# Dollar Reaches Parity...



## roo_dr

With the dollar soon expected to reach parity with the Americanese, are we really expected to purchase our hops in Australia, or from the local HBS?!

At US$8.75 / 500g, I'll be putting my order in pronto!

http://www.hopsdirect.com/hops/pellethops.html

Bought from them last year when the dollar was at around 85c, and with a flat rate box it was only US$112 all in for 2.5kg back then (that's under A$5/100g at todays exchange rate!!). Luckily my brother also brews so we split the order, but if the dollar keeps going the way it is I may have to just start brewing more too!! :chug:

Edit: I sound like I'm selling them - sorry, I'm not. The only COI is that I am a happy customer!


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## bum

roo_dr said:


> With the dollar soon expected to reach parity with the Americanese



Last time I heard that was a few months before the GFC. Don't count your chickens.


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## haysie

roo_dr said:


> The only COI is that I am a happy customer!




Do you reckon they are/were fresh Roo? I didnt think so. In particular their cascade was very ordinary, throws an assertive astringency taste that isnt welcome or fresh.

edit=dollar parity? going short @ 9850


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## Back Yard Brewer

haysie said:


> Do you reckon they are/were fresh Roo? I didnt think so. In particular their cascade was very ordinary, throws an assertive astringency taste that isnt welcome or fresh.
> 
> edit=dollar parity? going short @ 9850




Not sure what batch you got or when but mine are ace :beerbang: Come to think of it all the varities I have used have been great. Aroma, Flavour ........... even their imported UK varieties.


BYB


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## MCT

Thanks to a certain member, us MALES have recently taken delivery of a variety of hops from hops direct. All I can say is that these hops are fresh as! 
Easily the freshest hops I've seen/smelt/drank. Simply awesome.

Get on it while the dollar is high gents.


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## Nick JD

Touch (knock on) wood it stays high. I've got six weeks there in a couple of months. 

Will be leaving a couple of kgs free in the baggage allowance...


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## pokolbinguy

Any other good hop suppliers from the US? <$10/450g is awesome!!

Pok


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## Back Yard Brewer

pokolbinguy said:


> Any other good hop suppliers from the US? <$10/450g is awesome!!
> 
> Pok



Makes these tried and trued varieties compared to Chinese a great option.

BYB


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## DUANNE

isnt petrol supposed to be a dollor a litre now according to these financial experts?
that being said im all for buying hops from the us ,as already said freshest ive ever had and cheaper delivered to my door than i can get any were locally.


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## jimi

Anyone have feedback on hops direct locally grown english hops (read that carefully)?

I'll be doing an order, currently just rolling with the roulette of the ASX. Some say our $ will go beyond parity - I ain't going to wait too long in hope though


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## OzBeer_MD

pokolbinguy said:


> Any other good hop suppliers from the US? <$10/450g is awesome!!
> 
> Pok



Nikobrew are supposed to be good also. I think he may have even posted on here at some point. I dont think hops direct can be beaten for price though. I'll be ordering from them shortly. 

MD


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## jimi

Hops Direct state that they will have Citra and Sterling Pellets available in mid Sept - hopefully amarillo will be back on at some time too


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## ekul

Is there any other home brew equipment that can be bought cheaply from the US? I just got a mill and would like to take advantage of the high dollar.


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## praxis178

OzBeer_MD said:


> Nikobrew are supposed to be good also. I think he may have even posted on here at some point. I dont think hops direct can be beaten for price though. I'll be ordering from them shortly.
> 
> MD



Have dealt with Nikobrew, great guys and very fresh hops too. Hops Direct are in my good books too.....


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## OzBeer_MD

ekul said:


> Is there any other home brew equipment that can be bought cheaply from the US? I just got a mill and would like to take advantage of the high dollar.



yes, its where my perlick perl taps and gas manifolds came from, have also bought some stainless steel 1/2 inch Hop Screens recently too. 

MD


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## Bribie G

BEERHOG said:


> isnt petrol supposed to be a dollor a litre now according to these financial experts?
> that being said im all for buying hops from the us ,as already said freshest ive ever had and cheaper delivered to my door than i can get any were locally.



Filled both cars for $1.10 last week, it's getting down there.


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## Sammus

BEERHOG said:


> isnt petrol supposed to be a dollor a litre now according to these financial experts?
> that being said im all for buying hops from the us ,as already said freshest ive ever had and cheaper delivered to my door than i can get any were locally.



That was yonks ago, got down to 1.03 recently, then all the reports said that was as close as itd get, and now its back to 1.25-1.35 and doesn't really move much in the past 2 weeks. (E10 prices).


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## Bribie G

Back on topic, Hops direct state that the US harvest is underway now, being Autumn in the Northern hemisphere, so hopefully they won't be unloading last year's crop via the internet.


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## manticle

roo_dr said:


> With the dollar soon expected to reach parity with the Americanese, are we really expected to purchase our hops in Australia, or from the local HBS?!



You are expected to purchase them from wherever you feel like purchasing them.

I purchase hops (and other ingredients) from overseas, local businesses and Local home brew shops and don't feel I need permission or approval from anyone else to do so. You should do the same.


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## Silo Ted

> With the dollar soon expected to reach parity with the Americanese, are we really expected to purchase our hops in Australia, or from the local HBS?!



I don't understand the illogical, fanatical dedication people have towards a LHBS, if the price of goods can be had for much cheaper through other channels. Saw an exchange rate board today outside of a bank, and the 'Buy' figure was 99 something. Funny to see the 'sell' rate at 89. Those bastards know how to win on the spread, but that was ridiculous. 

Back to beertalk. You can get some good deals from local hop suppliers Elleslie. Depends on what varieties you want tho, but for some breeds they are cheap, by the 1/2 kilo, and you will get an analysis sheet to accompany your pellets purchase.


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## Silo Ted

It took me 45 minutes to write that last one, and in between that, manticle not only responded, but quoted the same thing as I did, as the basis for my response.


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## rotten

You snooze, You lose!!


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## Silo Ted

> You snooze, You lose!!



As your 15th comment in a beer forum, that ROCKED


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## MarkBastard

Anyone know an American supplier that sells in smaller bundles than pounds?

I already have heaps of hops in terms of total weight, but only about 6 varieties on hand. I'd love to be able to buy say 10 lots of 100gm packs from over there at a decent price.


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## praxis178

Mark^Bastard said:


> Anyone know an American supplier that sells in smaller bundles than pounds?
> 
> I already have heaps of hops in terms of total weight, but only about 6 varieties on hand. I'd love to be able to buy say 10 lots of 100gm packs from over there at a decent price.



Nikobrew does it by the oz or the lb, or the 5lb-10lb 'cube', I bought a few oz of Sorachi Ace from them back in Feb IIRC that made some GREAT beer.....


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## felten

Mark^Bastard said:


> Anyone know an American supplier that sells in smaller bundles than pounds?
> 
> I already have heaps of hops in terms of total weight, but only about 6 varieties on hand. I'd love to be able to buy say 10 lots of 100gm packs from over there at a decent price.


Have you seen ellerslie's 20x100g special?


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## Batz

Thomas J. said:


> Nikobrew does it by the oz or the lb, or the 5lb-10lb 'cube', I bought a few oz of Sorachi Ace from them back in Feb IIRC that made some GREAT beer.....




Some of their hops don't list the AA %, it's something I want to know before ordering.

http://www.nikobrew.com/products/Warrior-Pellet.html

Batz


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## MarkBastard

felten said:


> Have you seen ellerslie's 20x100g special?



Yeah and was tempted, but it contained a lot of hops I already have or don't want, and the prices aren't much better than local shops.

Would be great to get that if I had no hops at all.


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## Big G

Actually off to US in 10 days so very interested in this topic. Just confirming, you can bring back pellets as long as you declare them?


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## Doc

Big G said:


> Actually off to US in 10 days so very interested in this topic. Just confirming, you can bring back pellets as long as you declare them?



Yes that is correct.
I don't have it handy, but in the past I've also printed out the detail about it from the AQIS website, just in case the customs officer has no idea (or just doesn't understand my accent). 

I'm thinking it is timely to renew all my US Mag subscriptions for another max subscription period 

Doc


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## Guysmiley54

I have little to no supply of hops at this stage.

What would you guys recommend as a good shopping list for the 20 x 100gm deal from Ellerslie?


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## Supra-Jim

Hi Guy,

I think the Ellerslie deal is a fixed mix as per the list shown on the website. I don't think you get to choose.

Cheers SJ


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## eamonnfoley

manticle said:


> You are expected to purchase them from wherever you feel like purchasing them.
> 
> I purchase hops (and other ingredients) from overseas, local businesses and Local home brew shops and don't feel I need permission or approval from anyone else to do so. You should do the same.




technically the HBS should be getting hops cheaper too. However the middle men may be greedy......


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## eamonnfoley

foles said:


> technically the HBS should be getting hops cheaper too. However the middle men may be greedy......



Be nice if we could buy a blichmann top tier system and get it shipped out!! But I dont think they ship to Aust


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## MarkBastard

I've looked around and it seems like it's best to get your most used hops from hops direct and fill in the gaps with craft brewer.


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## Fents

more beer site and blichmann....the beer gun, weldless fittings, kettle screens, pickup tubes, pbw, sight glass's so much stuff i'd get if i had the money.

if only i had an endless wallet.

http://morebeer.com/
http://www.blichmannengineering.com/#


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## geoffi

OK. I understand that the larger the market and the more competition, the more downward pressure there should be on prices.

But the difference between what we pay here and what they pay there is beyond outrageous. We literally pay up to five times as much for the same hops? FIVE TIMES?? What possible justification could there be for that? How can shipping hop pellets across the Pacific incur a fivefold increase in price? And that's comparing retail/retail, not wholesale/retail.

Australian consumers are being royally screwed somewhere along the line, yet again.


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## Nick JD

Geoffi said:


> OK. I understand that the larger the market and the more competition, the more downward pressure there should be on prices.
> 
> But the difference between what we pay here and what they pay there is beyond outrageous. We literally pay up to five times as much for the same hops? FIVE TIMES?? What possible justification could there be for that? How can shipping hop pellets across the Pacific incur a fivefold increase in price? And that's comparing retail/retail, not wholesale/retail.
> 
> Australian consumers are being royally screwed somewhere along the line, yet again.



Buy American then. Capitalism runs on competition. While you're at it - buy three times what you need and put the excess on ebay to get all your hops for FREE! 

Don't charge too much though, or you'll be doing what the shops are doing and no one likes a hypocrite.  :icon_cheers:

The overcharging aussie brewing shops are really adding a surcharge for offering an almost complete range. I think this is worth paying for ... sometimes. I do think the PoR should be half the price of the Amarillo though...


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## husky

Anyone know what hops direct charge for postage on 2 lb?


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## argon

Considering picking up one of these sight glass kit... not bad at around AU $40 delivered for the complete kit


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## Bribie G

UK LHBS seem to charge even more than here

typical good sized LHBS

I expect it's just the way the wholesale and retail trade is structured - I don't know whether large suppliers such as our sponsors buy from the likes of Peterbaugh Farms, but I doubt it. They would get their supply from hop merchants who would buy from farms and and hold stocks of a big number of hops, so the sponsors would pay a premium for this security of supply. Then the sponsors, when they get their five kilo foil bag or however they come, have to run their premises, and pay staff to weigh and repack and label and store the individual foils of hops.
That way we home brewers get a fairly guaranteed 'smooth' supply of dozens of hop varieties.

Then when we as individuals decide to put in an order with Ellerslie or Peterbaugh we are delighted at the price, but at the end of the day - if Hop retailers like GnG or CB didn't exist and we had to buy direct, we would be flying by the seat of our pants - "sorry, Fuggles out of stock till next season call back". However having previously worked for years in wholesale / retail, five times does seem a bit rude on the face of it, it would be interesting to get some retailer views.


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## MarkBastard

Nick JD said:


> The overcharging aussie brewing shops are really adding a surcharge for offering an almost complete range. I think this is worth paying for ... sometimes. I do think the PoR should be half the price of the Amarillo though...



Definitely.

Don't forget we're comparing farm-direct bulk weight prices of only a decent range of hops in another country, with smaller packaged shink wrapped products in Australia stored the right way and with a much bigger range available.

I do agree though, I don't get why Australian and NZ hops aren't cheaper.


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## unrealeous

argon said:


> Considering picking up one of these sight glass kits... not bad at around AU $40 delivered for the complete kit


That link no work


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## Pennywise

Exactly what I was thinking BribieG  The mark-up's (5x  ) almost demand an explanation IMO


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## Pennywise

unrealeous said:


> That link no work




I used it to reply :lol:


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## davboyle1

husky said:


> Anyone know what hops direct charge for postage on 2 lb?




i just ordered 3 pounds. the USPS site says $13.45 US for a small package, no more than 4 pounds. On my order, the delivery price is TBD and will be assigned when shipped in 2-3 days.

http://www.usps.com/prices/priority-mail-i...onal-prices.htm

cheers,

David


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## argon

unrealeous said:


> That link no work




yep sorry fixed now... and here again sight glass kit

Edit: just worked it out too... for 2 delivered kits it's about $34.60 each


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## roo_dr

Put my order in last night, and have already received the confirmation email with postage:

Cascade Pellet Hops 1 lb. $ 8.75
Columbus Pellet Hops 1 lb. $ 12.75
French Strisselspalt (Alsace) Hop Pellets 1 lb. $ 9.75
GR Perle Pellet Hops: 1 lb. $ 11.75
US SAAZ Pellet Hops: 1 lb. $ 9.75

SubTotal: US$ 52.75
USPS flat rate parcel (6-10days) US$ 43.45

So US$96 all in for 5lbs of hops, should be here before the end of september (maybe). Last time the foil bags were over-filled by 80-100g / bag, so should come in well below A$4.80/100g. The last time I ordered the box was opened by customs, but they didn't break the foils once they saw what they were. One can only presume that the hop farm stores their hops "properly" too...

:icon_offtopic: Anybody used Strissellspalt before? Added it just to try, it's hardly going to break the bank!!


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## Bribie G

Strisselspalt is used in Northern French Beers such as Kronenbourg - should make a great Pale Continental Lager :icon_cheers:


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## MarkBastard

Pennywise said:


> Exactly what I was thinking BribieG  The mark-up's (5x  ) almost demand an explanation IMO



The price of 450g of Cascade at craft brewer is 3 times the amount of hops direct. Not five times.


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## mikem108

Judging from the info in the book I've been reading [http://www.amazon.com/Crash-Proof-2-0-Economic-Collapse/dp/047047453X ] we may soon overtake the US $ and this will last for a while and if we don't start making stuff here again and exporting it and follow the US into becoming a service industry based economy full of consumers instead of savers and producers we will also be [email protected]#%3d. See also The Ascent of Money. 
Sorry for temporary hijack but the point is things may get even cheaper, jacketed temp controlled connical , come to daddy 





The appearance of external hyperlinks to other websites does not constitute endorsement. I do not verify, endorse, or take responsibility for the accuracy, currency, completeness or quality of the content contained in these sites. etc etc


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## Pennywise

Mark^Bastard said:


> The price of 450g of Cascade at craft brewer is 3 times the amount of hops direct. Not five times.




You get 1 gold star


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## Phoney

mikem108 said:


> Judging from the info in the book I've been reading [http://www.amazon.com/Crash-Proof-2-0-Economic-Collapse/dp/047047453X ] we may soon overtake the US $ and this will last for a while and if we don't start making stuff here again and exporting it and follow the US into becoming a service industry based economy full of consumers instead of savers and producers we will also be [email protected]#%3d. See also The Ascent of Money.
> Sorry for temporary hijack but the point is things may get even cheaper, jacketed temp controlled connical , come to daddy



I read in the sydney morning herald yesterday, some economic guru was predicting it to max out in the high .90's by the end of the year, and then fall down to around 83cents by mid next year. It's China's demand for our resources that is driving our dollar.

Im thinking about selling my Aussie shares and buying US shares, 15% return in 6 months aint bad! (if that guy is right).


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## Shed101

phoneyhuh said:


> economic guru



Oxymoron alert!


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## eamonnfoley

Big G said:


> Actually off to US in 10 days so very interested in this topic. Just confirming, you can bring back pellets as long as you declare them?



Get a blichmann therminator - picked one up in July at HB Steinbart in Portland. Only US$200, and a great piece of gear. weighs about 2-3kg from memory, so can go in the luggage. Didnt bother with hops or anything like that.


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## schooey

Not sure about a therminator, but I'm interested in a blichmann conical...


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## mikem108

Code:


I read in the sydney morning herald yesterday, some economic guru was predicting it to max out in the high .90's by the end of the year,


Those guys are usually self serving twats who perpetuate economic myths to keep the status quo going and themselves in jobs. You got to dig deeper to find the truth


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## cspencer

using the USPS postage calculator looks like up to 4 pounds should be $13.45 US so if you are going to do more might be cheapest to do 2 orders that way it might be only $27 US for up to 8 pounds.

does this sound right. pretty cheap.


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## Fatgodzilla

mikem108 said:


> I read in the sydney morning herald yesterday, some economic guru was predicting it to max out in the high .90's by the end of the year, Those guys are usually self serving twats who perpetuate economic myths to keep the status quo going and themselves in jobs. You got to dig deeper to find the truth




Nasty ! 

OT but ... In simple terms for non economic types, it's the demand of Australian minerals that's making the dollar so high, hurting Australian agriculture, making our food exports more expensive abroad. In other words, the Liberals and the Nationals are shitting themselves - which of their core constituents do they want to dish out on most ! Don't hear much about it from Tony Abbott and his Coalition .. do we ??

Back to thread - you want to take advantage of the dollar parity, go for it and import your hops. Please though, don't dish out on local resellers who have to cover things such as finance credit to prepay for stock they won't get a return on for several months, large freight bills, cold storage costs, rent, staff wages and on costs and bugger me, try to make a profit so they can accomodate, feed and clothe their families. Don't whinge about local suppliers being too expensive unless you understand their situation. Simplistic answers to complicated problems are fine for beer talk but don't work in practice.


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## bradsbrew

Might be time to get a March pump.


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## argon

Fatgodzilla said:


> Nasty !
> 
> OT but ... In simple terms for non economic types, it's the demand of Australian minerals that's making the dollar so high, hurting Australian agriculture, making our food exports more expensive abroad. In other words, the Liberals and the Nationals are shitting themselves - which of their core constituents do they want to dish out on most ! Don't hear much about it from Tony Abbott and his Coalition .. do we ??
> 
> Back to thread - you want to take advantage of the dollar parity, go for it and import your hops. Please though, don't dish out on local resellers who have to cover things such as finance credit to prepay for stock they won't get a return on for several months, large freight bills, cold storage costs, rent, staff wages and on costs and bugger me, try to make a profit so they can accomodate, feed and clothe their families. Don't whinge about local suppliers being too expensive unless you understand their situation. Simplistic answers to complicated problems are fine for beer talk but don't work in practice.




Wouldn't OS suppliers also have overheads??


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## Wolfy

Silo Ted said:


> I don't understand the illogical, fanatical dedication people have towards a LHBS


My fanaticism is such that I'll drive for an hour - to visit a site sponsor - and _avoid _my LHBS.
But as a consumer price is important, so if the goods are available elsewhere at a much cheaper price then that's where I will shop.

I find that the postage costs from the USA to be stupidly-expensive, and that shipping from the UK is much more resonable, however it seems their consumer-hop-market is similar to ours, so mostly looking at hardware and other things from there.


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## schooey

Fatgodzilla said:


> - you want to take advantage of the dollar parity, go for it and import your hops. Please though, don't dish out on local resellers who have to cover things such as finance credit to prepay for stock they won't get a return on for several months, large freight bills, cold storage costs, rent, staff wages and on costs and bugger me, try to make a profit so they can accomodate, feed and clothe their families. Don't whinge about local suppliers being too expensive unless you understand their situation. Simplistic answers to complicated problems are fine for beer talk but don't work in practice.



... and also don't whine when there is no longer a LHBS near you that you can duck into to grab a few things on your way home from work, or no sponsors for beer comps, festivals yatter yatter...


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## geoffi

argon said:


> Wouldn't OS suppliers also have overheads??




Beat me to it.

It would be unreasonable to expect Australian prices to be as low as OS. But prices not just 30, 40, even 50% higher, but several times those available to American consumers? There is something seriously wrong with this picture.

I want to support local firms. I would happily pay a reasonable premium to do so. But really, this is ridiculous.

Happily I now have seven hop plants on the go, so hopefully this should soon become academic for me.


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## Fatgodzilla

argon said:


> Wouldn't OS suppliers also have overheads??



Simplistic answers to complicated problems are fine for beer talk but don't work in practice.

Hop grower in the USA. Grows hops. Cheap agricultural labour. Packs and posts.

Australian retailer. Pays cash up front for hops (or borrows of bank and pays interest). Customs duty. Freight from port (on top of freight to Australia). Cold storage for up to one tonne of hops. Re-package hops into containers suitable for end user - us. Must pay staff to re-package. Needs to pay rental on shop too. 

Yes, of course OS suppliers have overheads. They pass those costs onto our local blokes in their prices. Our local blokes have overheads. They pass those costs onto us.

Not economic myth, just a simple explanation of the business cycle.



> But prices not just 30, 40, even 50% higher, but several times those available to American consumers


 yes, but the USA have as many homebrewers it seems than we have Australians. Market forces can keep costs dow. But make sure you are not comparing the cost of a 90g satchel sold by a LHBS to the imported price of one kg of the stuff in your comments. Apples and oranges.

Hear in endeth the lesson. Starking to sound narky, so time to go offer my services to paying customers. :beerbang:


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## argon

Fatgodzilla said:


> Hop grower in the USA....
> 
> Australian retailer....



ok, fair comparison


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## Nick JD

Commerce is international. If you can't lower your prices to compete with international retailers, then your business model is flawed. 

The idea that we as Aussie consumers are required to "support" Aussie retailers is absurd. 

It's 2010 - there's an internet and a visa card.

The fact that a pound of PoR and a pound of Amarillio cost pretty much the same from an Aussie retailer makes me wonder why the wholesale (and shipping) differential isn't being passed on to the customer. Sure, the USA market is huge enabling lower prices, but how much PoR is grown in Oz per year?


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## bradsbrew

Nick JD said:


> It's 2010 - there's an internet and a visa card.



Which is not as convenient as a good local and can not give you face to face experienced information. Also does not give support to local brew clubs and events.

Pretty sure the minimum wage and benefits are alot better here than most other countries.

Having said that I may look into some imports but the money I save will be spent at the LHBS as a bonus :beer: 

Brad


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## Ross

Nick JD said:


> .......but how much PoR is grown in Oz per year?




Obviously not enough as we couldn't get any allocation this year  

Cheers Ross

Edit: Some people have very short memories - 18 months ago we were selling USA hops back to the States & still sell UK hops into Europe.
Trading conditions are changing all the time.


cheers Ross


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## Nick JD

bradsbrew said:


> Which is not as convenient as a good local and can not give you face to face experienced information. Also does not give support to local brew clubs and events.



My LHBS is not very local. It's in another city. I use the internet and a visa to shop with them.


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## Nick JD

> Obviously not enough as we couldn\'t get any allocation this year
> 
> Cheers Ross



That sucks because there must have been more profit in the local grown stuff.  I've got heaps of 2009 POR in my freezer if you run out - I'll sell it to you at only a small profit.  :lol: I only paid $26 a kg, so at $9 per 90g you can turn $26 into $100! 

And I paid retail.


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## bum

I'm sure his overheads are a little higher than yours, Nick. Why must you deliberately misrepresent everything and everyone?


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## Bribie G

As those of us growing our own hops have come to realise ( my single little cluster plant is teaching me this) you can't just whack a few thousand rhizomes in the ground and Bingo, three months later you can be carting truckloads of product off the farm. More like a 3 year lead time. 
In the case of, say, broccoli you can do that (seedlings not rhizomes) but hops aint broc.

