from a brew store. |
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Posted: 1/14/2017 11:38:53 PM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Nope. Not one bit. However, it's a ton of fun and totally worth doing. That's been my experience with it. YMMV. This. I have a porter in the carboy as we speak. |
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Posted: 1/14/2017 11:59:20 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
you CAN do it cheaper. Buy gear at garage sales, estate sales, craigslist etc. Turkey fryers go on sale frequently at Academy, etc. Instead of one big brew pot, but two that will do the job. Brew in the kitchen instead of buying burners if you can't find any cheap ones. Paint strainer bags from home depot instead of brew bags from the brew store. There are ways to keep costs down. Gear does NOT have to come from a brew store. This right here. It can be cheap if set out to make it cheap |
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Posted: 1/15/2017 10:51:22 AM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
There are ways to keep costs down. Gear does NOT have to come from a brew store. yep you can start brewing for under 30 dollars, but you're kinda limited on types and options. A full all grain setup (cheapest over time) can be had for less than 300 dollars, if your handy. If you figure most beers are 6-11USD a pint, it doesnt take long to break even |
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Posted: 1/17/2017 5:51:31 PM EDT
[#36]
I used to buy 50lb sacks of grain for 50 bucks. A few lbs of adjuncts and I'm in beer heaven for a loooong time.
Equipment aside of course, but it doesn't take long to make up the cost provided you don't go buying expensive gear. Some people cannot help themselves so they go all out, automated rims/herms, reach-in's/walk-ins, 50 kegs, large capacity fermenters  Truth be told you can make award winning beer in plastic buckets, coolers, and your bathtub.
I kept my brewing KISS. I did have a converted chest freezer, but everything else was done in coolers, 6 gal buckets, a few carboys, and a bunch of kegs (I'm guilty there) I picked up a barley crusher as a gift because the wife got tired of me bitching about my grist . Pretty simple. Every loved my beer, I never entered any contest so no awards, but the accolades laid on me by my friends were plenty. 
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Posted: 1/17/2017 7:26:51 PM EDT
[#37]
I used to help my cousin brew IPAs since that is what we drank. It was very fun and satisfying drinking something you made, but I don't think we ever "saved" money. I eventually went back to buying growlers from Stone Brewery since it was easily accessible and I could have it whenever I wanted.
YMMV
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Posted: 1/22/2017 4:33:29 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I'm in deep. Probably $1600 in equipment and I'm doing brew in a bag/basket with the brew boss. I'm probably 6 or 7 ten gallon batches in and finally making really good brew. I can make a 10 gallon batch that's 6% to 8% for ~$55. 10 gallons of beer last a long time. 10 gallons doesnt last me a month, I run 5 gallon batches with two carboys (a 6.5 gal and a 5 gal) constantly full, around 100 bottles conditioning on the shelf that rarely make it 2 weeks before Im drinking them because Im out of whatever I made a month before. Cider is about the only thing I can make that keeps up with me, I like it but not enough to not make beer too. |
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Posted: 5/30/2017 12:17:47 PM EDT
[#39]
Yes it *can* save you money if you like expensive craft beers. Once you've bought you're brewing equipment, the ingredients are pretty cheap; a 5 gal batch will run you about $40. Keep in mind, that's extract brewing. All-Grain is even cheaper but requires more equipment and cost (although not much more.) I'm still able to brew a craft Belgian or IPA (with more ingredients and cost,) for about $0.70 a glass which is pretty damn cheap. Now keep in mind I'm NOT counting in my time it takes to brew, just the bulk ingredient costs. Brew a simple lager or Ale, the costs are even cheaper.
I started out my brewing to save money on expensive Belgian and German styles I enjoyed but I probably have over a LaRue Predator with an ACOG in equipment costs so..... |
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Posted: 5/30/2017 11:07:04 PM EDT
[#40]
I recently bought a 15.5 gal keg at a garage sale. 5 bucks. I need to cut the top off and add a spigot, another couple of dollars.
Keggle, for less than ten bucks. |
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Posted: 5/31/2017 12:57:43 PM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I recently bought a 15.5 gal keg at a garage sale. 5 bucks. I need to cut the top off and add a spigot, another couple of dollars. Keggle, for less than ten bucks. |
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Posted: 5/31/2017 2:27:59 PM EDT
[#42]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
That's a cheap keggle but do yourself a favor and add a thermometer and a sight glass, spend the money and have something quality.
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Posted: 6/5/2017 8:51:33 PM EDT
[#43]
So a question with regards to saving money. I've been perusing Midwest Supplies, and it seems that I can get a full set of equipment for around 80 dollars, and each additional batch of 4 dozen beers costs about 20 bucks. Even factoring in the cost of caps, that comes out to around 24 dollars per 48 beers, which is cheaper than even Keystone Light! In my area anyhow. So I ask you, how can you not be saving money with this method?
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Posted: 6/6/2017 12:48:43 PM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
So a question with regards to saving money. I've been perusing Midwest Supplies, and it seems that I can get a full set of equipment for around 80 dollars, and each additional batch of 4 dozen beers costs about 20 bucks. Even factoring in the cost of caps, that comes out to around 24 dollars per 48 beers, which is cheaper than even Keystone Light! In my area anyhow. So I ask you, how can you not be saving money with this method? I brew with the intention to save money. I do all grain BIAB in a cooler, boil in a turkey fryer I bought off CraigsList, no chill, and reuse yeast and grow my own hops. You can save money by fermenting in old water jugs. Some people have seriously impressive equipment set ups in the $1ks. It can absolutely cost less, if you let it. |
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Posted: 6/6/2017 1:07:29 PM EDT
[#45]
i brewed in my reloading room. was reloading bottles and brass (never at the same time).
Just like reloading, no you don't save money. But you do get way more beer, and tailored to how you like it. It was nice always having a supply, making it as gifts, etc. Most of mine turned out good enough, just follow the instructions and you'll be fine. You can do it with cheap gear first, see if you like it. It took up a lot of room between storing bottles, carboys, ingredients, etc. And I was drinking too much beer. I'll get back into it eventually but I would rather try wine or whiskey. |
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Posted: 6/6/2017 1:52:02 PM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
i brewed in my reloading room. was reloading bottles and brass (never at the same time). Just like reloading, no you don't save money. But you do get way more beer, and tailored to how you like it. It was nice always having a supply, making it as gifts, etc. Most of mine turned out good enough, just follow the instructions and you'll be fine. You can do it with cheap gear first, see if you like it. It took up a lot of room between storing bottles, carboys, ingredients, etc. And I was drinking too much beer. I'll get back into it eventually but I would rather try wine or whiskey. |
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Posted: 6/6/2017 2:06:49 PM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
So a question with regards to saving money. I've been perusing Midwest Supplies, and it seems that I can get a full set of equipment for around 80 dollars, and each additional batch of 4 dozen beers costs about 20 bucks. Even factoring in the cost of caps, that comes out to around 24 dollars per 48 beers, which is cheaper than even Keystone Light! In my area anyhow. So I ask you, how can you not be saving money with this method? |
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Posted: 6/6/2017 2:41:22 PM EDT
[#48]
Does ANY hobby ever save money?
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Posted: 6/6/2017 3:43:09 PM EDT
[#49]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Just remember it's illegal to distill spirits for consumption. |
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Posted: 6/6/2017 4:30:54 PM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
I know, so I'd probably have to get a license to get into it. On the other hand, there has never been a prosecution (to my knowledge) of someone that makes their own as long as they don't sell it. They get moonshiners all the time but that's for sale. |
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