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New Member from Indiana

tater5

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After several years of trying different "beers" to find one I like I gave up. Just recently a friend of mind pointed me toward craft beers and now I'm hocked. But now it is getting expensive so I thought I would give home brewing a try.
 
Go ahead and get into brewing to save money. Have that conversation with your S.O., if applicable.

Once you start brewing, it'll be about the flavor and crafting of something truly artisanal. It's a gadgeteering hobby that brings in disciplines of biology, chemistry, engineering and space management.

Brewing is half art, half science and all fun.
 
Making beer is usually cheaper per bottle than buying good craft beer.  There are some howevers, that in the long run, make it more expensive than purchasing good craft beer.

However #1:
You'll end up brewing more beer than you'd have purchased.  For some of us, this leads to drinking more beer.  As for me, I brew a lot more beer than I would ever buy, but my consumption hasn't increased at all (at least I don't think it has).  I just give a lot of it away now! 

However #2:
On occasion you'll make a batch of beer that is quite expensive!  I'm making a fruit cake flavored Oud Bruin that is quite expensive.  The beer ingredients (grains, hops, yeast) for five gallons were $67.  This puts it on par with the average cost for a six pack of a good craft beer.  However, the fruits that went in (1.5# each of Sour Cherries, Raisins, Cranberries, Figs, Dates and Black Currants) ran me $76.  I'm now at double the cost of an average good craft beer.  I created a split batch of two different basic wort sours for this batch, which ran me about $42.  My total cost for 10 gallons is now approaching $185.  I expect 108 bottles of beer out of this batch, so my cost per bottle is about $1.71, which is $10.27 per six pack.  More expensive than the average craft beer.

However #3:
Equipment costs.  You'll find yourself always wanting more equipment.  With me it's more fermenters.  I now have 11 fermenters, with a capacity between them to keep 55 gallons fermenting at anyone time.  Keezer...I'm building one out of a chest freezer.  I have about $300 in it so far, and expect to ultimately spend another $400 on it by the time I'm finished with it.  I'll then have 5 beers on tap.  This isn't counting, new hoses, autosiphons, hydrometers, refractometers, larger boil pots as you grow, etc., etc., etc.

However #4:
Books.  Yes, books.  My library now has about 15 books in it, at an average cost of $20 (this is a guess), I have $300 invested in my library.

As you can see, you won't save money brewing your own beer.  Very few hobbies actually pay for themselves.  Brewing only pays for itself if you go pro, or if you keep it to only brewing basic beers at the quantities that you can personally drink.  If you make more beer than you would have consumed, if you didn't make beer, it will cost more in the long run.
 
I read my post and it seems like I'm trying to discourage you, but I really am not trying to do that.  I don't mean to scare you away from brewing in any way.  I've found brewing to be a great hobby for me.  If I weren't brewing, I'd spend the money on something else anyhow. 

A list of the benefits of brewing beer are:
  • Making something delicious than you can't buy anywhere else.
  • Meeting a fascinating array of people who share your passion for brewing.
  • It's a whole lot of fun, especially when you brew with friends.
  • That first sip of a new beer.  Knowing that you're tasting a taste that no one in the history of the universe has ever tasted before.
  • Seeing the reaction when someone tries your newest creation, or takes their first taste ever of a homebrewed beer.

This list could go on and on.  One of the benefits that I'll get to enjoy this next Saturday is hosting a 12 beers of Christmas Party at my house for our homebrew club.  We decided to brew the 12 beers of Christmas from Randy Moshers book Radical Brewing.  I made the Gingerbread Ale.  We ended up brewing 13 beers of Christmas.  One of our members makes a wonderful Christmas beer each year and wanted in, after we had the 12 beers assigned.  So, of course, we couldn't refuse him.  We'd have let as many in as wanted in though.

Each of us brewed a five gallon batch.  Each brewer gets two 12-ounce bottles of each beer.  They are bringing enough extra of their Christmas brew for a round of tasting at the party.  With brewers, wives and friends, we're expecting 30 to 40 people and 20-30 different homebrews for tasting.  We set it up as a potluck dinner.

As you can see, homebrewing creates many opportunities to socialize with others who share similar interests, even though we're from many different walks of life.

It is a great hobby, to say the least.
 
A guy I work with has gotten out of home brewing and has offered me his 5 gallon kit minus a few things. I was only planning on getting 1 gallon kit to start but I will always take free stuff.
 
Until there is a 10 bbl brewhouse sitting in my garage I will never be done buying equipment. But for me there is so much more than making beer. It's meeting new people, pushing myself and learning new things. And also its a chance to have quality Me time, which everyone needs. Welcome to the forum!
 
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