As far as POR goes, Ross and other retailers have clearly been caught in a bit of a market pinch, recent drought no doubt a contributor.


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## Nick JD

bum said:


> I'm sure his overheads are a little higher than yours, Nick. Why must you deliberately misrepresent everything and everyone?



All I'm saying is there's a 300% profit margin buying POR in 1kg lots. 

I shudder to think what the margins are on small-packet hops when bought in bulk direct. 

I'm not misrepresenting anyone - there are people wondering why hops are so expensive in Australia. There are quite a few businesses that thrive on turning a $20 wholesale cost into a $100 retail price. If that doesn't cover your overheads you're drinking all the profits.


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## Leigh

Nick JD said:


> All I'm saying is there's a 300% profit margin buying POR in 1kg lots.



If that's the case, are you trying to convince everybody that there is absolutely no cost in bags, vacuum sealer, labels, labour, storage etc etc etc


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## haysie

Going short at 9850 on the US/AUS dollar  
With all the money I make from the downturn in the dollar I can still buy my hops from Craftbrewer or G&G. Afterall being such a massive brewery that I am, the savings must be phenomenal :lol:


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## MarkBastard

At the end of the day the buyer votes with their money. If all the businesses we are talking about are running and making money then there's no problem. The only problem is if one company tries to unfairly disallow another company from selling, or tries to get them to increase their prices etc.

Not saying it's ever happened, just saying we have it good right now because we have options, so there's not too much to complain about.


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## brad05

Leigh said:


> If that's the case, are you trying to convince everybody that there is absolutely no cost in bags, vacuum sealer, labels, labour, storage etc etc etc



I think anyone who understands the cost of doing business in Australia would realise that LHBS are not rubbing their hands together like Mr Burns and laughing at the stupidity of consumers. As stated previously, the cost of labour and other overheads are quite high plus they are also at the end of a supply chain. The fact that they also insulate the fluctuations in the Australian dollar also contribute. I agree in taking advantage of the current AUD, but remember you also need to support the local otherwise they won't be there when you need them.


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## tcraig20

Fatgodzilla said:


> it's the demand of Australian minerals that's making the dollar so high, hurting Australian agriculture, making our food exports more expensive abroad.



OT again, that's partly the case. Its also partly a lack of demand for foreign currencies (most especially the USD, but also the pound and euro) that is driving up the dollar. The US Fed in particular have created an astronomical amount of money in the last couple of years. As supply increases, and demand stagnates, prices fall. Interestingly, we are pretty well back where we were at the top in 2008 with the other commdollars (NZ, CAD). While the higher dollar might hinder our farmers, it is also important to remember that most soft commodities are well above their historic averages - for example soy futures are trading around US$1000, while back in 2001 it was trading at about US $500. Factoring in the currency differences, prices are much the same in Australian dollars. Wheat has gone from about $300 to $700 in the same period, etc. While its easy to get fixated on hard commodities, there is a lot of demand out there for the softs, and this also has an effect on our currency.

Back on topic, those hops are looking mighty tempting, I just wish they had some warrior.


----------



## Nick JD

haysie said:


> ...the savings must be phenomenal :lol:



Let's work them out. I could pay $100 for 1kg, or I could pay $50. 

When I run the numbers though Beersmith and SWMBO's "if you buy that I'm buying curtains" accounting software I get a savings of $50. 

Sometimes proving savings is as good as making money appear from nowhere when the Minsiter of Finance has fangs. 

If you buy 1kg of POR for $35 and sell half of it for $35 ... you get the kittenskins, for nothing. NOTHING I TELL YOU! 

I love economics. I love POR in beer - it tastes like capitalism.


----------



## mje1980

Geoffi said:


> Beat me to it.
> 
> It would be unreasonable to expect Australian prices to be as low as OS. But prices not just 30, 40, even 50% higher, but several times those available to American consumers? There is something seriously wrong with this picture.
> 
> I want to support local firms. I would happily pay a reasonable premium to do so. But really, this is ridiculous.
> 
> Happily I now have seven hop plants on the go, so hopefully this should soon become academic for me.




And a Columbus i have here for you!


----------



## Duff

JamesCraig said:


> Back on topic, those hops are looking mighty tempting, I just wish they had some warrior.



JamesCraig,

I don't know what you brew, but after trying Warrior a few times a great sub is Super Alpha.


----------



## lastdrinks

I'm all against capitalism too and if anyone is organising a burn down your local home brew shop brew day, let me know i'll bring my pitch fork and few hops i bought from hopdirect to chuck on the fire.

But more importantly can anyone tell me which shops they have had good experiences and prices with buying perlick taps and shanks from? Down with the man! You wont believe how many LHBS owners i see driving porsches and bentleys, pricks. They remind me of corporate lawyers, heartless barstards

Cheers


----------



## Bribie G

My LHBS sells garden gnomes as a sideline to keep in business. I use them for all my dex, LDME, fermenter, o-ring etc purchases and I think they drive a Toyota.


----------



## manticle

brad05 said:


> I think anyone who understands the cost of doing business in Australia would realise that LHBS are not rubbing their hands together like Mr Burns and laughing at the stupidity of consumers. As stated previously, the cost of labour and other overheads are quite high plus they are also at the end of a supply chain. The fact that they also insulate the fluctuations in the Australian dollar also contribute. I agree in taking advantage of the current AUD, but remember you also need to support the local otherwise they won't be there when you need them.



Add to that it's a pretty niche market. Just because you price the hops at $12 per 100g doesn't mean they walk out the door as you'd like.

This kind of bullshit (the general thread discussion NOT the quote above) is a little indicative of some of the things that are starting to annoy me a little about the net and forums. A simple idea like 'hey with a reasonable exchange rate, we could get one ingredient for some of our brewing at reasonable cost' becomes, becomes on one hand an anti-patriotic, this will kill the industry shiznit and on the other a chance for people to stick the proverbial boot in to small business owners in a niche market.

Just buy some from the US if you want. Guess where all the grain etc will be coming from to make the majority of those brews? Australian retailers. If you don't want to take advantage of a good rate then keep buying hops at higher prices and fighting the good fight against globalisation. Whichever way you go there's no need to create a big drama about what others are doing.

I buy hops from: Grain & Grape (AU)
Ellerslie Hops (AU)
through a forum user who gets them from various international places
I will be buying some from hops direct (US).

My grain generally comes from grain and grape and from bulk buys organised through grain and grape. Some of it is imported malt, some is from Joe White (AU). My yeast mainly comes from GG (imported), I aim to buy some from Gryphon Brewing (AU retailer and yeast from an AU company) and I recently got some from the UK through another forum user. I will continue to shop this way and don't see the need to either justify it to anyone else OR use it as a chance to have a crack at people making a living from a niche business, most of whom in my experience are very passionate, dedicated and helpful beyond expectations.

Support your local good HBS (and boycott the bad ones) AND take advantage of bargains? What a novel idea.

Pretty sure lastdrinks was having a laugh bribie.


----------



## brettprevans

Manticle.. The voice of reasonability. 

Good work A-man. 

A lot of pop psych economics and accountancy and 'i've read this so I know what I'm talking about' as well as some sensible retailer reality info for the non retailers and never in business people. 

Do what u thinking best. Just like politics. Stop the bullshit and fkn well vote for what's right and not for what u think u should do bc of others.

Edit. 

PS I like beer


----------



## tcraig20

Duff said:


> JamesCraig,
> 
> I don't know what you brew, but after trying Warrior a few times a great sub is Super Alpha.



Ive been eyeing off Jamil's Pliny the Elder clone. Ross has warrior, but its a little more than some other varieties (to be expected I guess). Its good to know that super alpha would make a reasonable sub though. A beer that big needs a lot of planning, so its something to think about.


----------



## brettprevans

JamesCraig said:


> Ive been eyeing off Jamil's Pliny the Elder clone. Ross has warrior, but its a little more than some other varieties (to be expected I guess). Its good to know that super alpha would make a reasonable sub though. A beer that big needs a lot of planning, so its something to think about.


Pli elder is exactly the beer u blokes should make. It's awsome and what better time to make massive hop beers. I've made a clone twice and it kicks ass


----------



## bum

JamesCraig said:


> Ive been eyeing off Jamil's Pliny the Elder clone.


You may have already come across this but there is a homebrew scaled recipe for Pliny put out by Russian River (link below). Dunno how it differs from Jamil's (except that Russian River don't use Warrior in Pliny) but I can say that I've got this one in primary now and it is looking pretty great so far (although I have made one or two changes based on my process, preferences, etc).

View attachment 1Pliny_the_Elder_clone_PDF.pdf


----------



## lastdrinks

Buy from who and where ever you like. I buy from G&G, craftbrewer, dave in greensborough, the brewers den and even brewcraft on sundays after 12. And i should not forget online shops here and overseas. Also from members on this forum, including the infamous chinese hops. Shit i am a whore.

anyway any perlick 525ss tap purchasing advice or are we all still on our high horse?


----------



## avaneyk

lastdrinks said:


> anyway any perlick 525ss tap purchasing advice or are we all still on our high horse?



I got mine from craftbrewer - but others have got them from the US via ebay


----------



## haysie

Nick JD said:


> Let's work them out. I could pay $100 for 1kg, or I could pay $50.
> 
> When I run the numbers though Beersmith and SWMBO's "if you buy that I'm buying curtains" accounting software I get a savings of $50.
> 
> Sometimes proving savings is as good as making money appear from nowhere when the Minsiter of Finance has fangs.
> 
> If you buy 1kg of POR for $35 and sell half of it for $35 ... you get the kittenskins, for nothing. NOTHING I TELL YOU!
> 
> I love economics. I love POR in beer - it tastes like capitalism.



Far fetched rant is unlike you Nick. I think I bought POR for even less you claim via a recent BB of Wolfy`s, certainly not my hop of choice hence they sit in my freezer, if i dont use them in 3 years I`ll throw them out. not much lost!. I dont buy any brewing ingredients on price alone. Who has the freshest yest in Australia? no plug but he does because he turns it over.

edit. [email protected]


----------



## Wolfy

haysie said:


> Who has the freshest yest in Australia? no plug but he does because he turns it over.


Yeast-slants made a few days before pick-up.


----------



## manticle

haysie said:


> I dont buy any brewing ingredients on price alone.



best way to approach it (and that comes from a brewer on a constant budget). I'm generally the same with food ingredients too.

If I can take advantage of low prices to either try something new or get something of an expected quality cheaper I will. I won't usually buy something purely because it's cheap (and when I have, I've often been disappointed).

Does any of this kind of discussion ever enter any of the 'let's buy a few millmasters from the US so we get them cheaper' threads?


----------



## pbrosnan

Geoffi said:


> OK. I understand that the larger the market and the more competition, the more downward pressure there should be on prices.
> 
> But the difference between what we pay here and what they pay there is beyond outrageous. We literally pay up to five times as much for the same hops? FIVE TIMES?? What possible justification could there be for that? How can shipping hop pellets across the Pacific incur a fivefold increase in price? And that's comparing retail/retail, not wholesale/retail.
> 
> Australian consumers are being royally screwed somewhere along the line, yet again.


I'm afraid you just have to accept it. I've ranted on a number of occasions about the disparity between craft beer here and the US ($12.00 a six pack there as opposed to $20.00 plus here and I mean locally produced not imported US). I really think it comes down to what you first mentioned, larger market, more competition. Anyway I think I'll partake of the buoyant South Pacific peso and purchase me some US hops. This is the internet people, local cartels beware, the choice is vastly larger.


----------



## bum

manticle said:


> Does any of this kind of discussion ever enter any of the 'let's buy a few millmasters from the US so we get them cheaper' threads?


Not really.

But then again the OP doesn't expressly ask a question relating to such a conversation in those threads.


----------



## tcraig20

bum said:


> You may have already come across this but there is a homebrew scaled recipe for Pliny put out by Russian River (link below). Dunno how it differs from Jamil's (except that Russian River don't use Warrior in Pliny) but I can say that I've got this one in primary now and it is looking pretty great so far (although I have made one or two changes based on my process, preferences, etc).
> 
> View attachment 40983




Thanks Bum, 

It looks a bit to Jamil's in brewing classic styles (although I dont have the book with at the moment to check). To be fair Jamil says that it's a Pliny the Elder 'inspired' beer, so I may have been wrong to call it a clone. Good one to ferret away for later reference though.


----------



## brettprevans

JC
If u search the what are u brewing thread III ull find the elder clone I used. Very well received.


----------



## bum

citymorgue2 said:


> JC
> If u search the what are u brewing thread III ull find the elder clone I used. Very well received.



Uh...it is also in your sig...


----------



## argon

lastdrinks said:


> Buy from who and where ever you like. I buy from G&G, craftbrewer, dave in greensborough, the brewers den and even brewcraft on sundays after 12. And i should not forget online shops here and overseas. Also from members on this forum, including the infamous chinese hops. Shit i am a whore.
> 
> anyway any perlick 525ss tap purchasing advice or are we all still on our high horse?



At the reisk of answering a post in this thread... I got 4 from here... great products and quick delivery at the right price.

:icon_cheers:


----------



## lastdrinks

Thanks much appreciated.




argon said:


> At the reisk of answering a post in this thread... I got 4 from here... great products and quick delivery at the right price.
> 
> :icon_cheers:


----------



## Smashin

Ross said:


> Obviously not enough as we couldn't get any allocation this year



Didn't seem to have a problem buying a kg of this years PoR for $29 (retail price) just recently from Ellerslie (que nasty ph calls), now bear with me while i determine the mark up....

All for businesses making a profit and supporting quality HBS's but "stone the crows" 2-3-400% markups are gouging in my books.

Each to their own..

Smashin


----------



## Back Yard Brewer

JamesCraig said:


> Ive been eyeing off Jamil's Pliny the Elder clone. Ross has warrior, but its a little more than some other varieties (to be expected I guess). Its good to know that super alpha would make a reasonable sub though. A beer that big needs a lot of planning, so its something to think about.



Actually made that one recenlty and subbed the warrior for galena. Oh so looovely.

Now back on topic for the pissing contest  

BYB


----------



## ~MikE

man, a lot of ranting from foamy mouth angry people here - Viva La Revolucin!. sure a LHBS wont be able to compete with hopsdirect etc in 500g lots, but i myself am a man of variety. i don't want 500g of every variety of hops i'm going to use, a lot of people seem to miss that LHBSs have their place. i'd like to see the people spouting how much of a gravy train hop retailing is try and start up their own LHBS :lol:


----------



## Batz

Oz dollar now 97c

I'm ordering all of next years hops ! 

Batz


----------



## Back Yard Brewer

Batz said:


> Oz dollar now 97c
> 
> I'm ordering all of next years hops !
> 
> Batz




C'mon let it bust through the $1.00 barrier. Reckon I might get me that second March Pump yet.

BYB


----------



## jbirbeck

Back Yard Brewer said:


> C'mon let it bust through the $1.00 barrier. Reckon I might get me that second March Pump yet.
> 
> BYB



if it busts through the $1 mark I'm getting stainless steel conicals...


----------



## argon

Dammit... Dollar reaches parity just as money starts to run out around here. Wife's been off work for 18 months and things are tightening up.

I have my eye on so much stuff and no matter how cheap it is... Can't afford it.

Poo!!


----------



## Lecterfan

argon said:


> Dammit... Dollar reaches parity just as money starts to run out around here. Wife's been off work for 18 months and things are tightening up.
> 
> I have my eye on so much stuff and no matter how cheap it is... Can't afford it.
> 
> Poo!!




I feel your pain - the payout from work is long gone and Austudy just doesn't take into account the savings to be made by buying your own mill and 25kg of grain at a time!


----------



## Sammus

oh yeah? well I just got a new job and am rolling in cash, cant find anything i want to spend it on though


----------



## Phoney

Sammus said:


> oh yeah? well I just got a new job and am rolling in cash, cant find anything i want to spend it on though




Dont worry, ive got a big shopping list. I can send you my bank details if you like? :lol:


----------



## Sammus

phoneyhuh said:


> Dont worry, ive got a big shopping list. I can send you my bank details if you like? :lol:



:lol: if only it were the case... I think I wrote that while I was dreaming


----------



## GTS350

Sammus said:


> :lol: if only it were the case... I think I wrote that while I was dreaming



Here is a picture of our "case" :super: .


----------



## Wolfy

GTS350 said:


> Here is a picture of our "case" , and its not a dream :super: .


Any strange looks from customs?


----------



## GTS350

Wolfy said:


> Any strange looks from customs?



Heh, yes, the first bloke fell over backwards, then I was sent to the xray machine, and the hugest coincidence is the xray machine bloke was an extract/partials brewer, and after a lot of fast talking there was no "rubber-glove" treatment . *phew*


----------



## roo_dr

GTS350 said:


> Here is a picture of our "case" :super: .




And there was me about to celebrate the safe arrival of 2.5 keys in the post yesterday, 8 days order to arrival. That case is epic!


----------



## GTS350

roo_dr said:


> And there was me about to celebrate the safe arrival of 2.5 keys in the post yesterday, 8 days order to arrival. That case is epic!


I used my dirty socks and jocks as padding in between the layers (quarrantine loves sifting thru that  ).
I should've left them in for the photo, because they looked spectacular with the dozen or so Rogue/Chimay/SNPA/Kona longnecks they were wrapped in.


----------



## Wolfy

GTS350 said:


> I used my dirty socks and jocks as padding in between the layers (quarrantine loves sifting thru that  ).
> I should've left them in for the photo


I thought you did ... the photo looks like it has ladies stockings spaced between the hops.


----------



## aceuass

Being an Englishman living in the States I take for granted the prices of homebrew ingredients and equipment, after reading briefly through this thread I totally see why you would want to buy from the US but remember LHBS-if it wasnt for local people you wouldnt have these stores and than when you do need something that would take 2 weeks to be shipped you`ll be cursing
Just my 2 cents
Cheers
Paul


----------



## Nick JD

aceuass said:


> Being an Englishman living in the States I take for granted the prices of homebrew ingredients and equipment, after reading briefly through this thread I totally see why you would want to buy from the US but remember LHBS-if it wasnt for local people you wouldnt have these stores and than when you do need something that would take 2 weeks to be shipped you`ll be cursing
> Just my 2 cents
> Cheers
> Paul



I live in a city of over 400,000 people. There is only one HBS that sells hops and grain and they're terrible and expensive and the guy that runs the place is a fountain of crap. All the other "homebrew" shops sell cans of expensive goo and 2 year old packets of S23 to people recommending they ferment at 28C. I'm serious - HBS here are just awful.

I have to drive for an hour north (through the backblocks of Brisvegas) to find people who know how to make beer, not homebrew. It just happens that there is another big city right by me otherwise I'd buy everything from overseas.


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

Nick JD said:


> I live in a city of over 400,000 people. There is only one HBS that sells hops and grain and they're terrible and expensive and the guy that runs the place is a fountain of crap. All the other "homebrew" shops sell cans of expensive goo and 2 year old packets of S23 to people recommending they ferment at 28C. I'm serious - HBS here are just awful.
> 
> I have to drive for an hour north (through the backblocks of Brisvegas) to find people who know how to make beer, not homebrew. It just happens that there is another big city right by me otherwise I'd buy everything from overseas.


Unfortunate for you but they are not all like that. Mind you most old style HBS only ever evolved to cans of Goo and never saw the need to look at All Grain as it is the devil's work. There are a few of us out there are more concerned with educating the brewers with correct information and quality products, unfortunately we don't get supported when it comes to brewers spending their money, as its cheaper in the USA. Catch 22 situation.
GB


----------



## Nick JD

Gryphon Brewing said:


> ...unfortunately we don't get supported when it comes to brewers spending their money, as its cheaper in the USA. Catch 22 situation.
> GB



I hear ya, but I also can't stand that word, "support" when used by someone in _business_ for _profit. 

_As a consumer it's my task to find the best quality at the lowest price. I don't often ask advice from people who are in business because too often the advice is biased or loaded towards their marketing strategy. As such, virtually none of my brewing knowledge has come from retailers. 

For those who need their LHBS to educated them on brewing then I can see where the "support" comes in. I've heard too much biased retailing, "Oh no - you don't want that stuff I don't sell - it's rubbish. Here buy the stuff I sell!" 

There's no catch22 situations in commerce, just people who try to compete on service, not price - the internet slays that business model. These days the consumer's level of product and hobby knowledge is often sufficient enough that they can easily obtain enough information on product quality and price sitting in the comfort of their home. As in my situation (having no decent LHBS) my browser does not have borders so why should my spending? I fully intend to exploit the strong dollar, and if retailers want to still pretend the aussie dollar only buys 49 US cents that's their problem. 

The question is: why is it three times cheaper for me to buy non-American hops from America than Australia? $12 a pound for Euro hops...


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

Nick JD said:


> The question is: why is it three times cheaper for me to buy non-American hops from America than Australia? $12 a pound for Euro hops...


You would have to ask the hop wholesalers about that and not the retailers.  
GB


----------



## beerbog

lastdrinks said:


> anyway any perlick 525ss tap purchasing advice or are we all still on our high horse?



US seller on ebay, sells the tap and all except the handle, delivered for about $75 aus total. :beerbang: 

edit: search brauman59. Recommended.


----------



## BjornJ

Excuse me if stepping into an ongoing discussion without reading to closely the whole thing.


On buying hops from the US I *feel* (a loaded word I know) it's like any other bulk buy at home.
My 2c on bulk buys tend to compare the LHBS to a consulting firm:

I work in IT, we hire consultants every now and then.
Consultants are used when we do not have the skills in-house, and it would take too long to get the skills. Or if we have the skills but not the capasity. 
Consultants cost from $27/hour from your basic help desk guy if you want him for a week, to $250/hour for buying the skills only from some high-level exchange/sql girl/guy. 
So someone came in on Friday, helped us harden a linux server in the DMZ and charged us $200/hour to do the security audit.
But we didn;t really pay some guy we didn;t know $600 for stopping by and saying hi, we paid for the time he has spent learning the necessary skills so he could do what we wanted, in the time we had available.
We realise skills cost money. (_probably the short version of this entire post?)_

( That's why we IT guys don't appreciate being called by someone we spoke with 5 years ago, and after 12 seconds of dry chatter they want free IT support. Sorry, yet another discussion)

Your local home brew shop is kind of like a consulting firm.
You go there and buy some grains, a bit of hops, that one little vial of specialty yeast they accidentally had in the fridge, etc. While there you ask for advice on the recipe, the grain bill, would they mind selling you 140 grams of some specialty malt rather than having to order 25 kg from somewhere, etc.
(if this does not seem like an advantage you want to pay for, try asking someone at BigW/K-Mart about their DME selection..)

Most of us do not expect to pay for this (the advice, the availability of special stuff).
Why? You would pay for a plumber to stop by and give you advice on what you have to do about your leaking pipes. You would pay an electrician stopping by to give you advice on how best to wire up your garage/brew shed.
So why do we not pay for the skills and experience from the LHBS?

Very simple view:
3 ways to get what you want (let's pretend for now you didn;t need the LHBS to go from kits to AG).
-LHBS
-Internet/bulk buys, wherever you can get it cheaply
-retail (BigW./Woolworths, K-mart, etc)


Now, the person running that (often) modest business of a LHBS is a die-hard brew fan,right? What would it take to get you to drop your job and convince your wife you would make enough selling cracked grains and cans of malt extract.. So they are generally not your Wall-street die hard capitalists, but someone who is trying to make a living from their hobby/obsession (sorry, yet another discussion!)./

I join a bulk buy every now and then.
It pains me a little, I feel we should support the local homebrew shop because they provide more value than they charge. Not because I am an idealist or have a romanitc view of the poor, struggeling shop owner. But because they consult our (mine) needs without question. Help me with a recipe, suggests options, supplements or replacements, ALWAYS order the special yeast or grains I want to test without any questions or demands of minimal orders or depostis.. Generally the LHBS does a LOT more than what I expect from the professional consutling companies I deal with professionally. .


