Last year I brewed 25 batches averaged about $25/ batch. What’s a kit average, maybe $40. That’s 15x25=$375. To me that’s nice change.[/quote]
Better than change…it’s 15 more batches of beer!
I like how you talk Danny. :cheers:
[quote=“Templar”]From what I’ve read if you can store the unmilled grains in an air tight container that also keep pests at bay, the freshness will last quite a while.
I currently don’t brew enough to buy a bunch at a time, so I just buy what I need when I want to brew and brew within a few days.[/quote]
I can tell you from experience that if you store unmilled grains in an air tight container that also keeps pests at bay, the freshness will last forever. Or at least 3 years. My personal experience doesn’t go longer than that.
I’m brewing 20 gallons of cream ale tomorrow, total cost is just under $56, ~$14 per 5 gallons. NB’s cream ale kit is $29 plus shipping so I’m saving well over $15 on each 5 gallons. 10-15 batches will easily pay for a mill, then it’s pure profit! lolozol
I also vacuum seal my hops to help with storage longevity. One I use is like this: http://deals.kinja.com/protect-leftover … 1691016391 Comes in handy for other stuff but I originally bought it for hops since it is way cheaper to buy hops in bulk and I tend to stock up on the hard to find varieties when they are available.
I’m eyeballing a vacuum sealer on Amazon right now, on sale for $59.
I get bulk grain from the local brewery up north fer $40.00 a bag. I also have access to the 12.5 gallon plastic bucket with a screw on top…. FREE! so, it pays to buy bulk fer me. sneezles61 :lol:
I use homedepot buckets with gamma lids (also sold at homedepot)
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Leaktite-5-g ... /203205720Two 5 gallon buckets will store around 45-50lbs of grain. I usually have a sack of American 2-row and a sack of German pils in storage and all my recipes use these base malts and specialty malts I buy as I need them (not in bulk).
I personally don’t make it a habit to save yeast unless I know im going to be brewing with the same yeast anytime soon. I’ve tried saving it but it just sat in my fridge unused for 6 months cause i like to try a variety of yeasts.
Hops are another thing I tend to buy as i need. I don’t really have a way to preserve their freshness and since I use such a variety, it would take over my freezer if i started buying bulk.
So all in all the only REAL money saving practices I employ are buying bulk base malt. I’m OK paying a little more for the convenience of not having to store bags of hops in the freezer and jars of yeast in the fridge (as is my wife…that’s her domain)