As I 'admitted" I do the odd bulk buy, I don';t mind getting the odd bag of grains a bit cheaper to help my budget go further a couple of times a year. But I definetly feel we need to understand what we are buying from the LHBS. We are buying *consulting*, and the availibility of their warehouse of stock items.. 
So when buying 150 gr of Carafe II and 80 gr of Chocolate malt plus that WLP002 yeast, let's acknowledge what they are doing to be able to offer you that service.

If you want to be able to continue asking questions, getting specialty malts and getting that one yeast you wanted, let;'s agree that homebrew shops can charge whatever they need on a bag of hops, ok?

If they mark up hops 300% that means they do whatever ANY CLOTHES STORE DO every day of the week, but I don;t hear many people ordering white cotton t-shirts from Thailand and slagging Mayers off.. And if they did, good on them. In our case, though, we need the experience (and willingness to bind capital in funny yeasts and grains, and other little pieces of "important stuff" so guys like us can drop by last Monday when my yeast starter smelled funny and I wanted another one  )
And to be fair, to cover rent and sending kids to school in clothes probably does require a bit of salary (much like the rest of us) so making $5 per 100 gr of hops can't be a capital offence, surely?


Not trying to kick off another whole bag of snakes here(doesn;t sound like the right phrase but I have had a beer and can't be bothered looking it up right now  ) , just feel that some times people not used to dealing with consultants do not consider the value of having skills (and stock) on hand, and that the LHBS is some times made out to be a mean, fat guy making millions by being greedy, hehehe.

Bjorn


----------



## Nick JD

BjornJ said:


> I don;t hear many people ordering white cotton t-shirts from Thailand and slagging Mayers off



I like to support Coles Mayer. Poor things can hardly keep their shareholders rich - even took the homebrew off their shelves because there's less profit in people making beer than in selling them it from Liquorland... 

Wise up! They're all out to fleece us! :lol: 

Anyway, when I'm brewing with my pound of 2010 Amarillo for $13 ... you guys are welcome to smell my burps.


----------



## BjornJ

Nick,
after reading a lot of your posts and the considerable time you have spent showing (consulting?) new brewers how they can go AG for $30, etc I believe you understand what I mean.
 
Bjorn


----------



## rendo

Hey Bjorn,

Nice post mate...I work in IT too, we hire contractors too of very varying rates depending on skills req'd. We really need to catch up for that beer or 6 soon.....would love to hear what you do etc, how married life is going, what made u move to Oz, when are the kids coming...HURRY UP WITH THE KIDS....anyway, save it until we catch up. In a tiny weeny nutshell, I am an IT Infrastructure manager that looks after porfolio of customers in a MASSIVE Australian giant and all their infrastructure needs, from projects, new infra, upgrades, support, issues, & more etc

I so LOVE that phone call from a friend U never hear from...except when they have computer problems. Oh...Hi rendo...ummm...i havent seen u in five years...but my computer is broken, when can u come around?? Well...I say...i have two kids and work like a bastard, so....pretty much never. Sorry. Family (and good friends) are the exception of course.

As for bulk buys, US buys, well I love a bargain, but I'd hate for the LHBS shop to have to close because they arent creating enough turnover and margins/profit to go along with that.....so it goes both ways.

Rendo



BjornJ said:


> Excuse me if stepping into an ongoing discussion without reading to closely the whole thing.
> 
> 
> On buying hops from the US I *feel* (a loaded word I know) it's like any other bulk buy at home.
> My 2c on bulk buys tend to compare the LHBS to a consulting firm:
> 
> I work in IT, we hire consultants every now and then.
> Consultants are used when we do not have the skills in-house, and it would take too long to get the skills. Or if we have the skills but not the capasity.
> Consultants cost from $27/hour from your basic help desk guy if you want him for a week, to $250/hour for buying the skills only from some high-level exchange/sql girl/guy.
> So someone came in on Friday, helped us harden a linux server in the DMZ and charged us $200/hour to do the security audit.
> But we didn;t really pay some guy we didn;t know $600 for stopping by and saying hi, we paid for the time he has spent learning the necessary skills so he could do what we wanted, in the time we had available.
> We realise skills cost money. (_probably the short version of this entire post?)_
> 
> ( That's why we IT guys don't appreciate being called by someone we spoke with 5 years ago, and after 12 seconds of dry chatter they want free IT support. Sorry, yet another discussion)
> 
> Your local home brew shop is kind of like a consulting firm.
> You go there and buy some grains, a bit of hops, that one little vial of specialty yeast they accidentally had in the fridge, etc. While there you ask for advice on the recipe, the grain bill, would they mind selling you 140 grams of some specialty malt rather than having to order 25 kg from somewhere, etc.
> 
> Bjorn


----------



## boriskane

why go to a lhbs and get recipe advice from one guy, who might be in a bad mood. when i can post the same recipe on here and get dozens of replies and advice?

i still go to the lhbs because i have one relatively close by and its generally well stocked and means i dont need to pay for shipping. but ask them about a recipe and theyll mumble and say "yeah that sounds fine".

but if everyone started buying from the lhbs then eventually they would become big enough to pass on near wholesaler prices to us, but hey i doubt that would happen considering there arent enough people to get that sort of change going.

once those 2010 pellets come out on hopsdirect i have no doubt ill be getting mine from there. 

to each their own


----------



## BjornJ

Boris, 
to each and everyone for sure.

Just saying we should realise what we are paying for, and it;s not the $5/100 gr of hops..
It's the *consulting and the availability.*

Not to mention how many of us would have gone from kits at Woolworths mixed with Brew Enhancer 1 to All Grain without the local homebrew shop answering some questions, letting you know mash-in does not involve mashing potatoes, etc.. (?)

3 misunderstandings on here:
1. it;s wrong to ask a newbiew question again (that' s why this is a forum and not wikipdia, so we collaborate...)
2: Pub beers are bad (we all started brewing wanting to copy Toohey;s New, Carlton Draught, etc before we learned)
3: homebrew shop owners are mean (they are just like us, just comittted enough to ... commit?)

 


Rendo, I replied to you by PM. Let's take this offline. 

Bjorn


----------



## Nick JD

Comparing an oracle guru to a homebrew store owner isn't giving much credit to the DBA. 

That's like, _select hop_variety from euro_hops where price = "nutso expensive australian prices"_ _and availability = null_


----------



## Nick JD

Gryphon Brewing said:


> You would have to ask the hop wholesalers about that and not the retailers.
> GB



At those RETAIL prices I could get 20lbs of Czech Saaz from the Czech Rep. bought wholesale by USA companies and then sent to Australia at their retail, repack them into 100g lots and mark them up by 200% and still undercut everyone else. Come on, no one believes you struggle to make profit on a 400% markup. Stop bullshitting.

And, WTF are you guys buying hops at?  Not my retail cost... GEEEEZUS.

If people are buying hops from the US ... lower your prices to compete or STFU.


----------



## boriskane

yeah, if we can buy hops at these wholesale prices (and savings), wonder what the lhbs gets...

man, rent _must_ be getting expensive in perth


----------



## ekul

There's an interesting thread here where usa berwers are asking LHBS's why their prices are so much higher than what they can buy on the net. Its because the hop buyers in america (LHBS) are buying on contract so are buying for more than current market prices. I don't think 200-300% markup is really that uncommon in the retail industry, especially in a niche market such as homebrewing. 

Most homebrewing shops i've been too haven't seemed to making the big dollars, they do smell nice though.


----------



## GTS350

Wolfy said:


> ... the photo looks like it has ladies stockings spaced between the hops.


Made me lol Wolfy  But wait... How would you know what ladies' stockings look like? when crumpled up?  




Nick JD said:


> If people are buying hops from the US ... lower your prices to compete or STFU.


I agree Nick, the importers need to adapt to the changing market, whether they like it or not.

And its not just the hops, all brewery equipment that's imported is doubled everytime it passes someones hands.
Australians (like me), have paid stupid prices for too long, and not just brew gear; cars, car parts, tools, clothes, shoes, computers, etc.
Compared to car parts and clothes, the homebrew retailer is actually not too bad for blatant markups.
The worst offenders (and biggest targets), are those middle-men Importers that "demand" they be sole distributor. And legally the LHBS cannot subvert the sole distributor rights. 

The laws need changing to allow LHBS to go shopping like we do (but even then I'd still spend time researching to save$ with a better deal).


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

GTS350 said:


> The worst offenders (and biggest targets), are those middle-men Importers that "demand" they be sole distributor. And legally the LHBS cannot subvert the sole distributor rights.


I think you have just made a very valid point ! Try and get around the big malt/hop importers and see what you get told or you will be quoted a stupid price, which is a tactic they use. Even at a local state level you find yourself up against a hard wall.
Good thing I enjoy doing what I do.
PS I drive a 1994 Nissan not a GTS 350 :blink: 
GB


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

Nick JD said:


> If people are buying hops from the US ... lower your prices to compete or STFU.


Nick Take your hand off it for once ! How do you expect anybody to lower their prices to compete when you are getting rock bottom price direct from the grower/importer (being you) ?
About time you did some research or STFU. Find out what we were paying for Amerillo back in 2008 , you will be shocked.
GB


----------



## Sammus

Nick JD said:


> At those RETAIL prices I could get 20lbs of Czech Saaz from the Czech Rep. bought wholesale by USA companies and then sent to Australia at their retail, repack them into 100g lots and mark them up by 200% and still undercut everyone else. Come on, no one believes you struggle to make profit on a 400% markup. Stop bullshitting.




all good for you operating out of your mums basement, but what about a brick and mortar store that needs to pay a couple of employee wages, $5k a week rent, GST, a line of fridges to keep the hops cool, etc etc... then consider the 20 or so dedicated AG/full extract brewers in the area that dont buy anywhere near enough to support your business with a 5% markup...people dont run shops because the really enjoy being a retailer, they have to make a living too

I havent really bought anything in years, and am not trying to say what is and what isnt, but there's a lot for a retailer will take into account (I think theyre called 'overheads'); certainly more than just "wholesale price + x% profit"


----------



## QldKev

I think it is pretty clear about the price direct from the US.

Now think about it.

An Australian retailer is quoting prices from Australia in smaller sized packaging.
So take into account
- postage to Aust. (so basically double the starting price)
- cost of labour to repackage into smaller convenient sizes
- cost of vac sealer, and not just the budget version.
- cost of bags
- cost of shrinkage - drop a few pellets on the floor and they can;t be used
- cost of shop overheads; rent/power/taxes/insurances/fridges/etc
- cost of losses; hops being stolen, spoilage.
And try and make a profit, yes after all they are a business

Now work out how much $ the difference is per batch of beer. It comes down to you to decide do you want a freezer full of 20 or more hop varieties at 1LB each, and have to wait for new hops for a few weeks as they have to get imported with the risk if you loose power for a decent amount of time you may loose your stock pile; OR are you happy paying the difference to get smaller quantities locally and fairly fast, and not need to keep several years worth of supply on hand. It is your choice!

QldKev


----------



## Steve

blah ******* blah....its the annual gripe about the cost of lhbs hops compared to the cost of getting them from overseas....yawn ******* yawn.


----------



## roo_dr

Steve said:


> blah ******* blah....its the annual gripe about the cost of lhbs hops compared to the cost of getting them from overseas....yawn ******* yawn.




:unsure: Wish I'd kept my mouth shut now! Rookie error, I apologise to you all...

My hops arrived safely from HopsDirect on thursday, 8 days after ordering - brewing up some tomorrow as soon as I pop into the LHBS to pick up some crystal :icon_cheers:


----------



## stanko

My hops arrived safely from HopsDirect on thursday, 8 days after ordering - brewing up some tomorrow as soon as I pop into the LHBS to pick up some crystal :icon_cheers: 
[/quote]


Have been waitin more than 8 days for them to answer my email .


----------



## Bribie G

We seem to have developed two threads here in parallel praising direct imports and knocking / supporting the LHBS.

We are nearly all of us posting from the point of view of full mash brewers, but don't forget there are other threads like extract, kits, etc and low or high dollar doesn't help your non grain brewer unless you are talking about peripherals such as taps - nobody in their right mind is going to import a kit can from overseas. For these brewers, which I bet way way outnumber full mash brewers the LHBS is a little mecca providing all they need (except for a lot of the hops and steeping grains). I have a mate round the corner who religiously brews up a Coopers Real Ale or a Morgans Blue Mountain and when he needs some crystal or US-05 or a foil of hops he bangs in an order to Ross, maybe twice a year, or I often piggy back one for him.


----------



## Batz

> Australian dollar near 2-year highPublished 7:12 AM, 4 Oct 2010
> 
> 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> QUICK SUMMARY | FULL STORY
> 
> AAP
> 
> The Australian dollar was stronger while still trading near a two year high.
> 
> At 0630 AEDT, the local unit was trading at 97.29 US cents, up from Friday's local close of 96.73 cents.
> 
> Since 1700 AEST on Friday, the local unit traded in a wide range between 96.38 US cents and 97.30 US cents.
> 
> Over the weekend session the currency reached 97.45, its highest since it touched 97.92 US cents on July 25, 2008.


----------



## Nick JD

Sammus said:


> all good for you operating out of your mums basement



I don't care what price people charge for their products. That's not my point.

It's being asked to SUPPORT local business and not look for the best price. 

Anyway, I'm off to put my milk bottles out by the mailbox otherwise I'll miss the milkman. WHAT? That business model has expired? 

2010 folks. If people are buying pounds of hops (not exactly bulk) RETAIL from overseas way cheaper ... rethink your prices or your business model. 

Failing that - attempt to get your consumer to "support" you, and when you realise that they will ALWAYS buy cheaper if it's as good ... FAIL.

Mom and Pop hardware stores were shit and expensive. Bunnings rocks.

Harry Enfield at his satirical finest:


----------



## zebba

Nick JD said:


> Bunnings rocks.


It rocked. Then the mom and pops closed down and it had no competition. Now they have a "lowest price guarantee" but the actual prices they tend to charge are only lower if you call them on it. I only go there for convenience - when I want the right product at the right price, I avoid them like the plague.


----------



## Guysmiley54

Nick, did you say you found a good place to get Amarillo from the US? Hopsdirect don't have it.


----------



## WarmBeer

Nick JD said:


> Mom and Pop hardware stores were shit and expensive. Bunnings rocks.


Go in and ask for a feeler gauge, then tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".

Bounce around for the next 15 minutes from minimum-wage drone to minimum-wage drone, being mislead down 5 different aisle's add tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".

Finally find the one "old timer" still employed in the store, only to be told "Oh, them, yeah, we umm, don't stock them anymore, try Supercheap" and tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".

Bunnings, it's the McDonalds of hardware


----------



## Nick JD

WarmBeer said:


> Go in and ask for a feeler gauge, then tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Bounce around for the next 15 minutes from minimum-wage drone to minimum-wage drone, being mislead down 5 different aisle's add tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Finally find the one "old timer" still employed in the store, only to be told "Oh, them, yeah, we umm, don't stock them anymore, try Supercheap" and tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Bunnings, it's the McDonalds of hardware



Going to Bunnings for a feeler guage is like going to Burger King and asking for a Big Mac. Could you not find the spark plugs either?


----------



## Bribie G

:icon_offtopic: well what can you expect from a general argy bargy thread like this.  Nick does have an interesting point about 'expired business models' and I'm sure living on the Gold Coast he would be well aware of the rapidly-becoming-extinct Aussie takeaway/milk bar. 
This was, until recently, the main business model for Bribie Island here, with a couple of snack bars in the suburbs and the rest along the main drag off the bridge, and at Bongaree near the jetty. You could be guaranteed the finest frozen dim sims, Chiko rolls, fish and chips, Mrs Macs Pies etc etc. About the most sophisticated fare was a steak sandwich, but generally if you ordered say a seafood basket then that would be done by schoolkids after school reading off a checklist:

2 frozen calamari
3 frozen fish bytes
1 scoop edgells frozen chips
1 frozen potato scallop..................

No sign of the owners, probably down the club on the pokies. And they would religiously shut at 7 pm, sort of a 'closing cartel' because none of them ever seemed to buck the trend. Fortunately there were and still are a few Chinese joints that aren't too bad, and a really tired old Red Rooster. Then in the last few years the following have arrived:

Indian Restaurant
Thai
Tex/mex
Dominos
Eagle Boys
Subway
Noodle box

And they are 3/4 of the way to completing a Maccas woohooooo
You know what? The wailing and whining and gnashing of teeth from the old snack bar owners - still hanging on by the skin of their teeth but still serving frozen shit via schoolkids - is amazing to hear. Yes Nick they are an expired business model. I sorta think that many but not all LHBS tend to be in the snack bar category - hanging on but not adapting. Maybe they can't adapt. 
John Steinbeck in "The Grapes of Wrath" accurately describes a mum and dad servo on the highway, fading into oblivion because of the new Shell and Esso servos that they just cannot compete with, and that was back in the 1930s. Not much changes.


----------



## WarmBeer

Nick JD said:


> Going to Bunnings for a feeler guage is like going to Burger King and asking for a Big Mac. Could you not find the spark plugs either?


Funnily enough, the first place I looked was their *Automotive* section.

How about that?


----------



## Nick JD

Guysmiley54 said:


> Nick, did you say you found a good place to get Amarillo from the US? Hopsdirect don't have it.



It's only in flowers ATM. But:

_Hello Nick,
We should have some of our pellets available (by Dec) not sure on which
ones. The cost would be around $10.00 to ship to Tacoma.

Carla _

Fingers crossed for a pound of 2010 Amarillo pellets for $13.50! Wicked, I'll take two.


----------



## QldKev

Guysmiley54 said:


> Nick, did you say you found a good place to get Amarillo from the US? Hopsdirect don't have it.



Also check out ebay 'hopsnstuff' You can buy just a single 1lb at a time, and it works out <$AUD25 shipped.

QldKev


----------



## chadjaja

QldKev said:


> Also check out ebay 'hopsnstuff' You can buy just a single 1lb at a time, and it works out <$AUD25 shipped.
> 
> QldKev



I've bought the saaz, simcoe and Amarillo and found them to be pretty good quality hops and the price aint bad either.


----------



## Guysmiley54

Thanks guys.

For me, i'm starting to see that this hobby can be a very expensive hobby, I'm only at the beginning stages of setting up my brew rig and my shopping wish list is very long... If I can save on hops I'll have more budget to spend other items, many of which I will buy from my LHBS.

The internet does provide us with a buyers market, but I intend to enjoy some savings and use the extra money to support Australian retailers too.


----------



## outbreak

WarmBeer said:


> Go in and ask for a feeler gauge, then tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Bounce around for the next 15 minutes from minimum-wage drone to minimum-wage drone, being mislead down 5 different aisle's add tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Finally find the one "old timer" still employed in the store, only to be told "Oh, them, yeah, we umm, don't stock them anymore, try Supercheap" and tell me how much Bunnings "rocks".
> 
> Bunnings, it's the McDonalds of hardware



Sorry to go OT

I worked at Bunnings whilst I was at Uni. It used to be a different place, there were some older guys that I worked with that knew their stuff and because my old man is a builder and grandfather a mechanic I knew heaps about timber, tools, hardware etc.... After being there for 6 years I could provide great service to people, but I was studying to go further than a career at Bunnings. At the end of the day they have turned away from keeping long term employees to throwing young people who have no idea into an area by themselves with no support and little technical training. At the end of the day if you go to Bunnings for hardware you're going to the wrong place, I only go there if I want a cheap BBQ, outdoor setting etc... If I want hardware products I go to a hardware store. 

To get back ontopic...

I purchased a grain mill off the internet the other day and it was cheaper delivered to my door than what it would be to buy it from a LHBS (my LHBS is Brewmart is Bassendean and I have always been given great service). I may not have bought the mill of them but I will be buying all my specialty grain, caps, yeast, kegs etc from them because their service.


----------



## leiothrix

WarmBeer said:


> Funnily enough, the first place I looked was their *Automotive* section.
> 
> How about that?



I've never seen a Bunnings with an automotive section. Maybe we just get gipped in NSW.


----------



## Nick JD

leiothrix said:


> I've never seen a Bunnings with an automotive section. Maybe we just get gipped in NSW.



It's right next to the perfume and makeup section. 

Hey - I get the shits when I can't find a 42 x 190 x 2400 piece of Tassie Oak at Repco.


----------



## bradsbrew

Anyone got a link for a US supplier of Perlick taps. Other thatn the ebay one?

Cheers Brad


----------



## leiothrix

Nick JD said:


> Hey - I get the shits when I can't find a 42 x 190 x 2400 piece of Tassie Oak at Repco.



That's quite a large bit of timber. 

Not really sure what your point is though.


----------



## haysie

Hasnt reached 9850 has it. Turning point!

The Gold Coast thing is such a wank BribieG. Its a shithole ATM with 1 or 2 cranes on the skyline, should be dozens but maybe theres not enough super fund money to go around anymore? Unemployment IS as high as very regional Victoria.

In Victoria, we have the rooters, maccas, and all things in between being Indian, Thai, Aussie, Pakistan 7/11. 
We dont have "for lease" signs on every second shop like Cavill Ave.

The people who invented Australia`s "playground" should have taken into account............. superannuation bubbles ?

I think that was all off topic, nevermind... I wont. xx
"


----------



## Bribie G

What's a superannuation bubble?



Haven't been to the GC for about 6 years since it took us two yes that's right two hours to get out of Seaworld and eventually onto the M1 to get back to Brisbane. Gridlock all the way. I have however been PAST the GC thanks to the Tugun Bypass.


----------



## haysie

BribieG said:


> What's a superannuation bubble?



We have spent it all sir.


----------



## Bribie G

haysie said:


> We have spent it all sir.



Drew mine down years ago in my dissolute days but I'm going to retire to Vietnam or the Philippines so no problems :icon_drunk:


----------



## outbreak

leiothrix said:


> That's quite a large bit of timber.
> 
> Not really sure what your point is though.




I doubt Bunnings would stock Tassie Oak in that size haha. Acutally going to Bunnings and buying Timber is rather silly.


----------



## Nick JD

outbreak said:


> I doubt Bunnings would stock Tassie Oak in that size haha. Acutally going to Bunnings and buying Timber is rather silly.



The computer table I made with a length of Bunnings Tas Oak with insane flame figuring in it for SFA.  And an AAA.


----------



## Batz

bradsbrew said:


> Anyone got a link for a US supplier of Perlick taps. Other thatn the ebay one?
> 
> Cheers Brad




Shoot TidalPete a PM


----------



## outbreak

Nick JD said:


> The computer table I made with a length of Bunnings Tas Oak with insane flame figuring in it for SFA.  And an AAA.



Looks like you got a nice finish on it, but seriously... who would want to give that place their hard earned?


----------



## goomboogo

bradsbrew said:


> Anyone got a link for a US supplier of Perlick taps. Other thatn the ebay one?
> 
> Cheers Brad



Kegworks.com


----------



## Sammus

yeah, none of the local bunnings I've lived near (thats three) have an automotive section, ive asked at each one and they said it was axed years and years ago. That said, I picked up a set of feeler gauges in the tool section.


----------



## Nick JD

outbreak said:


> but seriously... who would want to give that place their hard earned?



It's not hard earned. I sell hops for $9 for 90g.


----------



## pbrosnan

outbreak said:


> Looks like you got a nice finish on it, but seriously... who would want to give that place their hard earned?


Careful or you'll get hit with a sarcasm bomb. He'll go the full distance, irony, hyper-bole. He's a hard man ... but fair.


----------



## pbrosnan

Nick JD said:


> It's not hard earned. I sell hops for $9 for 90g.


Thar she blows ....


----------



## Wolfy

Sammus said:


> That said, I picked up a set of feeler gauges in the tool section.


So did I, walked into the tools section, asked for them, walked out 1 min later.


----------



## rude

seriously Im glad I read this post Tesco pumps have me thinking I need a march pump $200 bucks thats tempting

currently lifting the mash tun & kettle full from the floor to the tresles

Is it possible to have a single level 3v system with a pump & just moving the silicon hoses to each vessel to do the job

Leave Bunnings alone Ive got Westfarmer shares boys but still behind my buying price


----------



## proudscum

chadjaja said:


> I've bought the saaz, simcoe and Amarillo and found them to be pretty good quality hops and the price aint bad either.



been reading on an American forum and they slagged em big time...cheesey smelling hops.
Also they are 2009 crop so 12 months old.


----------



## TidalPete

> Is it possible to have a single level 3v system with a pump & just moving the silicon hoses to each vessel to do the job



Yes!
Justin's Brewframe
An oldie but a goodie.

TP


----------



## Franko

> Is it possible to have a single level 3v system with a pump & just moving the silicon hoses to each vessel to do the job


My Oath, Definatley thats what I do
Franko


----------



## under

Aussie dollar up to 98.9 wooooooooooot


----------



## Sammus

where are you looking? all the exchanges that I can find are listing it as 98.4...im waiting till 4pm to see what the rba says


----------



## under

xe.com but its dropped to 98.4  bloody high and ive got a few things lined up for purchase


----------



## eamonnfoley

Still can't work out why POR, superpride etc isnt considerably cheaper in Australia than imported hops. Whos taking the cream off there? Distributers or growers?


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

foles said:


> Still can't work out why POR, superpride etc isnt considerably cheaper in Australia than imported hops. Whos taking the cream off there? Distributers or growers?


A few years back I was buying POR etc for half or less the price of imports the next year the supply company which is also the grower doubled their price and it has remain this way ever since. So in this case its both.
GB


----------



## jakub76

Franko said:


> My Oath, Definatley thats what I do
> Franko


does that limit you to batch sparging? Which isn't a problem, just curious.


----------



## argon

> does that limit you to batch sparging? Which isn't a problem, just curious.



need 2 pumps for single tier fly sparging


----------



## Nick JD

foles said:


> Still can't work out why POR, superpride etc isnt considerably cheaper in Australia than imported hops. Whos taking the cream off there? Distributers or growers?



Ellerslie charge about 40% less for their local varieties (POR and Cluster) than imports.


----------



## fcmcg

I've just emailed these peoole , out of interest , to see what a Stainless conical will cost me !
Cheers
Ferg

Stout conicals link


----------



## Ross

Nick JD said:


> Ellerslie charge about 40% less for their local varieties (POR and Cluster) than imports.



Not surprising as they grow it  

Cheers Ross


----------



## Nick JD

Ross said:


> Not surprising as they grow it



Of course not. So why isn't Aussie Cluster 40% cheaper than US Cluster at the retail level? Why don't we see the same differences in hop prices as we do in grain prices, with the Euro stuff more expensive than the Aussie?


----------



## haysie

Nick JD said:


> Of course not. So why isn't Aussie Cluster 40% cheaper than US Cluster at the retail level? Why don't we see the same differences in hop prices as we do in grain prices, with the Euro stuff more expensive than the Aussie?



Stop ya ******* sooking about a few dollars. Gawwd, ur useless to the forum. Go start an anti business slogan somewhere else dickhead.


----------



## bradsbrew

haysie said:


> Stop ya ******* sooking about a few dollars. Gawwd, ur useless to the forum. Go start an anti business slogan somewhere else dickhead.




+1 h34r:


----------



## Batz

Everyone knows where I score the majority of my hops, that being said I'm about over this thread. I must admit I still follow it but  

Batz


----------



## bignath

pulls up arm chair, opens beer, and gets ready for another entertaining night of forum posts...


----------



## unrealeous

99.10 now... she's on the run now


----------



## QldKev

Big Nath said:


> pulls up arm chair, opens beer, and gets ready for another entertaining night of forum posts...



**lays back and puts feet up**

What will be tomorrows poll :lol: 

QldKev


----------



## QldKev

unrealeous said:


> 99.10 now... she's on the run now
> 
> View attachment 41320




sssshhhh! Now I'm going to have to buy that march pump!

QldKev


----------



## bradsbrew

QldKev said:


> sssshhhh! Now I'm going to have to buy that march pump!
> 
> QldKev



I am trying to decide between 4 perlicks or six.


----------



## Nick JD

haysie said:


> Stop ya ******* sooking about a few dollars. Gawwd, ur useless to the forum. Go start an anti business slogan somewhere else dickhead.


 
Keep paying too much, cocksucker. 

You wouldn't believe how many people have PMed me to ask where to get cheap hops. 

Shouldn't you be playing the pokies? Your attitude says that you'd be that kind of fool. I like it when fools pay idiot-tax so I don't have to.

Check your PMs - I've forwarded you an email from a nice Nigerian chap. He needs your help, and I've told him you'll be perfect.


----------



## Nick JD

QldKev said:


> sssshhhh! Now I'm going to have to buy that march pump!
> 
> QldKev



Listen to Haysie, Kev - stop sooking over a couple of dollars. Real Aussies get ripped off.


----------



## Greg Lawrence

QldKev said:


> **lays back and puts feet up**
> 
> What will be tomorrows poll :lol:
> 
> QldKev



I wonder what time tonights entertainment start?
I missed it last night, but was lucky enough to catch some this morning before it was pulled.


----------



## bignath

Kick off was around 9pm if i remember correctly! :icon_cheers: 

Not long now, start getting comfy!!


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

I cant play tonight as I have been benched buy the missus. I think Nick will play Fool forward though, and Haysie straight down the centre.
GB


----------



## QldKev

Well I just did it, Tesco March Pump

Ordered including delivery for 160.263 AUD

woohoo, 1 step closer catching that HERMS disease

QldKev


----------



## thesunsettree

Quote - You wouldn't believe how many people have PMed me to ask where to get cheap hops. 

I think i read somewhere there was some good cheap hops from china...


----------



## QldKev

thesunsettree said:


> You wouldn't believe how many people have PMed me to ask where to get cheap hops.
> 
> I think i read somewhere there was some good cheap hops from china...



Yep a bulk buy is currently on too

QldKev


----------



## Nick JD

thesunsettree said:


> Quote - You wouldn't believe how many people have PMed me to ask where to get cheap hops.
> 
> I think i read somewhere there was some good cheap hops from china...



Let's see ... things from China that are good quality ... hmmmm, bone china? Opium? In 1850? Maybe? 

Talk about optimism. They blend proteinous plastic with their milk powder to make more profit and kill a few babies ... what were the hop pellets thinned out with? I'd guess a shit load of leaf. Stupid whitey he buy hops!


----------



## Batz

QldKev said:


> Yep a bulk buy is currently on too
> 
> QldKev




Bulk buys are a thing of the past Kev.





They never happen these days  



> dont you ever let a chance go by, oh lord



Batz


----------



## bradsbrew

Gryphon Brewing said:


> I cant play tonight as I have been benched buy the missus. I think Nick will play Fool forward though, and Haysie straight down the centre.
> GB




Holy crap thats awesome


----------



## Batz

> Hops
> IMPORTANT PLEASE READ: THE NIKOBREW FAMILY WILL BE TAKING IT'S LAST VACATION OF THE YEAR AND WILL NOT BE SHIPPING ORDERS PLACED BETWEEN NOW AND 10/21/10 FEEL FREE TO PLACE YOUR ORDER WITH THIS IN MIND, THANKS!


----------



## Batz

QldKev said:


> Well I just did it, Tesco March Pump
> 
> Ordered including delivery for 160.263 AUD
> 
> 
> QldKev




I ordered something tonight that one of our sponsors has 'out of stock' ATM, the price I paid for two items was $7.50 cheaper than just one from them...both delivered to me.
Ride the wave while you can.

Batz


----------



## eamonnfoley

QldKev said:


> Well I just did it, Tesco March Pump
> 
> Ordered including delivery for 160.263 AUD
> 
> woohoo, 1 step closer catching that HERMS disease
> 
> QldKev



Just done the same thing - did you go standard shipping service? It was the only Option


----------



## mika

Do they have peristaltics ?


----------



## GTS350

QldKev said:


> Well I just did it, Tesco March Pump .. including delivery for 160.263 AUD


damn.. I thought my march pump was a good buy at $173au (at 91c exchange) -im going to go broke saving this much money.
anyone wanna buy an overpriced march pump?

Apologies to Ross at Crafties, Neville at Gryphon, Old Mate at LHBS, etc
I love you all, and I'll be back, I'm chasing this good looking skirt with a pretty smile and she looks flash, dont worry I'll be back soon..xoxo


----------



## GTS350

mika said:


> Do they have peristaltics ?


dude, email them that exact question, and I guarantee JT gets back to you within a few days on price and availability.

the internet is amazing, it blows my mind every second day, and I have a monster melon, I swear. I'd post a picture of it but your screen isn't big enuff


----------



## Sammus

GTS350 said:


> damn.. I thought my march pump was a good buy at $173au (at 91c exchange) -im going to go broke saving this much money.
> anyone wanna buy an overpriced march pump?
> 
> Apologies to Ross at Crafties, Neville at Gryphon, Old Mate at LHBS, etc
> I love you all, and I'll be back, I'm chasing this good looking skirt with a pretty smile and she looks flash, dont worry I'll be back soon..xoxo



if I could 'like' this post a la facebook I so would...


----------



## QldKev

QldKev said:


> Well I just did it, Tesco March Pump
> 
> Ordered including delivery for 160.263 AUD
> 
> woohoo, 1 step closer catching that HERMS disease
> 
> QldKev



UPDATE - 
They have just emailed me saying the $15 postage is US only, they want extra $. Being $49 postage to Aust.
I'm confirming this would be $34 difference as I paid $15 on their site. 
So if it is, it is still <$200 for the pump.

QldKev


----------



## Supra-Jim

Hi Kev,

I paid $50 for the shipping from Tesco, it did get here in about 5-6 days however which was nice.

Cheers SJ


----------



## unrealeous

With everything getting so cheap in the US, I'm thinking about buying one of their small islands in the pacific. Anyone heard of Hawaii?


----------



## QldKev

QldKev said:


> UPDATE -
> They have just emailed me saying the $15 postage is US only, they want extra $. Being $49 postage to Aust.
> I'm confirming this would be $34 difference as I paid $15 on their site.
> So if it is, it is still <$200 for the pump.
> 
> QldKev






Supra-Jim said:


> Hi Kev,
> 
> I paid $50 for the shipping from Tesco, it did get here in about 5-6 days however which was nice.
> 
> Cheers SJ




Just got an email back from them, I just need to pay the $34 difference, so all is going ahead.
Using XE I checked

192.44 USD = 195.959 AUD 
so still under the $200 mark

QldKev


----------



## QldKev

unrealeous said:


> With everything getting so cheap in the US, I'm thinking about buying one of their small islands in the pacific. Anyone heard of Hawaii?



Save you money, at this rate we should go in on a bulk buy and just buy the entire USA.

QldKev


----------



## Batz

> THE Australian dollar opened lower today, having fallen victim to profit taking after surging to a 28-year-high during offshore trade.
> 
> The "Aussie's" offshore peak of 99.18 came after better than expected local employment numbers yesterday increased the chance of an interest rate rise in November.
> 
> At 7.00am (AEDT), the dollar was trading at 98.08 US cents, down from yesterday's close of 98.37 cents.
> 
> Since 5.00pm (AEDT) yesterday, the local unit traded between 97.83 US cents and 99.18 cents.
> 
> The latter was the unit's highest showing against the US dollar since August 3, 1982, when it touched 99.53 US cents when the currency was on a fixed exchange rate.
> 
> Its overnight high was the highest the unit has been since it was floated in December 1983.
> 
> "It was a bit of a wild ride for the Aussie overnight."




http://www.brewersdiscount.com/


----------



## chadjaja

Batz said:


> http://www.brewersdiscount.com/



They quote actual cost shipping plus 4%. Anyone used them before? $4 Ball lock connects are attractive :icon_cheers:


----------



## Supra-Jim

QldKev said:


> Save you money, at this rate we should go in on a bulk buy and just buy the entire USA.
> 
> QldKev



I'm in, put me down for 1 x New York and 1 x California (oh and mark me tentative for Texas, pending price!) :icon_cheers: 

Cheers SJ


----------



## Batz

QldKev said:


> Just got an email back from them, I just need to pay the $34 difference, so all is going ahead.
> Using XE I checked
> 
> 192.44 USD = 195.959 AUD
> so still under the $200 mark
> 
> QldKev




You would have to pay shipping if purchaced within Australia as well Kev. $11.70 at the least.

Batz


----------



## Batz

chadjaja said:


> They quote actual cost shipping plus 4%. Anyone used them before? $4 Ball lock connects are attractive :icon_cheers:




I use them quite a bit and have done for several years, it's a pain to get shipping costs from them via email.
I usually just order and they ship and bill me accordingly, if your buying smaller items you will find the rates very good.

Batz


----------



## under

Im doing my bit. $800 spent so far


----------



## DU99

only one thing buying from overseas...what if its breaks...


----------



## Moz

QldKev said:


> UPDATE -
> They have just emailed me saying the $15 postage is US only, they want extra $. Being $49 postage to Aust.
> I'm confirming this would be $34 difference as I paid $15 on their site.
> So if it is, it is still <$200 for the pump.
> 
> QldKev



I bought 2 off them just now(they must be thinking what the hell is going on!). 61.00 postage. Paid via paypal and the rate was jsut under 96cents. Still a great deal and timing for me was perfect.


----------



## Bribie G

Just ordered a kilometre of Swiss Voile - should keep me going for the next 600,000 brews. (or 300,000 if I go entirely over to making malt liquor) :icon_cheers:


----------



## under

Maybe you should sell me some bribie


----------



## proudscum

I here that the $ may go as high as AU$1.12 to the Green back by Xmas,so we may as well
buy Canada at the same time!!


----------



## Sammus

QldKev said:


> Just got an email back from them, I just need to pay the $34 difference, so all is going ahead.
> Using XE I checked
> 
> 192.44 USD = 195.959 AUD
> so still under the $200 mark
> 
> QldKev



dont forget the 2% conversion fee charged by the bank. At the current rate 192.44 * 1.02 U.S. dollars = 200.049735 Australian dollars, just over!


----------



## Supra-Jim

proudscum said:


> I here that the $ may go as high as AU$1.12 to the Green back by Xmas,so we may as well
> buy Canada at the same time!!



Canada? ewww!  

Cheers SJ


----------



## hsb

argon said:


> yep sorry fixed now... and here again sight glass kit
> 
> Edit: just worked it out too... for 2 delivered kits it's about $34.60 each



This guy has changed his policy. Previously would only ship to US/Canada and ignored numerous emails asking to confirm that.
I went with Morebeer.com I think in the end and got prompt service and responses to emails.


----------



## reviled

You lucky buggers, prepare for your next invasion of kiwi workers


----------



## Supra-Jim

reviled said:


> You lucky buggers, prepare for your next invasion of kiwi workers



Kiwi workers? I've heard of Kiwi's moving across, never seen any of em work!  

(so long as they keep heading to QLD it's all good! h34r: )

Cheers SJ


----------



## reviled

:lol: ill make sure to send em all to Melbourne and look up Supra Jim


----------



## Supra-Jim

Load em up with as much Epic Armageddon as they can carry and we have a deal*

*provided I can return the Kiwis once i've drunk the beer

Cheers SJ


----------



## MarkBastard

Supra-Jim said:


> Kiwi workers? I've heard of Kiwi's moving across, never seen any of em work!
> 
> (so long as they keep heading to QLD it's all good! h34r: )
> 
> Cheers SJ



I don't like that generalisation. I work with heaps of Kiwis and have in Sydney and Brisbane, and the ones I've worked with have been good hard workers.

If you want to generalise there's plenty of home grown examples of lazy people.


----------



## pk.sax

Mark^Bastard said:


> I don't like that generalisation. I work with heaps of Kiwis and have in Sydney and Brisbane, and the ones I've worked with have been good hard workers.
> 
> If you want to generalise there's plenty of home grown examples of lazy people.


Patriotism - stand up for the local bums


----------



## reviled

Mark^Bastard said:


> I don't like that generalisation. I work with heaps of Kiwis and have in Sydney and Brisbane, and the ones I've worked with have been good hard workers.
> 
> If you want to generalise there's plenty of home grown examples of lazy people.



The thing about us kiwis is, yes we are hard workers (especially all of the ones who get their act together enough to move country), yet we will happily joke around about being lazy dole bludging bbq having beer drinking bogans at the end of the day :icon_cheers: :icon_drunk:


----------



## argon

hsb said:


> This guy has changed his policy. Previously would only ship to US/Canada and ignored numerous emails asking to confirm that.
> I went with Morebeer.com I think in the end and got prompt service and responses to emails.



2 sight glass kits arrived day before yesterday... cost $AU69.23 for both delivered to my door. Looks like a nice piece of kit too. Split the postage with Klieny and he's taking the second one. That was ordered Sept 22... so should be even cheaper now.


----------



## Batz

> --If the point of talking up Quantitative Easing was to boost stocks, mission accomplished! But what happens now if the Fed does not follow through and actually buy more Treasury bonds and other assets? Will all the inflation front runners be smashed if the Fed fails to deliver?
> 
> --That's what's on our mind this Friday morning. The Aussie dollar came back a bit from its post-float highs overnight. And gold gave back some ground too. The upward momentum in everything has stalled a bit as U.S. investors wait on job's data.
> 
> --That jobs data, by the way, is sure to be lousy. The U.S. Labour Department is also due to revise (probably downward) the employment figures for calendar year 2009. When it does, it's going to confirm what a lot of people already know: there is no recovery.
> 
> --You'd think evidence of a recoveryless recovery in the U.S. would take the rally out of risk assets and be the high-water mark for the Aussie dollar. That is one trading scenario for next week. The market fully prices in QEII and then waits...and waits...and waits. And meanwhile news from the real economy reveals stocks are priced for earnings that won't show up.
> 
> --By the way, tomorrow's American jobs report is the last one before US elections in the first week of November. It's just the sort of report you'd want to doctor if you wanted to give the impression the economy was improving. But it's unlikely the American unemployment rate is really under 10%. And even if the government reports that (by fudging the birth/death ratios to achieve a statistical improvement) the real people who do not have real jobs know better.
> 
> --How different all that is from here in Australia. The late afternoon surge in the Aussie dollar came after the employment report here revealed that nearly 50,000 people found jobs in September. So much work. So few people!
> 
> --Economists are already worrying that the red-hot economy will put pressure on wages and lead to inflation. But as usual, this is a complete misunderstanding of cause and effect. The RBA might be able to influence wages by raising the cost of capital. But if the economy is running hot, it's because the massive global money gusher by central banks is trickling back to Australia in the form of high commodity prices and resource demand.
> 
> --In other words, don't blame workers for asking for a raise when there's more money floating around. With the increase in global liquidity, labour is another good that rises in value relative to paper money. Besides, on a purchasing power basis, Bloomberg reckons the Aussie dollar is exactly 27% overvalued.
> 
> --Of course the alternative view is that as long as the Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, and the Bank of England keep rates low and engage in QE or competitive currency devaluation, the Aussie will, by default, remain attractive. As it is, the Aussie dollar is now traded more often than the Swiss Franc. Australia's GDP is just 1.6% of world GDP. Yet 7.6% of daily forex currency trading involves the Aussie dollar.
> 
> --The positive spin on this is that a high-yield commodity currency is a lot more desirable than no-yield debt-backed currency. In practice, the Aussie is not directly backed by hard assets. But it IS indirectly backed by them insofar as the commodity boom drives demand for Aussie assets. As long as the boom lasts, the Aussie remains relatively more attractive.
> 
> --But if the boom itself is a fraud - or a product of the inflationary melt up as a result of Quantitative easing - then the local currency has become the plaything of international speculators. Being speculators, these folks are likely market neutral, if not exactly amoral. That means that as much as they like kangaroos and cricket and Paul Hogan, they won't hesitate from dumping the Aussie when the trade gets too risky or the global economy hits a pothole.
> 
> --About the only good news from that second scenario is that you know its coming and have time to do something about it. And "doing something" doesn't just mean avoiding losses. For example, if the Aussie currency really is 27% overvalued on a purchasing power parity basis, any fall in the currency should be accompanied, more or less, by a rise in the Aussie gold price. Holders of bullion or exchange traded gold funds priced in AUD ought to see a nice surge on a falling Aussie.
> 
> --But who knows? Maybe this melt up could really be the prelude of accelerating inflation. Dare we say hyperinflation?
> 
> --If the Fed doesn't make good on its threat for QEII, stocks will fall right into the American election. So will commodities. And god knows what will happen to the disaster area that is the American housing market. But if the Fed DOES make good on its threat (and it probably HAS to to prevent rising real rates from destroying debtors)?
> 
> --Well, if the Fed makes good on its threat...then any corrections by gold will be followed by higher highs. Bonds, despite benefitting from Fed purchases, will get crushed by inflation. And commodities will remain the speculator's playground as investors become desperate to trade bad money for real goods.
> 
> --Enjoy the party if you must. But make sure you've canvassed the room for the nearest exit. And grab us a champagne, would you?
> 
> 
> ................................................................................
> .................................................................................
> ............


----------



## proudscum

Supra-Jim said:


> Kiwi workers? I've heard of Kiwi's moving across, never seen any of em work!
> 
> (so long as they keep heading to QLD it's all good! h34r: )
> 
> Cheers SJ


We are alot closer than you think.... why work when you can send your ozzie wife to do that for you.That way you can sit at home with your kiwi mates that are doing the same and make and drink some good beer.

cheers proudscum


----------



## Josh

GTS350 said:


> Heh, yes, the first bloke fell over backwards, then I was sent to the xray machine, and the hugest coincidence is the xray machine bloke was an extract/partials brewer, and after a lot of fast talking there was no "rubber-glove" treatment . *phew*



Didn't happen to get his name did you? Am always trying to find brewers in the job.


----------



## haysie

Nothing like a good Quantitative Easing conversation. I like that, who posted it Batz?


----------



## pbrosnan

Nice quote Batz, Henry Thornton?


----------



## DUANNE

Supra-Jim said:


> beerhog 1 x portland, oregon


----------



## remi

fergthebrewer said:


> I've just emailed these peoole , out of interest , to see what a Stainless conical will cost me !
> Cheers
> Ferg
> 
> Stout conicals link



wow- how about their 1BBL system for under $3000...there are some advantages to living in the us

http://conical-fermenter.com/about/attachm...brewing-system/

remi


----------



## JonnyAnchovy

For those splurging, I'll just leave this here:

http://www.shipito.com/


----------



## Franko

JonnyAnchovy said:


> For those splurging, I'll just leave this here:
> 
> http://www.shipito.com/



it had to happen sooner or later :lol:


----------



## brettprevans

Given that Aussie dollar is buying about 1.30 kiwi dollars I'm surprised Boone gas suggested buying stuff from NZ...


----------



## BEC26

JonnyAnchovy said:


> For those splurging, I'll just leave this here:
> 
> http://www.shipito.com/




also 

PriceUSA

Keep it local :icon_cheers: 

Cheers


----------



## Batz

Looking good again today



> AAP
> 
> The Australian dollar was above 99 US cents for the second time in two weeks early on Thursday morning, hitting a new post-float high in early morning trade as world markets surged.
> 
> At 0630 AEDT, the local unit was trading at 99.09 US cents, up almost one US cent from Wednesday's local close of 98.46 cents.
> 
> At 0510 AEDT, however, the Australian dollar hit 99.35 US cents, its highest point since the currency was floated on December 8, 1983.
> 
> During last Thursday's domestic session, the unit pushed up to, then past, 98.49 US cents, which at the time was its highest level since it was floated on exchange markets on December 8, 1983.
> 
> That night, the unit soared to another record of 99.18 US cents before retreating to 98.25 before Friday's local open.


----------



## Malted

remi said:


> wow- how about their 1BBL system for under $3000...there are some advantages to living in the us
> 
> http://conical-fermenter.com/about/attachm...brewing-system/
> 
> remi




I was getting excited until they emailed that postage for just a 7.3 gallon conical (let alone the other bits I was salivating over) would be about $550 for postage by Global Express :angry: ...


----------



## Malted

Malted said:


> I was getting excited until they emailed that postage for just a 7.3 gallon conical (let alone the other bits I was salivating over) would be about $550 for postage by Global Express :angry: ...




As was suggested i looked into www.shipito.com. and it works out to be about $200 USD for postage with them via FedEx (excluding delivery to their warehouse) which is about $30 USD.

For your interest here are the shipping dimensions and estimated weights of some of the other *Stout Tanks and Concials *products (to Adelaide they are about $200 each + shipping to shipito warehouse). Shipito say you might get a multiple postage discount of 10-30% but can not guarantee a discount.

"Here are the shipping dimensions, as best as I can tell you right now. We offer a lot of varieties, so I don't always have a precise dimension or weight available for some options.

Short 7.3 G conical + thermo 38" x 16" x 17"; 35# 
15 Gallon HLT + sight glass 26" x 21" x 21", 44# (estimated based on similar product)
15 Gallon MT + thermo 26" x 21" x 21", 44# (estimated based on similar product)
19.8 Gallon Kettle + termo 32" x 23" x 21", 44# (weight estimated based on similar product)

Regards,
John"

I'd really like a HLT + Mash Tun + kettle and it is nice brew porn, but Beerbelly does nice looking units for the same price. The postage is still a killer. I'm still considering a 7.3 Gal short conical (delivered for about $600 USD). 
What do you guys think about the product? SS concial fermenters


----------



## geoffi

Well, we made it, albeit briefly.

http://www.smh.com.au/business/float-on-da...1015-16njm.html

The usually reliable Ross Gittins in the SMH suggests the A$ is unlikely to devalue much, at least in the short term. One of the banks predicted it could go to $1.10.

Buy for now...


----------



## brettprevans

Considering the US is printing more money which devalues the US$ tge aussie $ will stay strong for longer


----------



## drew9242

Just ordered meself some perlick taps for me fridge. Got it as a Bday present, can't wait till they arrive now.


----------



## Gavo

Drew9242 said:


> Just ordered meself some perlick taps for me fridge. Got it as a Bday present, can't wait till they arrive now.



Me too, can't wait to get them and fit em up. Ain't they purdy!

Gavo.


----------



## Bribie G

reviled said:


> You lucky buggers, prepare for your next invasion of kiwi workers



When I was in Wullington recently the thing about Kiwi workers that hit me between the eyes was that you can go up to a supermarket employee and ask "Looking for x y z " and instead of "Aisle 6 buddy" you get a guided tour of the place and by the time he or she has shown you personally through the range you end up knowing each others' names and what you all did last weekend. Same in the pubs with the bar staff, etc. Even the staff at Maccas make you feel like a long lost relly walking through the door (plus they are nearly all Moaris, show me a Maccas run by Murris over here and I'll walk to Bourke)





citymorgue2 said:


> Given that Aussie dollar is buying about 1.30 kiwi dollars I'm surprised Boone gas suggested buying stuff from NZ...


If we start importing Old Mout Scrumpy in the big PET bottles I'll probably give up home brewing. Will need a good funeral plan but. Hey it's cheaper to die in NZ. You know all those daytime funeral plan ads that they pester you with lately .... "even a simple funeral can cost $6000". Well over there of course they have the same ads but it's "even a simple funeral can cost $5000". So with the exchange rate I'll hop Air NZ if I get a few hours notice of my demise. 
CM you really must stop typing posts on that little mobile


----------



## bullsneck

Got myself some Perlicks, too. Alls I need now is a tower with three holes and I'll have a kegerator capable of dispensing three beers at once. Excited!


----------



## drew9242

Gavo said:


> Me too, can't wait to get them and fit em up. Ain't they purdy!
> 
> Gavo.



So Dardy they are. Was stoked i could get a better tap for the same amount of money i was going to spend down here.


----------



## DJR

D'oh! Ordered 3 pounds from Hopsdirect assuming they'd be able to do the "cheaper" shipping rate and got lumped into the $44 USD USPS box - if i'd have known I would have ordered more hops! Still - even with shipping being the majority of the order the rate isn't that bad - especially as the order is probably overfilled to get to that point!

If anyone is going to use them I'd email them first to confirm shipping rates on what you want.


----------



## Gavo

DJR said:


> D'oh! Ordered 3 pounds from Hopsdirect assuming they'd be able to do the "cheaper" shipping rate and got lumped into the $44 USD USPS box



Ordered 4 pounds from Niko's home brew supplies and paid $26 us for shipping with US Postal service.

Gavo.


----------



## proudscum

looking at hops from these guys as the postage rates is ok and 1/2 pound price is better than nikobrew except cascade but am trying to get a better 1/2 pound price on them.Great site for taps etc. 

http://www.chicompany.net/


----------



## Batz

proudscum said:


> looking at hops from these guys as the postage rates is ok and 1/2 pound price is better than nikobrew except cascade but am trying to get a better 1/2 pound price on them.Great site for taps etc.
> 
> http://www.chicompany.net/




What are the shipping costs proudscrum?

Batz


----------



## proudscum

proudscum said:


> looking at hops from these guys as the postage rates is ok and 1/2 pound price is better than nikobrew except cascade but am trying to get a better 1/2 pound price on them.Great site for taps etc.
> 
> http://www.chicompany.net/



this is a quote for 2 1/2 pounds of pellets which are all 2009 crop but will be advised on arrival of 2010 crop when they are available.

Total Items: 5 Amount: $40.00

Qty. Item Name	Unit	Total 
Amarillo - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$16.00 

Centenial - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$8.00 

Chinook - 1/2 Lbs. $8.00	$8.00 

Citra - 1/2 Lb. $8.00	$8.00 
Sub-Total: $40.00

United States Postal Service (1 x 2.99lbs) (Priority Mail International Small Flat Rate Box (6 - 10 business days))	$14.45


----------



## Batz

Batz said:


> What are the shipping costs proudscrum?
> 
> Batz




Looks like I can get 10, 1/2 lb (186gm) packets shipped for $44.45 US (S44.86 Aus)

Not bad as most hops are $8.00 per 186 gm.

Batz


----------



## Batz

proudscum said:


> this is a quote for 2 1/2 pounds of pellets which are all 2009 crop but will be advised on arrival of 2010 crop when they are available.
> 
> Total Items: 5 Amount: $40.00
> 
> Qty. Item Name	Unit	Total
> Amarillo - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$16.00
> 
> Centenial - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$8.00
> 
> Chinook - 1/2 Lbs. $8.00	$8.00
> 
> Citra - 1/2 Lb. $8.00	$8.00
> Sub-Total: $40.00
> 
> United States Postal Service (1 x 2.99lbs) (Priority Mail International Small Flat Rate Box (6 - 10 business days))	$14.45




Cheers that does look worthwhile.

Batz


----------



## pokolbinguy

proudscum said:


> this is a quote for 2 1/2 pounds of pellets which are all 2009 crop but will be advised on arrival of 2010 crop when they are available.
> Total Items: 5 Amount: $40.00
> Qty. Item Name	Unit	Total
> Amarillo - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$16.00
> Centenial - 1/2 lb. $8.00	$8.00
> Chinook - 1/2 Lbs. $8.00	$8.00
> Citra - 1/2 Lb. $8.00	$8.00
> Sub-Total: $40.00
> United States Postal Service (1 x 2.99lbs) (Priority Mail International Small Flat Rate Box (6 - 10 business days))	$14.45



Seems you might be incorrect there....but I would like to be proved wrong...would make my decision of ordering or not much easier

Your order is for 2 1/2 lbs....now while this fits the freight bracket by WEIGHT of $14.45 the website says above the hops in red:



> SHIPPING NOTICE:
> 
> SMALL USPS Flat Rate Boxes will only fit a total of 1Lb.
> 
> MEDIUM USPS Flat Rate Boxes will only fit a total of 6Lbs.
> 
> CHOOSE THE CORRECTLY SIZED FLAT RATE SHIPPING BOX OR
> "GENERAL PRIORITY" TO PREVENT POSTAGE DUE DELAYS.



So I think you might find you will get bumped up to the next freight bracket of $44.45, instead of $14.45. If so...buy 3 1/2 lbs more....or 1 1/2 lbs less 




Batz said:


> Looks like I can get 10, 1/2 lb (186gm) packets shipped for $44.45 US (S44.86 Aus)
> Not bad as most hops are $8.00 per 186 gm.
> Batz



+ the hop price....so 5 lbs = $80 (hops) + $44.45 (freight) = $124.45 / 5lbs (2.27 kg) = $5.48 / 100gm

I'm pretty sure 1/lb = 227gms not 186gms????



Hmm all this is very tempting...mmmm hops...

Cheers, Pok


----------



## brettprevans

Pok - ur spot on with ur info.


----------



## proudscum

Damn it you are right about the box size only taking 1 pound of hops.
I was going to ask Matt from CHI about postage before ordering.
Damn you postage charges might just have to order more.


----------



## pokolbinguy

citymorgue2 said:


> Pok - ur spot on with ur info.





proudscum said:


> Damn it you are right about the box size only taking 1 pound of hops.




I was really hoping I was wrong tho....so I could order the 3 1/2 pounds I was thinking about at the nice $14.45 rate...

Just so everyone knows.

If you order 1lb...it comes out to $US 30.45 / lb = $ 67.66 / kg ($6.76/100gm) shipped to [email protected] $US 1=$AUD 0.9908 = $68.28/KG

or 6lb = $US 140.95 / 6lbs = $ 52.50 / kg (5.25/100gm) shipped to [email protected] $US 1=$AUD 0.9908 = $52.98/KG


----------



## proudscum

Six pounds is just to much hops to sit in the fridge, would be ok to split the load when the 2010 crop comes in but i will talk to Matt about the cost and see if there is a work around.I did see someone mention that Nikobrew did post for $12.50 for 2 1/2 pounds.Hmmm.Maybe just have to get my oldies to send some over from NZ.


----------



## Batz

> + the hop price....so 5 lbs = $80 (hops) + $44.45 (freight) = $124.45 / 5lbs (2.27 kg) = $5.48 / 100gm
> 
> I'm pretty sure 1/lb = 227gms not 186gms????
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Cheers, Pok



Well that depends on the Troy or avdp pound, and if you read above I did say 1/2 pound....that's .5

Oh and I do realize that I have to pay for the hops not just the shipping ( I did say shipped):huh: 

Batz


----------



## chadjaja

I ordered 2 and 1/2 from nikobrew for about $15 just a few weeks ago. They say anything up to that size is that price and over that is the $44 from memory. 

We must be cleaning out some sellers of perlicks, I ordered two this week and I'm going back for two more as its cheaper on postage to split up orders.


----------



## pokolbinguy

Batz said:


> Well that depends on the Troy or avdp pound, and if you read above I did say 1/2 pound....that's .5



Sorry Batz i made a typo...isn't 1 pound = 453g?? so 1/2 lb = 227g??



Batz said:


> Oh and I do realize that I have to pay for the hops not just the shipping ( I did say shipped):huh:



I figured that, just the wording was a little strange


----------



## hoohaaman

DJR said:


> D'oh! Ordered 3 pounds from Hopsdirect assuming they'd be able to do the "cheaper" shipping rate and got lumped into the $44 USD USPS box - if i'd have known I would have ordered more hops! Still - even with shipping being the majority of the order the rate isn't that bad - especially as the order is probably overfilled to get to that point!
> 
> If anyone is going to use them I'd email them first to confirm shipping rates on what you want.



My 3Lbs were in the $44 flat rate medium,probably would take 5lbs comfortably.Next time I will order 2lbs per order at the $14 flat rate small.

Wasn't that perturbed,still dirt cheap for fantastic fresh hops


----------



## proudscum

Nice looking taps this one is about $10 cheaper than i seen on other sites.Anyone seen cheap tail piece set ups that you can push the hose directly on to?or is it better to buy em here and save on postage.


Perlick 525 SS Faucet (Per525) us$23.99


http://www.farmhousebrewingsupply.com/scri...p?idProduct=144


----------



## BEC26

Drew9242 said:


> Just ordered meself some perlick taps for me fridge. .




Interested to know where from and price please

Cheers
Bruce


----------



## chadjaja

proudscum said:


> Nice looking taps this one is about $10 cheaper than i seen on other sites.Anyone seen cheap tail piece set ups that you can push the hose directly on to?or is it better to buy em here and save on postage.
> 
> 
> Perlick 525 SS Faucet (Per525) us$23.99
> 
> 
> http://www.farmhousebrewingsupply.com/scri...p?idProduct=144




The only problem is they use UPS not USPS and the postage for only two tap heads is.

UPS Worldwide Expedited SM *$90.13* 

UPS Express Saver SM *$93.10* 

UPS Worldwide Express SM *$96.55*


----------



## drew9242

BEC26 said:


> Interested to know where from and price please
> 
> Cheers
> Bruce



I got them from kegworks.com, and got the taps for $30.90 and Shanks for $21.90. I got some other gear with it aswell. Not the cheapest you can get, now that i have seen the farmhouse link. You can also get them on ebay with cheaper postage, but i needed some other gear that i couldn't be fagged getting seperate parcels from all over the show. But Kegworks seem very professional, With tracking emails sent at every stage and parcel ID to check where it is. So we will see how things pan out.


----------



## Bribie G

Even with larger quantities, say a pound of each, if you are in contact with other local brewers in your area, or in a club or go to brewdays you can swap some of your basic hops for the specialist ones, doing that right now to get some Styrians - and as you got yours cheap you can be a bit generous with your side of the swap.


----------



## lastdrinks

3x perlick 525ss
1x 3.5 inch shank
4 way gas line manifold
1x plastic handle
7x half pound hop pellets

$284US delivered. 

 been umming and arrhing about buying these, finally man'ed up and purhased today. 

P.S, oz LHBS's I still love you, I was drunk and one thing lead to another and the US HBS was wearing a short dress. It wont happen again.


----------



## GUB

Anybody looked into getting some yeast? Chasing some wyeast or whitelabs. Any tips or hints with which website is best to deal with would be great. Or if it is even worth it (most worried about the temperature)
Cheers


----------



## BrenosBrews

GUB said:


> Anybody looked into getting some yeast? Chasing some wyeast or whitelabs. Any tips or hints with which website is best to deal with would be great. Or if it is even worth it (most worried about the temperature)
> Cheers



Wyeast & White Labs will not sell directly. Morebeer ship international & have White Labs vials at $6.25 each which is less than half of what it costs here. I'd be a bit concerned about temperature though I'm pretty certain they would use ice packs being in California. So depending on shipping costs, which shouldn't be too much given it's weight, I'd say it's worth it to try.


----------



## dgilks

If you are part of a club you may be able to organise something with White Labs. Our club here in Canberra recently made a bulk purchase of 100 vials for $7.50 each landed.



BrenosBrews said:


> Wyeast & White Labs will not sell directly. Morebeer ship international & have White Labs vials at $6.25 each which is less than half of what it costs here. I'd be a bit concerned about temperature though I'm pretty certain they would use ice packs being in California. So depending on shipping costs, which shouldn't be too much given it's weight, I'd say it's worth it to try.


----------



## dr K

dgilks said:


> If you are part of a club you may be able to organise something with White Labs. Our club here in Canberra recently made a bulk purchase of 100 vials for $7.50 each landed.



Of course it was done through a legitimate business,registered and ABN'd with an active account with Whitelabs and pretty much as a legs up for Canberra Brewers. To that degree it was pretty much part of the tour.
K


----------



## DJR

Run might not be continuing - I got my hopsdirect order in at about 98.5 but seems to be hovering about 97 now

http://www.xe.com/currency/aud-australian-dollar


http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/dol...1020-16stl.html



smh article said:


> The Aussie dollar marked those records amid expectations the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, was about to embark on a stimulus program that would, in effect, undermine the value of the US dollar.
> 
> That propelled the Aussie to never-before-seen highs.
> 
> But overnight, it took a turn for the worse and it hit a low of 96.63 US cents, falling almost 3 per cent from the 99.57-US-cents high of the past 24 hours, reached shortly before midday yesterday.
> 
> Compared to last week's record, the dollar is down 3.4 per cent.
> 
> The rise of the US dollar was caused largely by expectations China's growth would slow after officials there lifted a key interest rate.


----------



## Bribie G

CBs Wyeast prices usually go up and down according to the dollar, I think at one stage it was up around $13 IIRC. At current prices if I get a few brews out of a smack pack I find it's very reasonable compared to dry yeasts like US-05 that I don't regularly reuse. Hops are another thing of course because they are consumed and, apart from some tweaks like occasionally reusing hopback hops for bittering, then that's it. :icon_cheers:


----------



## lespaul

JonnyAnchovy said:


> For those splurging, I'll just leave this here:
> 
> http://www.shipito.com/




:icon_offtopic: I was working in California over their last winter. had to ship the snowboard bags back and fedex was too expensive, so we used these guys. Looks like the dodgies little place in the outskirts of LA haha we barely found it because it has like 4 other businesses there that all have random asian names.
The guys there were semi helpful, i think they were just the weekend guys, who were also selling push bikes out of the garage.
We didnt have proper locks on the bags when we dropped it off and used some zip ties. I think they stole some jumpers and pants out of the bag after we left (could have been them or anyone else along the way though <_< ). The rest turned up all safe and sound.
After saying this though i would probably still use them again, they were just so much cheaper than any other shipping, just make sure it was packaged properly when it was sent there.


----------



## cspencer

an update on hopsdirect amarillo pallets
------
HELLO CLAYTON,
I AM HOPING FOR THE BEGINNING OF NOVEMBER. SORRY I CAN NOT GIVE
YOU A MORE DEFINATE ANSWER.

THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE AS WE FINISH PELLETING WE WILL POST THEM ON THE
WEBSITE.

Carla 
---------


----------



## JonnyAnchovy

Where is everyone getting their perlicks from? the price below looks like one of the best at the moment. 

Think I might pick up 2/3 and get them sent out with shipito - my first package from them arrived via fedex yesterday - three day delivery of a massive box for $80.





proudscum said:


> Nice looking taps this one is about $10 cheaper than i seen on other sites.Anyone seen cheap tail piece set ups that you can push the hose directly on to?or is it better to buy em here and save on postage.
> 
> 
> Perlick 525 SS Faucet (Per525) us$23.99
> 
> 
> http://www.farmhousebrewingsupply.com/scri...p?idProduct=144


----------



## TidalPete

I did find cheaper places before I ordered my four 575 Perlick Creamers & 4" ss shanks from HERE but the cheaper prices were easily offset by the cheaper combined shipping rate. 
Opted not to get shanks with the tail pieces because I could save space in the kegerator by getting the appropiate JG shank & elbow fittings from CraftBrewer. 
I agree that the 525's from Farmhouse Brewing Supply are pretty cheap but not too much info on shipping costs ATM.

TP


----------



## bradsbrew

My 3 perlick creamers have turned up today. 3 taps, 4" shanks and nipples delivered for a total of $158.00 au. Pity I dont get to see/play with them til the weekend though.


'


----------



## TidalPete

bradsbrew said:


> My 3 perlick creamers have turned up today. 3 taps, 4" shanks and nipples delivered for a total of $158.00 au. Pity I dont get to see/play with them til the weekend though.



Interested in knowing where you finally chose to get them from Brad?


----------



## argon

JonnyAnchovy said:


> Where is everyone getting their perlicks from? the price below looks like one of the best at the moment.
> 
> Think I might pick up 2/3 and get them sent out with shipito - my first package from them arrived via fedex yesterday - three day delivery of a massive box for $80.




I got 4 525 perlicks and shanks from this guy on ebay a little while back came in cheapest after shipping etc brauman59 good service, replied to emails swiftly and most importantly the taps are excellent.


----------



## bradsbrew

TidalPete said:


> Interested in knowing where you finally chose to get them from Brad?


brauman59 on ebay. I kind of bullshitted a bit I didnt add the postage which was about 36 bucks on top from the US. I ordered them on the 17th and they arrived this morning, pretty good turn around.


----------



## flavo

Ordered some hops from CHI Company and they were delivered today (total turn around from order to delivery was 13 days). Customs had opened the box and probed one 2oz package.


----------



## dcx3

Does anyone know here i can get a cheap a corny start up kit for my fridge?


----------



## proudscum

One Monstermill-2 arrived in the post today 11days from ordering and it was on the weekend that i ordered.$214 for mill /hopper /baseplate.Was all put together in 15minutes.
I should have brought a crank handle after reading the threads on milling.Will be a wait till i can afford a DC motor to trick this baby up.

Still waiting on my Bruamiester which DHL are delivering 12 days and counting.Should be ready for when i pick up my bulk buy grain.


----------



## mitysa

Does anyone know here i can get a cheap a corny start up kit for my fridge?


--------------------
*Guns are for show*Knives are for pro's*


Craftbrewer.com.au
Will help out with great advice to go along with it

Mike


----------



## proudscum

chadjaja said:


> The only problem is they use UPS not USPS and the postage for only two tap heads is.
> 
> UPS Worldwide Expedited SM *$90.13*
> 
> UPS Express Saver SM *$93.10*
> 
> UPS Worldwide Express SM *$96.55*




This is from an email i got from John @ Farmhouse Brewing Supply 10 days ago.
reostage .It does pay to check postage before buying as we all know some have been burnt.
I read this as per complete set of one tap for the cheaper postage.

The shank combos are in fact 18.99 and a single shank is 15.99. As for the postage, I just estimated a small flat rate box to Australia and it was around $12.00, insurance will be around 1.75-2.25. If you have a group of people interested in purchasing then I will have to use a medium flat rate box which is around 27.00 international with around 5.00 for insurance cost. I can a large amount of shanks and faucets in a medium box and if you want you can get get some of these fine American hops I am offering. Let me know what you interested in, and final quantity, and a shipping address and we can nail down a final price.


----------



## boriskane

nikobrew does a decent deal:

2.5 lbs worth of 0.5lbs packets in a $14 box
or 3lbs worth of 1lb packets in a $14

still works out to be ~$6/100g (depending on hop choices)

seems better than hopsdirect who quoted me that the smallest box was the $40+ medium


----------



## DJR

boris kane said:


> seems better than hopsdirect who quoted me that the smallest box was the $40+ medium



Mine from hopsdirect, and I got some more expensive ones (1 lb Organic Hallertau and 1 lb Cz Saaz as well as some US cascade), were about $5.60 landed per 100g, with a $44 USD medium size box.

I reckon judging by the space in the box you'd be able to get 5 lbs in one of the medium boxes, but don't quote me. They tend to overpack the 1 lb lots as well - mine was 500g, 520g and 530g.


----------



## chadjaja

proudscum said:


> This is from an email i got from John @ Farmhouse Brewing Supply 10 days ago.
> reostage .It does pay to check postage before buying as we all know some have been burnt.
> I read this as per complete set of one tap for the cheaper postage.
> 
> The shank combos are in fact 18.99 and a single shank is 15.99. As for the postage, I just estimated a small flat rate box to Australia and it was around $12.00, insurance will be around 1.75-2.25. If you have a group of people interested in purchasing then I will have to use a medium flat rate box which is around 27.00 international with around 5.00 for insurance cost. I can a large amount of shanks and faucets in a medium box and if you want you can get get some of these fine American hops I am offering. Let me know what you interested in, and final quantity, and a shipping address and we can nail down a final price.



yeah thats much better! Just as usual the postage calculators on eBay and other stores are way out. Good to know another retailer that charges ACTUAL costs rather than pad it or be paranoid using the expensive courier option. They are suddenly great deals at Farmhouse.


----------



## Nick JD

I just noticed Hops Direct is now selling Pacific Gem (NZ) and Hallertau (NZ) for $15 a pound.


----------



## dgilks

dr K said:


> Of course it was done through a legitimate business,registered and ABN'd with an active account with Whitelabs and pretty much as a legs up for Canberra Brewers. To that degree it was pretty much part of the tour.
> K



Thanks Kurtz, I thought it had been organised separately in the first instance but obviously I was wrong.


----------



## DJR

Thanks to the rate rise, looks like we are just about to break parity.

http://www.xe.com/currency/aud-australian-dollar

0.99925 currently

The extra varieties that Hopsdirect have seem to be organic as well.


----------



## peaky

DJR said:


> Thanks to the rate rise, looks like we are just about to break parity.
> 
> http://www.xe.com/currency/aud-australian-dollar
> 
> 0.99925 currently




We just broke parity, (a couple hours after you posted) 1.00117 It'll be interesting to see how far it goes, we're in uncharted territory now :icon_cheers:


----------



## Galamus

Hey guys, is there somewhere in America that people buy fonts and taps etc from(and had a good experience obviously)? I figure with the high aussie dollar I'll jump in on the buying!


----------



## razz

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Perlick-Perl-Stainl...d#ht_1316wt_907
I got mine from Kegworks. Top prices and quick delivery


----------



## proudscum

Galamus said:


> Hey guys, is there somewhere in America that people buy fonts and taps etc from(and had a good experience obviously)? I figure with the high aussie dollar I'll jump in on the buying!




Look to post #304


----------



## peaky

DJR said:


> Mine from hopsdirect, and I got some more expensive ones (1 lb Organic Hallertau and 1 lb Cz Saaz as well as some US cascade), were about $5.60 landed per 100g, with a $44 USD medium size box.
> 
> I reckon judging by the space in the box you'd be able to get 5 lbs in one of the medium boxes, but don't quote me. They tend to overpack the 1 lb lots as well - mine was 500g, 520g and 530g.



I was quoted the same postage costs, $44 for a medium sized box. The box fits 5 lbs of hops according to Hops Direct so I ordered 5 different hops in 1 lb lots. $AU109 for 5 lbs of hops delivered to my door. Should be here any day now :super:


----------



## Sammus

peakydh said:


> We just broke parity, (a couple hours after you posted) 1.00117 It'll be interesting to see how far it goes, we're in uncharted territory now :icon_cheers:



We broke parity like a week or 2 ago, just dipped below again  FWIW according to the RBA and XE we're still under...


----------



## peaky

Sammus said:


> We broke parity like a week or 2 ago, just dipped below again  FWIW according to the RBA and XE we're still under...



Yes, I just looked back and my AUDUSD chart shows a high of 1.00023 on 15-10-2010 at approx 2pm. I guess there's a million different platforms/market makers around the globe quoting different prices.

Anyways, I have grabbed a monster mill and 2.7 Kg of hops from the US while it's sitting good for importers :icon_cheers:


----------



## boriskane

i put my order down yesterday at 0.95, then today the RBA UNEXPECTEDLY push the rate up which is why its risen again!

:angry:


----------



## pbrosnan

BribieG said:


> (plus they are nearly all Moaris, show me a Maccas run by Murris over here and I'll walk to Bourke)


WTF is that supposed to mean?


----------



## jakub76

pbrosnan said:


> WTF is that supposed to mean?


It means that original New Zealanders have a far more healthy and participatory role within their country and its society than the original Australians do here. I reckon it's a fair point. Having worked over in NZ a little I've seen first hand that Maori culture is well respected and an accepted part of normal NZ life. The recent death of an elder monarch, Princess Piki Paki saw live television coverage of the funeral and a national week of moarning - wouldn't happen here.


----------



## sinkas

jakub76 said:


> It means that original New Zealanders have a far more healthy and participatory role within their country and its society than the original Australians do here. I reckon it's a fair point. Having worked over in NZ a little I've seen first hand that Maori culture is well respected and an accepted part of normal NZ life. The recent death of an elder monarch, Princess Piki Paki saw live television coverage of the funeral and a national week of moarning - wouldn't happen here.



and you as an immigrant care to blame the indigenous australians for their plight?


----------



## geoffi

jakub76 said:


> It means that original New Zealanders have a far more healthy and participatory role within their country and its society than the original Australians do here. I reckon it's a fair point. Having worked over in NZ a little I've seen first hand that Maori culture is well respected and an accepted part of normal NZ life. The recent death of an elder monarch, Princess Piki Paki saw live television coverage of the funeral and a national week of moarning - wouldn't happen here.




No. It wouldn't happen here. But that's because there is no 'Aboriginal culture', any more than there is 'a European culture' or 'an African culture'. The Maori are more or less one people with a shared language. Aborigines are many different peoples with different languages and cultures.

And you wouldn't find, nor would you ever have found, an Aboriginal 'monarch' or 'princess' or anything of the sort.

You simply cannot compare the two cases.


----------



## Nick JD

NZ ain't no ethnic harmony.


----------



## DJR

<flamesuit> Keep it on topic guys, this is a brewing forum not a socio-political discourse forum.


----------



## Brewindo

Just ordered 2 Perlick 525ss from US. ~AU$100 + AU$20 postage, including shanks. Hope I get them :unsure: ???

But hey, take a chance, the price is right ATM.


----------



## Aus_Rider_22

There we go.

If only I could think of something that I need from the US! :blink:


----------



## big78sam

My Crankandstein mill is on the way! I ended up lashing out on the 2D for easy gap adjustment so the improvement in the exchange rate in effect allowed me to get an free upgrade


----------



## Pollux

This is the point where I really want 5.11 tactical to hurry up and get international shipping sorted.......

Their tactical pants are awesome, but I'd much rather pay $60 for them from the states than $90 locally......


----------



## Sammus

Pollux said:


> This is the point where I really want 5.11 tactical to hurry up and get international shipping sorted.......
> 
> Their tactical pants are awesome, but I'd much rather pay $60 for them from the states than $90 locally......



I thought tactical pants was just a fancy word for cargo pants?


----------



## beerbrewer76543

Fancy pants?


----------



## brettprevans

Completely non brewing related but tactical pants got me thinking... one for the bikers... Kevlar jeans any cheaper from US than draggins here? Bike leathers etc


----------



## Pollux

Sammus, they are effectively cargo pants, but tend to be better quality and higher in the durability stakes than the general fare available here...

And who doesn't want teflon coated pants with ripstop technology???


----------



## chadjaja

Can anyone that ordered perlicks from our fav ebay seller give me an indication of the shipping time? I had some sent on the 19th of October and they still haven't arrived yet other priority mail from the US has beat them here by a week or so. I usually get stuff from the West coast quicker than east coast of US and he is in Chicago so I would expect some delays but.....


----------



## pk.sax

A good 1.5 US cent lead on the greenback according to xe.com

And to boot, personally this makes a mental impact - Aussie dollar can buy ~1 Indian rupee more than the USD. Now that's something I haven't seen for a while. USD has gone south wrt a currency I usually index against as india tends to try n keep the rupee down too. It was on the news that Obama is visiting India to secure business for the US farmers etc to help pull them out of the mess, n we are making (allowing to be made) ourselves pricier. Damn interest rates etc etc.... I almost wish I voted for the libs last election.


----------



## Batz

Good read



> Much to Mr. Smith's frustration, and my bank's delight, I'm a huge fan of internet shopping. But as I constantly remind him, the hours I spend shopping online are the hours I save him in a shopping centre.
> 
> Firstly, you have the sheer convenience of shopping from your work, or from home in the comfort of your PJ's, with a glass of wine next to the keyboard. And secondly, if you're like me and have perfected shopping into a fine art, there's the 'present feeling' you get when your purchase finally arrives.
> 
> To be honest, I'd probably do more shopping from local online retailers if the postage costs were more competitive. Australia Post hasn't really encouraged shopping online because their costs are so high.
> 
> Clearly, I'm not alone. Even more so now, thanks to our rising dollar, more and more Australians are logging on to shop overseas.
> 
> However, for many Australians, we don't just shop online for convenience. More than ever before, we are shopping online, and sending our hard earned dollars overseas, simply because it's cheaper to get it from America. Or China. Or Europe. Perhaps even Greenland these days!
> 
> And guess what? Aussie retailers don't like it. The Australian retail industry is worth about $292 billion, and it's estimated that this year Australians will spend about $6 billion online.
> 
> They think they're losing out on a chunk of that income. Well, they are, but not a whole lot.
> 
> Quite simply, why should you pay more when you know you can get a product cheaper elsewhere?
> 
> I certainly won't. As every other basic living cost is on the rise, every dollar saved there is another dollar towards something you really want.
> 
> In a recent interview, Russell Zimmerman head of the Australian Retailers Association is 'crying out' to the government to fix this problem. What problem? He cites job losses, business closing down and all other dramatic scenarios if a stop isn't put to this madness! When will the pesky consumer learn to pay higher prices for far less options?
> 
> In 2005 the government increased the amount you could spend overseas before paying any GST or duties. As of today, if you spend less than $1,000, anything you buy overseas won't attract a tax charge.
> 
> But, for an Australian retailer because of the volume they purchase in, they must pay taxes. It's simply unavoidable.
> 
> Zimmerman, appealing to the government's need for someone else's money has reminded the government that it's missing out on revenue, 'There's around $6 billion worth of goods coming in without any form of duty or GST being paid on them... there is around $600 million worth of GST the government is missing out on.'
> 
> He's even suggested that import value be lowered to $400 and then apply duties or GST. The problem isn't that retailers are under threat of closing down. At the moment, people shopping online is more about eating into retailer profits, which no business likes.
> 
> But what's worrying is that he expects that government to 'save' the industry by forcing more tax on people. Considering that online shopping accounts for little more than 2% of the entire industry you have to think they must be really desperate for sales.
> 
> Instead of trying to get the government to tax you even more and make you pay more for goods, perhaps he should be listening to why consumers are shopping online rather than in stores? That way they may get some of the business back.
> 
> Yes, a strong Aussie dollar has encouraged me, and many others to increase internet shopping where possible. Thanks to central bankers fiddling around with things, you can now get more for your money from overseas online stores.
> 
> But there's also the choice factor. There's a far greater variety available overseas and online. Much more than the shops offer here, and Zimmerman is missing this opportunity to hear what consumers want from their retailers.
> 
> Last time I checked, retailers were supposed to serve a purpose, but right now, that purpose isn't being met. So consumers have voted with their dollars and spent them elsewhere.
> 
> Yet, all Zimmerman wants the government to do is to 'save the industry and job losses'. Which really means increasing the taxes you pay.
> 
> Now, if items are too expensive in Australia, doesn't it make more sense to appeal to the government to lower the taxes and duties paid by retailers in order to remain competitive and keep Australian retailers in business?
> 
> Of course it does. But he knows that the government is never willingly going to give up a nice revenue stream.
> 
> It appears that he knows the only way the government will listen to his pleas is to increase tax on items bought overseas, rather than lower it for retailers so they can try to compete with online retailers.
> 
> So before the government listens to the boy crying wolf by gouging you for more tax, and while the Aussie dollar is worth more than the greenback, jump online and get yourself a bargain.
> 
> Yet again we have another vested interest who thinks the only way to save an industry is to tax the consumer more, rather than give the consumer what they want.
> 
> You can't save an industry, business or country by applying more taxing because all you end up doing are hurting the very people that support it.
> 
> Shae Smith
> Assistant Editor


----------



## pk.sax

That is just right too Batz, I costs me more to get something shipped from Bendigo than from the US or UK. It costed me less to post my belongings from Germany to Australia (DHL) than it did for my friend to do so from Australia to India (whatever was cheapest). We do have some of the most ridiculous setups here.


----------



## Paul H

Batz said:


> Good read



An over simplified rant by an indivivdual who either doesn't understand or choses to ignore the many other factors in play such as economies of scale. 

:icon_cheers: 

Paul


----------



## JonnyAnchovy

citymorgue2 said:


> Completely non brewing related but tactical pants got me thinking... one for the bikers... Kevlar jeans any cheaper from US than draggins here? Bike leathers etc




Bugger - didn'y even think of this. Just spend north ov $400 for riding gear for the missus.....


----------



## boriskane

Paul H said:


> An over simplified rant by an indivivdual who either doesn't understand or choses to ignore the many other factors in play such as economies of scale.
> 
> :icon_cheers:
> 
> Paul



yeah that 'rant' may have been oversimplified, but it touched on the key solution to a problem that only has that as a plausible one.

australia= isolated location, low population, high cost of labour/high minimum wage. and in this context, the governments importation taxes policy is harmful to local business 

high minimum wage in australia means that economies of scale are hard to achieve locally, and even if goods are coming from overseas, with the various importation charges, a giant costco or a kmart that runs 24/7 is not going to be profitable simply because there isnt enough demand to sustain it.

location, population and minimum wage wont be changing any time soon, so theres not much in terms of choice for a retailer who has to make huge outlays for wages, not to mention rent costs, simply to stay afloat. if youre wondering why hop farms in the US can offer such low prices, well the US has a minmum wage of ~$8/hour and a population that can afford to drive product prices down through excessive spending and allow a business to stay profitable. (although this spending is what caused the 'bubble' to begin with)

the only way to get people to spend more at retail stores in australia is to lower the prices and increase variety to compete with intl stores like the 'rant' said. if the government lowered taxes for shop owners, then owners would be able to afford to pass savings onto customers as well as take a risk on offering a greater variety of goods.

i say let the boat people in, more population the better. competition drives innovation after all and businesses will have more in their pockets at the end of the day.

'rant' over, now back to exam studies


----------



## manticle

Paul H said:


> An over simplified rant by an indivivdual who either doesn't understand or choses to ignore the many other factors in play such as economies of scale.
> 
> :icon_cheers:
> 
> Paul



Care to explain simply why people who might struggle to sometimes put food on the table should reconsider buying overseas products when the difference in their pocket is so ridiculously high then?

My understanding (correct me if I'm wrong) is that you are either a business owner or at least involved at a managerial level of business. 

For those who aren't, shopping for anything CAN be as simple as less money spent = more money in pocket for basics.

Yes the economy might be more complex than that article is making out but the real effect on real people should also be takedn into account.


----------



## Paul H

boris kane said:


> yeah that 'rant' may have been oversimplified, but it touched on the key solution to a problem that only has that as a plausible one.
> 
> australia= isolated location, low population, high cost of labour/high minimum wage. and in this context, the governments importation taxes policy is harmful to local business
> 
> high minimum wage in australia means that economies of scale are hard to achieve locally, and even if goods are coming from overseas, with the various importation charges, a giant costco or a kmart that runs 24/7 is not going to be profitable simply because there isnt enough demand to sustain it.
> 
> location, population and minimum wage wont be changing any time soon, so theres not much in terms of choice for a retailer who has to make huge outlays for wages, not to mention rent costs, simply to stay afloat. if youre wondering why hop farms in the US can offer such low prices, well the US has a minmum wage of ~$8/hour and a population that can afford to drive product prices down through excessive spending and allow a business to stay profitable. (although this spending is what caused the 'bubble' to begin with)
> 
> the only way to get people to spend more at retail stores in australia is to lower the prices and increase variety to compete with intl stores like the 'rant' said. if the government lowered taxes for shop owners, then owners would be able to afford to pass savings onto customers as well as take a risk on offering a greater variety of goods.
> 
> i say let the boat people in, more population the better. competition drives innovation after all and businesses will have more in their pockets at the end of the day.
> 
> 'rant' over, now back to exam studies



I'm all for a reduction in taxes so what services do we cut first? NBN, Health or education to name a few. Allowing more people into the country can stimulate spending but if those who come in are low/no skilled goat herders from Sri lanka or afghans then the only money they will be spending will be money derived from social security benefits that are funded by you guessed it taxes.

:icon_cheers: 


Paul


----------



## Paul H

manticle said:


> Care to explain simply why people who might struggle to sometimes put food on the table should reconsider buying overseas products when the difference in their pocket is so ridiculously high then?
> 
> My understanding (correct me if I'm wrong) is that you are either a business owner or at least involved at a managerial level of business.
> 
> For those who aren't, shopping for anything CAN be as simple as less money spent = more money in pocket for basics.
> 
> Yes the economy might be more complex than that article is making out but the real effect on real people should also be takedn into account.



I feel for the genuine battler out there doing there best for their families & I'm not one for regulation so I wont tell you where to spend you hard earned, but you can't, as the author suggests bag the retailers or suggest that the answer simply lies in lowering taxes. It polarises people into positions without the necessary information.

:icon_cheers: 

Paul


----------



## Nick JD

Citra has been pelletized at Hops Direct. 

$2.58 for 90g. :icon_chickcheers: Oh yeah.


----------



## boriskane

Paul H said:


> I'm all for a reduction in taxes so what services do we cut first? NBN, Health or education to name a few. Allowing more people into the country can stimulate spending but if those who come in are low/no skilled goat herders from Sri lanka or afghans then the only money they will be spending will be money derived from social security benefits that are funded by you guessed it taxes.
> 
> :icon_cheers:
> 
> 
> Paul




by reducing import taxes the idea is that consumer will spend their money locally, and the government could recoup the losses through GST. or they could just choose not to buy the latest high tech fighter jet plane that can go invisible.

yeah thats the achilles heel of the theory haha


----------



## DJR

Nick JD said:


> Citra has been pelletized at Hops Direct.
> 
> $2.58 for 90g. :icon_chickcheers: Oh yeah.



And my brother from another mother,

Amarillo VGXP01 c.v.Pellet Hops New Crop
A/A 7. 8 - 10.7% $16.00/lb

Make sure you get 4-5 lbs at least, split em out if thats too much - otherwise the $43 postage makes it not too cheap. My workings on 5lbs @$16USD + 43USD shipping comes to about $4.80 per 90g or so.


----------



## brettprevans

I've checked every day for a month and the one day I don't check they update their site.


----------



## dcx3

Another good economics rant for you.


----------



## boriskane

dcx3 said:


> Another good economics rant for you.




guess its a good thing i dont study economics


----------



## brettprevans

If everyone Studied a little economics then things would be a lot better. Informed citizens is a good thing. It's like informed voters. Unfortunately people cone to an election and loose 90% of their intellect and choose not to be informed. 

Tell u what though dealing with GDP results from past years which are most up to date is a bitch ATM with conversation rates and trying to convey the details to non finance/ non topic/ non stats people


----------



## boriskane

citymorgue2 said:


> If everyone Studied a little economics then things would be a lot better. Informed citizens is a good thing. It's like informed voters. Unfortunately people cone to an election and loose 90% of their intellect and choose not to be informed.
> 
> Tell u what though dealing with GDP results from past years which are most up to date is a bitch ATM with conversation rates and trying to convey the details to non finance/ non topic/ non stats people



free tertiary education, just like the scandinavians


----------



## pk.sax

Our problem is that most people do NOT view their economic input as being much of a significant factor to the greater economic problem the aussie economy is.

and I am NOT referring to where we spend our hard earned. Most people in australia work in the tertiary sector, i.e. service industry aka retail, customer service.. bla bla.. The level of autonomy and independence of our economy is desperately low and that tends to bring a general lack of respect for us whenever foreign business comes here because the local competition is SHIT. Places we import our products from (ignoring China and even India for a moment) are more competitive than us because our own secondary production industry is economically insignificant to the primary (agriculture & mining) industries that employ a tiny part of our population. The way that money flows to the population is through benefits and public spending, aka "pay the lazy" money. The service and retail industries have to employ the majority of our people because there just isn't that much tangible industry out there to do so otherwise. And retail needs cheaper goods so we shit on our small secondary industries even more..... vicious cycle.

The government really DOES need import tariffs and needs to spend the mining and agriculture tax dollars into propping up the manufacturing and processing industries so they can compete, or else we will keep sinking deeper in this hole.

</eco rant over>


----------



## pk.sax

boris kane said:


> free tertiary education, just like the scandinavians



That would be a bloody good start, invest in the people to increase the skill levels. Slash the population of check out chicks.


----------



## JonnyAnchovy

Socialism. Just putting it out there.


----------



## jimi

How long are orders from Hops Direct taking to arrive?

Just did my order already can't wait


----------



## stanko

Placed my order on the 23/9/2010 , and still waiting .


----------



## DJR

stanko said:


> Placed my order on the 23/9/2010 , and still waiting .



Geez, that's long.

Mine took a week and a half, or so.


----------



## jimi

DJR said:


> Geez, that's long.
> 
> Mine took a week and a half, or so.



There's a email notice of prgress/processing yes?


----------



## boriskane

practicalfool said:


> The government really DOES need import tariffs and needs to spend the mining and agriculture tax dollars into propping up the manufacturing and processing industries so they can compete, or else we will keep sinking deeper in this hole.



yeah i see the usefulness of it in this sense. protecting 'infant industries' through tariffs is essential for early development and for the industry to establish and become competitive like you said. but i wonder whether the world economy is too far developed in terms of which countries are suited for different industries for australia to be able to develop their manufacturing and processing industry. 

wages and rent are so high over here compared to third world economies, it will be very difficult for australian industries to prop up profitable factories. imo i just dont see australian companies ever bringing their production facilities back here. when china and indonesia et al become too expensive people will just head somewhere else.

anyway i seem to look at it, whenever i imagine the retail industry being fixed up, i keep seeing a future with australia turning into the US: more population in a multicultural society with a strong agricultural and mining background, sounds familiar. 

step 1. lower minimum wage 
step 2. generate an 'american dream' type slogan
step 3. let the illegal immigrants in and the lesser skilled ones could work in the manufacturing industries churning out Bonds undies to bring back the 'australian' icon


----------



## felten

JonnyAnchovy said:


> Socialism. Just putting it out there.



better red than dead eh comrade


----------



## goomboogo

DJR said:


> And my brother from another mother,
> 
> Amarillo VGXP01 c.v.Pellet Hops New Crop
> A/A 7. 8 - 10.7% $16.00/lb
> 
> Make sure you get 4-5 lbs at least, split em out if thats too much - otherwise the $43 postage makes it not too cheap. My workings on 5lbs @$16USD + 43USD shipping comes to about $4.80 per 90g or so.



I think you'll find he's not paying for postage. Bringing them back in his luggage.


----------



## tcraig20

practicalfool said:


> Our problem is that most people do NOT view their economic input as being much of a significant factor to the greater economic problem the aussie economy is.
> 
> and I am NOT referring to where we spend our hard earned. Most people in australia work in the tertiary sector, i.e. service industry aka retail, customer service.. bla bla.. The level of autonomy and independence of our economy is desperately low and that tends to bring a general lack of respect for us whenever foreign business comes here because the local competition is SHIT. Places we import our products from (ignoring China and even India for a moment) are more competitive than us because our own secondary production industry is economically insignificant to the primary (agriculture & mining) industries that employ a tiny part of our population. The way that money flows to the population is through benefits and public spending, aka "pay the lazy" money. The service and retail industries have to employ the majority of our people because there just isn't that much tangible industry out there to do so otherwise. And retail needs cheaper goods so we shit on our small secondary industries even more..... vicious cycle.
> 
> The government really DOES need import tariffs and needs to spend the mining and agriculture tax dollars into propping up the manufacturing and processing industries so they can compete, or else we will keep sinking deeper in this hole.
> 
> </eco rant over>



Mind you... if I can get 5 pounds of hops overseas for half the price I can here, I can take the wife out for dinner. Otherwise, I can buy hops locally and stay home. Hard to say which is economically better. 

Consider though that for every dollar I spend overseas I make life a little easier for Australian exporters - by exchanging Australian dollars for foreign goods I lower the demand for Australian dollars, reducing their value, giving our magnificent manufacturers a competitive advantage. 

Many nations aimed for economic independence over the 20th century, and, unfortunately, history seems to suggest that we gain more through cooperation.


----------



## pk.sax

cooperation is all good but you can't sacrifice nearly your entire secondary industries sector in the bargain. It has dire consequences that takes businesses and economies forever to climb out of.

If you go back into colonial history, the Brits basically did this:

1. They set up trading with countries they wanted to benefit from.
2. Then, to drive the local businesses out of business they flooded the markets with cheaply made manufactured goods (Clothes were a classic tool as that drove weavers out of business and had the added benefit of delivering the cotton growers into the waiting arms of the british manufacturers who then could dictate cotton prices with no local weavers to make for competition).
3. Then when the local political leaders made noise about the destruction of the economy they invaded them (somewhat irrelevant today but we know who flexed their economic-political muscle recently).
4. Once the host economy has been made slave, every effort was made to subvert local educational institutions and attempts to set up competing businesses there.
5. End result: Large populations of educated people that knew nothing better than to serve the purpose of the brits and guaranteed a drain of wealth for a long long time.

If you look closely, there are many many parallels to the current ways of doing things. Retailers demand cheaper and cheaper products and manufacturers continue to take their core business activity outside, in turn leaving the population dumber and with far fewer resources to throw off the economic dependance.

In aircraft, we were taught how to identify if a particular sized strut (column) was a european design or an american design. Basically, if it was forged, it was american and if machined - european. Why?? Because the US overtook Europe in the heavy forging industry a long time ago and the europeans never quite recovered that business. This is a very very very tame example of how letting go sticks with you forever. India allowed chinese toy imports at some stage. The result was a near total destruction of the local toy making industry at that time. And the imports were cheap shit. People had been used to good local quality and regulation had never been set up (like a lot of things back then). People bought the cheaper imports mindless (and not knowing) the dangers of the cheap imports, we all know today how dangerous cheap poorly made toys can be to kids. Its things like this that governments have to take a position and protect industry.

There are economies where american business was opposed tooth and nail for a long long time and they continue to have decent local business, they even export!


> Many economies aimed for economic independence over the 20th century, and, unfortunately, history seems to suggest that we gain more through cooperation.


^ is just naive, those that succeeded have very resilient economies. European countries still have way more economic power per capita than anywhere else and they steadfastly refuse to give up on local industry. I don't get what the fan following of the USA is all about, they are mismanaged, have some of the poorest people in one of the richest most powerful countries, a huge rich-poor divide, EXPENSIVE health systems, VERY expensive education etc etc............... and still every attempt is made to emulate the american way!

Well, that was all pretty much OFF TOPIC.

btw, I never suggested you buy your 5 pounds of hops here, that would be stupid, what I am suggesting is that this government does need to put that power of real choice back in your hands, what you described is a no brainer choice.

edit: spelling


----------



## manticle

Paul H said:


> I feel for the genuine battler out there doing there best for their families & I'm not one for regulation so I wont tell you where to spend you hard earned, but you can't, as the author suggests bag the retailers or suggest that the answer simply lies in lowering taxes. It polarises people into positions without the necessary information.
> 
> :icon_cheers:
> 
> Paul



I don't believe in blanket bagging of anybody although to me that wasn't the point of the article.

I also don't believe in polarising people into positions without necessary information which is why statements like



> ...Allowing more people into the country can stimulate spending but if those who come in are low/no skilled goat herders from Sri lanka or afghans then the only money they will be spending will be money derived from social security benefits that are funded by you guessed it taxes.


 don't really hold much water. 

Apart from the irrelevance of immigration from 3rd world countries to the point at hand, most allegedly unskilled sri Lankan goat herders and afghans (and Eastern Europeans, mediteranneans, Asians and other immigrants) who aren't locked up in detention centres are driving taxis, studying medicine, law economics etc, cleaning bathrooms, running shops, working in banks and generally looking after either themselves or their families.

You slam the author as having no grasp of economics or the way things really are and then pull out that little beauty? Genius grasp of the socipolitical landscape that.


----------



## pokolbinguy

mmmm 

1.00 AUD = 1.01261 USD


----------



## argon

For anyone interested in Hops direct and their shipping costs, I got a couple of emails from them this morning for an order Im looking to put in.



> Medium Flat Rate Box $43.45 can fit up to 5 - 1lb pellet pkgs.
> Or 1-5kb pkg. pellet and 1 1lb pkg. pellet
> 
> Large Flat Rate Box $55.95 can fit up to 7 1lb pellet pkgs.
> Or 1 -11lb pellet pkg.



Works out like this with 5lbs of hops (5 x 1lb bags) = 2268g

1lb Amarillo = $16.00
1lb Cascade = $9.65
1lb Chinook = $11.25
1lb US Goldings (EKG) = $11.80
1lb Styrian = $10.80

Hops Only = $59.50
S&H = $46.16 (they quoted $43.45 earlier but this is what I got in the invoice)

Total = US$105.66
AU exchange total = AU$108.23 (based on 0.9762AU = 1US)

Compared with my LHBS supplier I worked it out per 90g Pack

*AU$ per 90g pack = AU$4.30*

So that equals less than half price of what I can get here = good value. Just dont know if Id need that much hops. Maybe some IIPAs on the way, just to create a false economy.


----------



## razz

I'm sure you'll find a few fellow brewers to share the order with Argon.


----------



## brettprevans

U should have asked about bigger packages.

Also remember the $1000 import tax issue fellas. Ie keep it under $1k or u pay tax on it.


----------



## zephon

argon said:


> *AU$ per 90g pack = AU$4.30*



Sold. Putting in an order myself now.


----------



## argon

citymorgue2 said:


> U should have asked about bigger packages.
> 
> Also remember the $1000 import tax issue fellas. Ie keep it under $1k or u pay tax on it.




This is what i asked them;



> Comments/Questions : Hi can you please tell me what your shipping sizes
> and rates are to Australia. The amount I will order will be dependent on
> size and cost of packaging.
> 
> Thanks
> Michael



and this is what they said;




> Hello ,
> 
> Thank you for your email, we like to ship via USPS with our out of the states orders.
> The most economical way of shipping internationally is to use the International Flat Rate Boxes.
> Here are a few shipping options:
> 
> Medium Flat Rate Box $43.45 can fit up to 5 - 1# pellet pkgs.
> Or
> 1-5# pkg. pellet and 1 1# pkg. pellet
> 
> 
> Large Flat Rate Box $55.95 can fit up to 7 - 1# pellet pkgs.
> Or
> 1 -11# pellet pkg.
> 
> Carla



Purposefully left it as an open question. but if you look at the USPS website i'm sure you'd be able to talk to them in regards to getting a bigger box and larger amount of hops. 5 pounds is about my limit though.


----------



## tavas

JonnyAnchovy said:


> Socialism. Just putting it out there.




I believe they tried that once in Russia. Didn't go so well I hear.

Although Uncle Kev and Red Julia are dong their damnest to convert us over. Not to mention the walking fallacy of Bob Brown. More red than green in that man.


----------



## kenlock

argon said:


> Hops Only = $59.50
> S&H = $46.16 (they quoted $43.45 earlier but this is what I got in the invoice)



I think you'll find that the difference in S&H is the usual addition of state tax being added.

I got the larger box $60.50 final S&H, $55.95 quoted. (7lbs coming my way)

This is standard in the USA. You have to remember that tax still needs to be added with every purchase (then a tip when dealing with the service industry).


----------



## argon

kenlock said:


> I think you'll find that the difference in S&H is the usual addition of state tax being added.



Yep think you're right... used to annoy the crap out of me when i was there... all their prices were different once it was time to hand over money. PITA.


----------



## Fatgodzilla

I decided the best way to use the parity is to book and pay for my entry to the American National Homebrewers Conference in San Diego in June 2012. $US230 conference full price and 5 nights accomodation at $US129 per night all paid for. My first (likely only ever) overseas trip. Sure, who knows what might happen with engines fallling off planes, but it will give me something to look forward to. An early Xmas present.


----------



## cliffo

Hi Guys,

I just signed up for this deal HopShopGo for the first 1kg of shipping from the US for free ($28 value).

I've placed an order through Hops Direct using HopShopGo's (must be the pun of the year) "Buy for Me" option.

Hopefully it all goes to plan and saves me even more dollars.

Currently 330 shipping waivers left at their site.

I have never used this service before so hoping all goes to plan. 

Will let you all know whether it ends in tears or not.

cheers,
cliffo


----------



## argon

Nice one mate... Just signed up myself. Wil look into hopsdirect now and see what the prices work out at.

Cheers


----------



## schooey

A little bit of parity dollar shopping for christmas...











are we there yet? :icon_drool2:


----------



## Bribie G

Seeing as most Australians work in service sectors you would think that they would therefore be good at it. Just at the coalface, as a few examples, I've just been down to Bruns. hds for a few days and the service sector has produced:

No tartare sauce with the f & c - had to walk back for it "Oh you wanted tartare...." yes fn paid for it
Four scratchies given at the newsagent, paid for 5, had to walk back for it
"Was that fruit salad or muesli?" For the third time because you were crapping on to your bimbo workmate and not listening to me, that was fruit salad


By contrast I bought my new Ebike locally not Ebay, and had a drama today because when I locked it up to a bike stand in front of the supermarket the supplied bike lock cord couldn't be unlocked by the supplied key so Bertie was trapped there. Local guy got me out of trouble and replaced cord with a better quality big chain with lock, no extra charge... try getting that on Ebay. Caveat emptor.


----------



## strongbeer

I lust bought me a march pump!


----------



## jimi

schooey said:


> A little bit of parity dollar shopping for christmas...
> 
> View attachment 42239
> 
> 
> View attachment 42240
> 
> 
> View attachment 42241
> 
> 
> are we there yet? :icon_drool2:



Have you ordered the hop rocket Schooey?


----------



## schooey

jimi said:


> Have you ordered the hop rocket Schooey?



One better... it's already in my shed


----------



## np1962

And all I could manage was a two roller Monster mill and hopper.


----------



## yardy

BribieG said:


> No tartare sauce with the f & c - had to walk back for it "Oh you wanted tartare...." yes fn paid for it
> Four scratchies given at the newsagent, paid for 5, had to walk back for it
> "Was that fruit salad or muesli?" For the third time because you were crapping on to your bimbo workmate and not listening to me, that was fruit salad




i'm with you on this one, my pet hate this is.

i made a fat bastard in the local telstra shop almost cry when he tried this shit on, simple rule is you're paying, you deserve service.

rant done..

cheers



back to the parity thing...


----------



## jimi

schooey said:


> One better... it's already in my shed


Can you / did you order through Blichmann or somewhere else? How much? And how does it perform?


----------



## pokolbinguy

cliffo said:


> Hi Guys,
> I just signed up for this deal HopShopGo for the first 1kg of shipping from the US for free ($28 value).
> cheers,
> cliffo



Just signed up aswell and bought a pair of shoes for the GF. Fingers crossed it all works well. Shoes were <$100 Vs buying them here in Aus for $250. 

Pok


----------



## schooey

As far as I know Blichmann will only point you to their Australian distributor, and rightly so I guess.... I bought it through ibrew.com.au, it cost me $145 + postage, and that would have been cheaper than anywhere I could get it stateside... They were fantastic to deal with; easy transaction, super quick postage etc...

Haven't used it yet but it's a very well made and versatile piece of kit i.e. Randall and Hopinator in one. I doubt I'd bother frigging around trying to make something for the money.....

And Nige, wtf are you bitching about? You got your own HBS....


----------



## jimi

schooey said:


> As far as I know Blichmann will only point you to their Australian distributor, and rightly so I guess.... I bought it through ibrew.com.au, it cost me $145 + postage, and that would have been cheaper than anywhere I could get it stateside... They were fantastic to deal with; easy transaction, super quick postage etc...
> 
> Haven't used it yet but it's a very well made and versatile piece of kit i.e. Randall and Hopinator in one. I doubt I'd bother frigging around trying to make something for the money.....
> 
> And Nige, wtf are you bitching about? You got your own HBS....



Keep us posted on how it performs. I'm also interested on the fittings that you'll use to connect the beerline (for randall use) and silicone / similar tubing (for hopback use). Cheers


----------



## Florian

cliffo said:


> Hi Guys,
> 
> I just signed up for this deal HopShopGo for the first 1kg of shipping from the US for free ($28 value).
> 
> I've placed an order through Hops Direct using HopShopGo's (must be the pun of the year) "Buy for Me" option.
> 
> Hopefully it all goes to plan and saves me even more dollars.
> 
> Currently 330 shipping waivers left at their site.
> 
> I have never used this service before so hoping all goes to plan.
> 
> Will let you all know whether it ends in tears or not.
> 
> cheers,
> cliffo



From what I've seen so far, it seems easier and cheaper to use the "ship for me" function instead of the "buy for me". Depending on what you order I'd recommend reading through the rates & services section before you order.


----------



## brettprevans

Remember they r a business and will take a cut somewhere. I can't see how them shipping it for u is cheaper than getting hopsdirect to ship it for u


----------



## MarkBastard

Loving this exchange rate. I always thought gas manifolds were way too expensive but I ordered one that looks epic online for about $100 AU.

6 outlets, and all have check valves, shut off valves, and best of all 1/4" MFL connections so I can use john guest fittings...


----------



## Batz

Mark^Bastard said:


> Loving this exchange rate.




It's great isn't it?

I'm a collector and have scored a few pieces from the US lately, although SWMBO is onto now and applied the handbrake  

Batz


----------



## argon

Mark^Bastard said:


> Loving this exchange rate.




I've still got an order from Hops Direct sitting and waiting till i get better than parity and i get a healthier bank balance  

The 2 things have to balance for me to pull the trigger... but anyway the order is for 1 pound each of;
Amarillo
Cascade
Chinook 
Willamette
Czech Saaz
Delivered for Approx AU$105 that works out to be AU$4.16 per 90g (which is my reference point) 
soooo tempted :icon_drool2:


----------



## MarkBastard

Argon I have most of those varieties already but I would love to Saaz. I'd either go halves with you or just do a swap if you want? I have...

EKG
Chinook
Willamette
Cascade
Columbus
Amarillo


----------



## jimi

argon said:


> I've still got an order from Hops Direct sitting and waiting till i get better than parity and i get a healthier bank balance
> 
> The 2 things have to balance for me to pull the trigger... but anyway the order is for 1 pound each of;
> Amarillo
> Cascade
> Chinook
> Willamette
> Czech Saaz
> Delivered for Approx AU$105 that works out to be AU$4.16 per 90g (which is my reference point)
> soooo tempted :icon_drool2:




recently recieved my order - delivered within 9 days. Price worked out as you have there argon. Got Amarillo, Cascade, and the US versions of Goldings, Challenger, & Hallertau. Looking forward to comparing them with their usual homeland versions


----------



## argon

Mark^Bastard said:


> Argon I have most of those varieties already but I would love to Saaz. I'd either go halves with you or just do a swap if you want? I have...
> 
> EKG
> Chinook
> Willamette
> Cascade
> Columbus
> Amarillo




Still not sure if i'll actually do it mate... will let you know if i do and maybe trade some Saaz for some EKG. Just waiting on the latest credit card bill to see if there's a spare bunch of money to square away.


----------



## drsmurto

Very tempted to buy an MM2.

How do you drive it? Do you need the 1/2" drive shaft?

And yes, i am that tech retarded.

EDIT - was just checking the transaction and paypal is using a conversion rate more than 2 cents below the actual rate (95.9 vs 98.1). And i thought the banks were criminals.... Might have to wait a bit and see if the dollar goes back up again.


----------



## dj1984

smurto, the 1/2 inch drive shaft is a MUST nearly all the pulleys you will want to fit to this are 1/2'' i found this out when looking for a pulley for my 12mm millmaster shaft


----------



## drsmurto

Was planning on using a cordless drill. 

I drive my marga with a cheap Dick Smith cordless and a 10cm spade drill bit. Works fine. The reason i ask is that the drive shaft for the MM2 appears to be circular and so i don't see how a drill can grip it. 

If it doesn't work straight out of the box i am stuffed.


----------



## Woola

DrSmurto said:


> Very tempted to buy an MM2.
> 
> How do you drive it? Do you need the 1/2" drive shaft?
> 
> And yes, i am that tech retarded.
> 
> EDIT - was just checking the transaction and paypal is using a conversion rate more than 2 cents below the actual rate (95.9 vs 98.1). And i thought the banks were criminals.... Might have to wait a bit and see if the dollar goes back up again.




Hey Dr, Paypal charge a commission of 2.50% which is factored into their conversion rate. I tried going direct via a bank and they weren't any better, in fact once their transaction fees were added in they were much worse (in my banks case anyway)


----------



## Sammus

dj1984 said:


> smurto, the 1/2 inch drive shaft is a MUST nearly all the pulleys you will want to fit to this are 1/2'' i found this out when looking for a pulley for my 12mm millmaster shaft



Not quite true, imperial is a must, 3/8" (which i think is the standard shaft on the monsters) is easy to find pulleys for too. 12mm is just stupid. @dj check out australian pulley co in windsor, they do custom bore alu cast pulleys for a good price, I found the place after a months of phone surfing a year or so back. I posted it on here and it inspired a BB of millmaster pulleys, which I think everyone was happy with.


----------



## dj1984

getting these things running on motors are a easy and motors these days are not too expensive i got a brand new motor to run my MM its was $150


----------



## np1962

DrSmurto said:


> Very tempted to buy an MM2.
> 
> How do you drive it? Do you need the 1/2" drive shaft?
> 
> And yes, i am that tech retarded.
> 
> EDIT - was just checking the transaction and paypal is using a conversion rate more than 2 cents below the actual rate (95.9 vs 98.1). And i thought the banks were criminals.... Might have to wait a bit and see if the dollar goes back up again.


Mine is on the way, USPS says so..... maybe tomorrow.
Got the 1/2 inch shaft as this will definitely be motor driven.

The paypal thing is a pain in the ass but your bank will charge you a conversion fee anyway so not losing as much as you may think.
Nige


----------



## brettprevans

DrSmurto said:


> Was planning on using a cordless drill.
> 
> I drive my marga with a cheap Dick Smith cordless and a 10cm spade drill bit. Works fine. The reason i ask is that the drive shaft for the MM2 appears to be circular and so i don't see how a drill can grip it.
> 
> If it doesn't work straight out of the box i am stuffed.


yup its circular/cylindrical. but so are all drill bits. slide the drill on, tighten and off you go. except when crushing rye. little steel bullets of hell. my drill struggles with them from a 'standing' start. 
yup the 1/2 inch shaft is worth the extra $ IMO.
if you buy one, i'd buy the hopper also. pics of mine here


----------



## MarkBastard

DrSmurto said:


> Was planning on using a cordless drill.
> 
> I drive my marga with a cheap Dick Smith cordless and a 10cm spade drill bit. Works fine. The reason i ask is that the drive shaft for the MM2 appears to be circular and so i don't see how a drill can grip it.
> 
> If it doesn't work straight out of the box i am stuffed.



My drill seems to be able to grip round drill bits just fine


----------



## argon

Woola said:


> Hey Dr, Paypal charge a commission of 2.50% which is factored into their conversion rate. I tried going direct via a bank and they weren't any better, in fact once their transaction fees were added in they were much worse (in my banks case anyway)




Paypal are giving a rate today of 0.958868 inclusive of all fees and charges


----------



## drsmurto

dj1984 said:


> getting these things running on motors are a easy and motors these days are not too expensive i got a brand new motor to run my MM its was $150



Are you offering? :lol:


----------



## Goofinder

The shaft on the MM-2 actually has three (small) flat bits that you are meant to line up with the flat bits in your drill. I just have the 3/8" version and it works ok with my $30 corded drill... but it can't do a standing start as it has no guts. I just built a hopper with a slidey bit that I open up once it gets going.


----------



## dj1984

DrSmurto said:


> Are you offering? :lol:




I dont mind giving you a hand with it, the millmaster i just finished took me about 2 hours max when you put all the time together


----------



## goomboogo

DrSmurto, I agree with Citymorgue2 about the hopper. If you want an 'out of the box' option then this is the way to go.


----------



## schooey

BEC26 said:


> also
> 
> PriceUSA
> 
> Keep it local :icon_cheers:
> 
> Cheers



well... I think I just bought a 14.5 gal Blichmann conical through these guys while the dollar is still up....

that or I just got ripped off $800 odd dollars if it doesn't turn up... :huh:


----------



## asis

schooey said:


> well... I think I just bought a 14.5 gal Blichmann conical through these guys while the dollar is still up....
> 
> that or I just got ripped off $800 odd dollars if it doesn't turn up... :huh:




Will it definately fit in your fridge?

$800 landed Schooey?


----------



## schooey

asis said:


> Will it definately fit in your fridge?
> 
> $800 landed Schooey?



Yeah.. ~$840 landed here, everything paid. Still not sure about the fridge, but we'll see....

Surely they make bigger fridges anyway?


----------



## proudscum

1-Lb Willamette Hop Pellets (TD-2)

( Item in stock! )Current AA__4.8% more info...
American aroma hop that has a mild, woody nose. Slightly spicy with hints of fruit.

Use in: American and English Ales

Hop Substitutes: Coming Soon

Ready To Order?

Our Price : $4.99 ea 
( Item in stock! )

look at that 1 pound =$4.99 more than likely 09 but still as the 2010 harvest has just finished...


----------



## QldKev

proudscum said:


> 1-Lb Willamette Hop Pellets (TD-2)
> 
> ( Item in stock! )Current AA__4.8% more info...
> American aroma hop that has a mild, woody nose. Slightly spicy with hints of fruit.
> 
> Use in: American and English Ales
> 
> Hop Substitutes: Coming Soon
> 
> Ready To Order?
> 
> Our Price : $4.99 ea
> ( Item in stock! )
> 
> look at that 1 pound =$4.99 more than likely 09 but still as the 2010 harvest has just finished...




Good price, who is the from?

QldKev


----------



## eamonnfoley

Goofinder said:


> The shaft on the MM-2 actually has three (small) flat bits that you are meant to line up with the flat bits in your drill. I just have the 3/8" version and it works ok with my $30 corded drill... but it can't do a standing start as it has no guts. I just built a hopper with a slidey bit that I open up once it gets going.



+1 its fine with the standard shaft. My drill makes it piss. Buy the base and hopper too if you can - they are very professionally done and cheap in my opinion....... I also got the crank handle, its suprisingly easy by hand if your feel like it.


----------



## brettprevans

proudscum said:


> 1-Lb Willamette Hop Pellets (TD-2)
> 
> ( Item in stock! )Current AA__4.8% more info...
> American aroma hop that has a mild, woody nose. Slightly spicy with hints of fruit.
> 
> Use in: American and English Ales
> 
> Hop Substitutes: Coming Soon
> 
> Ready To Order?
> 
> Our Price : $4.99 ea
> ( Item in stock! )
> 
> look at that 1 pound =$4.99 more than likely 09 but still as the 2010 harvest has just finished...





QldKev said:


> Good price, who is the from?
> 
> QldKev



going but the layout i'd guess its Nikohops. one of their clearance specials.


----------



## tavas

goomboogo said:


> DrSmurto, I agree with Citymorgue2 about the hopper. If you want an 'out of the box' option then this is the way to go.



+1 for the hopper. Base you could probably make if you wanted to (but for $10 would you bother?), but hopper for $30 is an absolute steal. I know I could not make something that good for $30.

Shaft has 3 small flats on it for the drill to grip. You need to tighten the chuck propoerly as I have had mine slip a few times, but that's good if you were to get a rock or something jammed in there. I use a GMC impact drill wound down to slowest setting which struggles sometimes to get started with a full hopper. I calculate its running at 130 rpm and pulling 250 W, but does not have capacitance start.

Hope that helps. Can provide photos of my setup if needed.


----------



## QldKev

citymorgue2 said:


> going but the layout i'd guess its Nikohops. one of their clearance specials.



I ended up google'ing "1-Lb Willamette Hop Pellets (TD-2)"

http://www.farmhousebrewingsupply.com/scri...p?idProduct=194

They have some good specials

QldKev


----------



## goomboogo

Proudscum, how much was delivery for 1lb?


----------



## brettprevans

tavas said:


> Shaft has 3 small flats on it for the drill to grip.


i recon the bastards f*cked mine up and inserted it the wrong way rround. mine is completely smooth. well a file or the angle grinder will fix that up quick smart on the weekend!



goomboogo said:


> Proudscum, how much was delivery for 1lb?


pffftt 1 lb. go 20lb delivered for $300. then you end up with something looking like this (old pic) :blink: :icon_drool2:


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

citymorgue2 said:


> i recon the bastards f*cked mine up and inserted it the wrong way rround. mine is completely smooth. well a file or the angle grinder will fix that up quick smart on the weekend!
> 
> 
> pffftt 1 lb. go 20lb delivered for $300. then you end up with something looking like this (old pic) :blink: :icon_drool2:
> View attachment 42480


That doesnt look like hops h34r: 
GB


----------



## schooey

Looky what turned up on my door...








My precious... :icon_cheers:


----------



## brettprevans

nice schooey. looks like they ahve changes design or the mill housing. very nice


----------



## drsmurto

schooey said:


> Looky what turned up on my door...
> 
> View attachment 42484
> 
> 
> View attachment 42485
> 
> 
> My precious... :icon_cheers:



Is that the MM3?

Still debating a 2 vs a 3 roller mill.


----------



## brettprevans

DrSmurto said:


> Is that the MM3?
> 
> Still debating a 2 vs a 3 roller mill.


*smack forhead*
of course. its a 3 roller. explains the differant housing to mine. i wonderied what the 2nd freaking shaft looking thing in the picture was. a shaft!


----------



## schooey

Yep, it's the MM3 2.0 with the stainless and 1/2" shaft. Heavy little fucker too!


----------



## ginsoakedstranger

Has anyone had any dealings with www.bargainfittings.com ?

Gotta get some valves and such for my keggle and they have a lot of specialist fittings at good prices. I suppose I'd have to get PRICE USA or something to send it here.

Cheers


----------



## paulwin

GinSoakedStranger said:


> Has anyone had any dealings with www.bargainfittings.com ?
> 
> Gotta get some valves and such for my keggle and they have a lot of specialist fittings at good prices. I suppose I'd have to get PRICE USA or something to send it here.
> 
> Cheers



hi i have just bought some gear of them wayne is excellent to deal with.
shipping was just $15 for 4 lbs when you order just add the items to your basket them copy and paste them to a message to him to find out shipping
costs.
if your order goes over 4 lbs he will let you know what items you can take out to keep the shipping at $15 otherwise medium flat rate box is around $45
cheers paul


----------



## brettprevans

GinSoakedStranger said:


> Has anyone had any dealings with www.bargainfittings.com ?
> 
> Gotta get some valves and such for my keggle and they have a lot of specialist fittings at good prices. I suppose I'd have to get PRICE USA or something to send it here.
> 
> Cheers


hey GSS. if you decide to get something from them, I wouldnt mind grabbing something also and would split shipping.


----------



## argon

citymorgue2 said:


> hey GSS. if you decide to get something from them, I wouldnt mind grabbing something also and would split shipping.



Yes!!... this is exactly what i'm after. Lost probably +3L to trub in the kettle last brew day from a copped pickup tube that is not bent to the side. I reckon this would minimize losses for sure. Already got a compression fitting on the kettle, so be good to just get the tube.


----------



## brettprevans

argon said:


> Yes!!... this is exactly what i'm after. Lost probably +3L to trub in the kettle last brew day from a copped pickup tube that is not bent to the side. I reckon this would minimize losses for sure. Already got a compression fitting on the kettle, so be good to just get the tube.


thats funny. i wasnt going to get a compression fitting either as my socket is welded in. so its just a 'jam in' job.


----------



## gap

I can also vouch for Wayne at www.bargainfittings.com 

I have placed 2 orders with him so each fitted into the $15 4lbs flat pack.

Very helpful and quick with delivery.

Regards

Graeme


----------



## Helmut

I'm suprised that someone locally is not thinking of selling half kilo and kilo lots of hop pellets. Surely if they are retailing locally for about $8-$10 per 90-100g, a half kilo or kilo could be solf profitably at roughly $6-$7 per 90-100g. I would rather pay a couple of dollars more and be able to buy within Australia and not have to buy 3 pounds (1.5kg) at a time to make it economical.
Leon


----------



## brettprevans

Helmut said:


> I'm suprised that someone locally is not thinking of selling half kilo and kilo lots of hop pellets. Surely if they are retailing locally for about $8-$10 per 90-100g, a half kilo or kilo could be solf profitably at roughly $6-$7 per 90-100g. I would rather pay a couple of dollars more and be able to buy within Australia and not have to buy 3 pounds (1.5kg) at a time to make it economical.
> Leon


because we arent retailers, and most of us arent in this to make a buck, and we dont want to screw the retailers who are good to the AHB community (ie online sponsors)
order too much and ATO/customs come looking for your importers licence and import tax
having to front the $, as well as time and effort in organising. 

if you really want some, find a few people thata re interested and arrange a buy yourselves.


----------



## np1962

Helmut said:


> I'm suprised that someone locally is not thinking of selling half kilo and kilo lots of hop pellets. Surely if they are retailing locally for about $8-$10 per 90-100g, a half kilo or kilo could be solf profitably at roughly $6-$7 per 90-100g. I would rather pay a couple of dollars more and be able to buy within Australia and not have to buy 3 pounds (1.5kg) at a time to make it economical.
> Leon


Leon,
Most retailers will do this to some extent although expecting them to drop $2-$3 dollars per 90-100gms is a little too far.
I will drop $1 per 90gms for orders of more than 450gms of the same hop, so will at least one of the site sponsors.
Retailers do have costs as CM2 says, it's a consumers market at the moment with the dollar as high as it is.
Strike up a relationship with your LHBS owner and you may be suprised at what they are happy to do for you but there is a limit to what we can do.
Cheers
Nige


----------



## MarkBastard

Anyone know a place to get John Guest 1/4" fittings (to fit MFL disconnects) cheap? I need to get quite a few of them and they're at least $7 each here in Aus (wow).


----------



## Helmut

citymorgue2 said:


> because we arent retailers, and most of us arent in this to make a buck, and we dont want to screw the retailers who are good to the AHB community (ie online sponsors)
> order too much and ATO/customs come looking for your importers licence and import tax
> having to front the $, as well as time and effort in organising.
> 
> if you really want some, find a few people thata re interested and arrange a buy yourselves.




I was kind of referring to the retailers and site sponsors who frequent this site, rather than thinking about a co-op type arrangement.


----------



## MarkBastard

THANKS SANTA


----------



## brettprevans

Helmut said:


> I was kind of referring to the retailers and site sponsors who frequent this site, rather than thinking about a co-op type arrangement.


ahh sorry. misunderstood. 
as Nige pointed out, retailers have overheads and mouths to feed. 

as strong as the dollar is etc, ive just forked out almost $80 for yeast buying off a sponsor causer they can get it quicker and cheaper (in time, effort and smaller quantities) than me. so I guess it evens out.


----------



## Helmut

I agree with you both Nige and Citymorgue. I work in retail as well and I know how even when you have put things on special and cut the margins big time, there are always customers who want more discount, or there is a competitor who is selling it cheaper than you. I am just suprised that there is not a wholesaler or retailer in OZ who is or has tried to specialise in selling bulk hops at a discounted rate. I would imagine that getting within a few of dollars per 100g of the US sites and being able to ship it to the buyers door in a couple of days rather than a few weeks would be competitive option.
Maybe?


----------



## Florian

Mark^Bastard said:


> Anyone know a place to get John Guest 1/4" fittings (to fit MFL disconnects) cheap? I need to get quite a few of them and they're at least $7 each here in Aus (wow).



These ones?


----------



## Online Brewing Supplies

Helmut said:


> I'm suprised that someone locally is not thinking of selling half kilo and kilo lots of hop pellets. Surely if they are retailing locally for about $8-$10 per 90-100g, a half kilo or kilo could be solf profitably at roughly $6-$7 per 90-100g. I would rather pay a couple of dollars more and be able to buy within Australia and not have to buy 3 pounds (1.5kg) at a time to make it economical.
> Leon


I have tried to do this with our Saaz hops here works out cheaper only because I import direct from the CZ republic. $ 5.50 per 100gms plus postage.We are looking at other Euro varieties as well but there has to be a market demand.
GB


----------



## manticle

Helmut said:


> I agree with you both Nige and Citymorgue. I work in retail as well and I know how even when you have put things on special and cut the margins big time, there are always customers who want more discount, or there is a competitor who is selling it cheaper than you. I am just suprised that there is not a wholesaler or retailer in OZ who is or has tried to specialise in selling bulk hops at a discounted rate. I would imagine that getting within a few of dollars per 100g of the US sites and being able to ship it to the buyers door in a couple of days rather than a few weeks would be competitive option.
> Maybe?



You can buy in bulk yourself from Australian retailers (certainly Grain and grape do 1 kg hop pellets as do ellerslie which work out much cheaper than the 80g packs). Split it with a few brewing people you know, everybody saves, retailers stay happy.

I've said it before though - for every 500g of hops I'd buy from the US, I'll buy 20 odd kg of grain and some liquid yeast from local retailers (and demijohns, and fermenters and stoppers and starsan and brewing salts and fresh wort kits etc etc etc).

I think there may be some issues with retailers who tried to undercut other retailers by doing what you suggest too.


----------



## np1962

Helmut said:


> I agree with you both Nige and Citymorgue. I work in retail as well and I know how even when you have put things on special and cut the margins big time, there are always customers who want more discount, or there is a competitor who is selling it cheaper than you. I am just suprised that there is not a wholesaler or retailer in OZ who is or has tried to specialise in selling bulk hops at a discounted rate. I would imagine that getting within a few of dollars per 100g of the US sites and being able to ship it to the buyers door in a couple of days rather than a few weeks would be competitive option.
> Maybe?


The misapprehension, perpetuated by some on this forum, that retailers buy product for resale at extremely low prices and have huge margins is totally wrong.
I am not about to tell you the wholesale prices but I can tell you it is obviously more than you assume.
And what amount do you suggest is bulk hops? 
I and, I would suggest, all the other retailers that post on here are also brewers and understand how you are thinking. We try hard to give you the best prices we can in a competitive marketplace.
As I said before, talk to your local guy, ring me or others and have a chat. Ask for a deal, you never know unless you ask.
Cheers 
Nige


----------



## MarkBastard

Florian said:


> These ones?



Cheers mate, I think probably this http://www.totalapex.com/8-mm-x-1-4-flare-...-pm4508f4s.html


----------



## proudscum

citymorgue2 said:


> going but the layout i'd guess its Nikohops. one of their clearance specials.




Farmhouse brewing.Think from the email it was $12us for a pound or you can get a larger box for $27 maybe 3 pounds?Perlicks 525 ss for $23.99 each which is a great price.
Email John the owner and he will email back quite quickly.

ww.farmhousebrewingsupply.com/Scripts/default.asp


----------



## Florian

Sorry mate, that's what I thought I'd linked, but looking back it seems I haven't. Glad you found em anyway  



Mark^Bastard said:


> Cheers mate, I think probably this http://www.totalapex.com/8-mm-x-1-4-flare-...-pm4508f4s.html


----------



## MarkBastard

Yeah they don't ship to Aus by default but I emailed them.


----------



## ginsoakedstranger

paulbb said:


> hi i have just bought some gear of them wayne is excellent to deal with.
> shipping was just $15 for 4 lbs when you order just add the items to your basket them copy and paste them to a message to him to find out shipping
> costs.
> if your order goes over 4 lbs he will let you know what items you can take out to keep the shipping at $15 otherwise medium flat rate box is around $45
> cheers paul



Cheers, sounds like a winner.

I'll probably make an order next week. I'll PM those interested or post in bulk buy section.


----------



## zephon

My hops arrived from Hops Direct. Took 15 days to arrive. Was a pretty painless transaction, can't comment on quality until after I brew but they are well packed. No customs problems.


----------



## Woola

Mark^Bastard said:


> Yeah they don't ship to Aus by default but I emailed them.




Did you hear back re shipping?


----------



## MarkBastard

Nope, no response.


----------



## Niko_Brew

Hey folks,

I just wanted to say hi and thanks for your support at www.NikoBrew.com, I've greatly appreciated doing business with you. We've had a lot of new customers (and some returning) that have mentioned these forums as where they heard about our site. I'd also like to just clarify shipping.

I can fit up to 3 pounds of hops in a USPS flat rate envelope for $14 USD if all hops are full pounds. If there's any 2oz, 1/2 pound increments, I can fit 2 1/2. I've found this to be the most economical way to ship to you, even moreso than moving up to a flat rate box. Shipping isn't calculated through the website when you order internationally, I just send you a paypal payment request for shipping once you've paid for your hops.

Thanks!

-Niko-


----------



## Daniel.lear

manticle said:


> I've said it before though - for every 500g of hops I'd buy from the US, I'll buy 20 odd kg of grain and some liquid yeast from local retailers (and demijohns, and fermenters and stoppers and starsan and brewing salts and fresh wort kits etc etc etc).



I have to agree with manticle here, very much how I operate. I'll buy larger lots of hops from the US that I use regulalrly, however any varieties of hops that ive not used before i'll buy from an AU retailer.

I've also used nikobrew a couple of times and found the service and hops excellent. (No Affil, Blah Blah..)

Cheers

Leary


----------



## tommygun

Very happy to be a proud owner of:





I went for the lot base, hopper and crank handle.  

Can't wait for my 6lb of 12 varieties of hops, perlick creamer and other kegging stuff come from the US in the next week.

The price was irresistible.

All I need is to get that on too a sydney grain bulk buy! :icon_cheers:


----------



## schooey

schooey said:


> well... I think I just bought a 14.5 gal Blichmann conical through these guys while the dollar is still up....
> 
> that or I just got ripped off $800 odd dollars if it doesn't turn up... :huh:





Knock on the door yesterday...


----------



## Weizguy

schooey said:


> Knock on the door yesterday...
> 
> View attachment 43272


Nice purchase. Good shopping!


----------



## vykuza

schooey said:


> Knock on the door yesterday...
> 
> View attachment 43272




Going to need to buy some of that extra wide gladwrap to go over the top.


----------



## ~MikE

schooey said:


> Knock on the door yesterday...
> 
> [attachment=epic SS fermenter.jpg[/quote]
> 
> the one thing i always ask myself when i'm looking at brewing gear is "will it make better beer?", i can't see myself ever forking out for one of these but frack me they look nice.


----------



## kenlock

schooey said:


> Knock on the door yesterday...
> 
> View attachment 43272



Hey Schooey, which US store did you did you get PriceUSA to purchase it from?


----------



## tommygun

more stuff from the US.




$55 for each creamer tap and shank and $5 for each disconnect. Also so excited I got 12 varieties of hops in 1/2 lbs for $8 each I just want to get brewing!

If interested in shopping overseas got from chicompany.net. They were good to deal with and didn't even charge me extra when they needed to up size the box after I added extras to the order.

My apologies to the local HBS but it was just too tempting!

I guess the only downer is Quarantine have to do there job and poke holes in the sealed hops bags too check em out. 

tom :icon_cheers:


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## brettprevans

tommygun said:


> I guess the only downer is Quarantine have to do there job and poke holes in the sealed hops bags too check em out.
> 
> tom :icon_cheers:


Odds r they will only do it to one or 2 bags. And they don't sit around. Once they are checked , if ok, they are sent to rhe person. So it's only a couple days


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## under

None of my bags were poked, prodded or punctured.


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## tommygun

citymorgue2 said:


> Odds r they will only do it to one or 2 bags. And they don't sit around. Once they are checked , if ok, they are sent to rhe person. So it's only a couple days



They opened one bag fully and then zip locked again but punctured about another 5. They did arrive a couple of day later so no biggy really. 



under said:


> None of my bags were poked, prodded or punctured.



who do you know? depends on the inspector on the day I guess! maybe even who its from. I bet quarantine has seen a few package from hops direct recently!


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## argon

Dollar is up. I need some hops. Hops direct are going cheap. Works out $48.52/kg or $4.37/90g delivered
ended up getting almost 99c to the US dollar through paypal, total AU$110.05 (after charges etc) for 5 pounds.

*Sold *
1 pound each of; 
Amarillo
Cascade
Chinook
EKG
Czech Saaz

Triple Batch of Bo Pils coming up with 1 pound of Saaz. I hope i don't **** it up.


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## raven19

Aussie Dollar now up to $1.07 US.

I wonder what it will be at come tax return time (read: additional brew funds time)... B)


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## argon

raven19 said:


> Aussie Dollar now up to $1.07 US.
> 
> I wonder what it will be at come tax return time (read: additional brew funds time)... B)




Just bought a monster mill at $1.05 US a couple of days ago... $157US = $153.60AU (after paypal conversion) pretty happy with that.


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## Pennywise

I will deffinatly be getting a mill come tax time if it's still this good


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## Ross

There's a whispering in the wind that a new mill will be hitting these shores shortly that'll give the yank mills more than a run for your dollar.... B)


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## Bribie G

Ross said:


> There's a whispering in the wind that a new mill will be hitting these shores shortly that'll give the yank mills more than a run for your dollar.... B)



Much as I really have got into good synch and synergy with my Marga and can now whack through a grain bill in around 11 minutes (trying to get it down to 10) a better mill would certainly interest me, to make a "magic box" style crusher. 
Especially as I won't have to pay postage. Bring it on Ross.


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## DU99

Ross...more details...


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## felten

Sounds like a real winner if it's aussie made and comparable in price.


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## pokolbinguy

MMMM higher AUD means cheaper beer when I head to asia next month 

The AUD buys 50% more Dong in Vietnam than last time I was there in 08.....yey 50% more beer


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## leeboy

pokolbinguy said:


> MMMM higher AUD means cheaper beer when I head to asia next month
> 
> The AUD buys 50% more Dong in Vietnam than last time I was there in 08.....yey 50% more beer



Got me worried that you get 50% more dong when you go to vietnam. Watch out for STD's if your into that sort of thing man...

JK couldn't help myself


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## pokolbinguy

leeboy said:


> JK couldn't help myself



Nothing I haven't heard before. The GF loves it.....


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## leeboy

pokolbinguy said:


> Nothing I haven't heard before. The GF loves it.....



Vietnamese Dong???

The pokolbin brewhaus and winery. I'm guessing this is your home setup not a commercial venture yet???


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## pokolbinguy

leeboy said:


> The pokolbin brewhaus and winery. I'm guessing this is your home setup not a commercial venture yet???



No not commercial yet....I wish it was though


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## Malted

pokolbinguy said:


> The AUD buys 50% more Dong in Vietnam than last time I was there in 08.....yey 50% more beer



Ah yes, long dong love you long time.


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## Bribie G

Talking of Dongs, what's happened to Speedie?


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## bum

BribieG said:


> Talking of Dongs, what's happened to Speedie?


Banhammered.


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## Frag_Dog

:icon_offtopic: :icon_offtopic: :icon_offtopic: :icon_offtopic:


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## argon

argon said:


> Just bought a monster mill at $1.05 US a couple of days ago... $157US = $153.60AU (after paypal conversion) pretty happy with that.



Just arrived... guess what i'm doing this long weekend :super: 





edit: Dollar is at 1.09 now


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## pdilley

My tool shop browsing brought up this Apple and Fruit Crusher:

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/pro...34128_200434128

and press

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/pro...-Product%20Page

would probably need to go through Price USA to get good shipping rates?

Worth a look if you are a fruity type compared to burning out the motor in an electric juicer.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## pokolbinguy

$1 AUD = $1.0939 today.....wahhooo


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## Kleiny

Blichmann therminator rocked up during the week $250 to my door from the US, pity i could not get it under $350 +del if i sourced it in Aus.

Anyway tried it out yesterday, awesome bit of kit boiling 23l Wort to 20C in around 10min and 30l of hot cleanup water into the HLT.

No affiliation Brewers Outpost

Good to deal with

Kleiny


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## rowanb

Same here - and I picked up some hose connections from the purple pig - great service.



Kleiny said:


> Blichmann therminator rocked up during the week $250 to my door from the US, pity i could not get it under $350 +del if i sourced it in Aus.
> 
> Anyway tried it out yesterday, awesome bit of kit boiling 23l Wort to 20C in around 10min and 30l of hot cleanup water into the HLT.
> 
> No affiliation Brewers Outpost
> 
> Good to deal with
> 
> Kleiny


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## raven19

Sitting around $1.10 now, even better for those US purchases!

News article linky


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## pimpsqueak

Hooray for crippling national debts!!! I'm only a few more days of political bickering and bullshit away from a shiny new mill :icon_cheers:


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## Wolfy

Not as sexy as all the stainless-bling, but all the plastic bits for my kegging-setup arrived today:




Looking at it, US$162 delivered (from Apex in the US) seems expensive for a few plastic-bits, but it would have cost ~$436 (plus delivery) buying locally.


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## Aus_Rider_22

Wolfy said:


> Not as sexy as all the stainless-bling, but all the plastic bits for my kegging-setup arrived today:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Looking at it, US$162 delivered (from Apex in the US) seems expensive for a few plastic-bits, but it would have cost ~$436 (plus delivery) buying locally.



Wolfy, could you tell me the ebay user/shop or US store where you got them from?

Cheers


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## Amber Fluid

Wolfy said:


> Not as sexy as all the stainless-bling, but all the plastic bits for my kegging-setup arrived today:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Looking at it, US$162 delivered (from Apex in the US) seems expensive for a few plastic-bits, but it would have cost ~$436 (plus delivery) buying locally.




A shame Apex don't have photo's for us dweebs who have no idea what things are called. I am putting together a keezer with probably 6 taps and this type of price obviously suits the occasion. How long was the delivery time Wolfy?


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## Wolfy

Aus_Rider_22 said:


> Wolfy, could you tell me the ebay user/shop or US store where you got them from?


The shop link is included in your quote: https://www.totalapex.com/
It took almost a month for shipping (was sent on the 9th July) and a few more weeks before that to arrange things via email (_and to wait for specially ordered stock to come in_) but Jim Sonin ( [email protected] ) was helpful and friendly and I was changed shipping at the same USPS rate on the box ($30 since I ordered more stuff than fitted into a 'small flat rate USPS box' and it was registered).



Amber Fluid said:


> A shame Apex don't have photo's for us dweebs who have no idea what things are called. I am putting together a keezer with probably 6 taps and this type of price obviously suits the occasion. How long was the delivery time Wolfy?


LOL yeah, some more photos would be nice, but can't complain about the price.
Apex's shopping-cart-system uses the exact manufacturer product numbers (_which you can search for_) so I looked on the JG (and other HB vendor) websites for pictures and product codes and then searching via that. I also checked with Jim to ensure that things would fit how/where I wanted them especially for the 5/16 fittings that are more common here (some of which he ordered in specially for me). Shipping was a bit slow actually, seems to be common from the USA just now, it took 3.5 weeks.


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## Aus_Rider_22

Wolfy said:


> The shop link is included in your quote: https://www.totalapex.com/
> It took almost a month for shipping (was sent on the 9th July) and a few more weeks before that to arrange things via email (_and to wait for specially ordered stock to come in_) but Jim Sonin ( [email protected] ) was helpful and friendly and I was changed shipping at the same USPS rate on the box ($30 since I ordered more stuff than fitted into a 'small flat rate USPS box' and it was registered).



I am a goose! And not even a beer in my system! Cheers mate!


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## kcurnow

remi said:


> wow- how about their 1BBL system for under $3000...there are some advantages to living in the us
> 
> http://conical-fermenter.com/about/attachm...brewing-system/
> 
> remi



Does anyone have any experience with the quality of these products or knows of anyone who has imported them to Australia?


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## Dazza88

Looks like the dollar is going to dip under parity, better get your o/s shopping done quick smart.


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