Home Brew Shop Price Variations

[Juzdu]

Being new to the game i'm looking around for the best place to source supplies. I bought my initial equipment kit from Aussie Brewmakers online (the Deluxe II kit for $124 delivered). I then bought a TC wheat kit, DME, dex and carb drops from the Coopers online store which was well priced thanks to their $4.95 delivery special for October.

I'm in Thornbury, in Melbourne's inner north, and my local store seems to be BeerCraft/LiquorCraft in Heidelberg. But looking at their website their prices seem significantly higher than other stores, for example:

30l Fermentation Vessel (complete with airlock, thermometer, tap etc):
discounthomebrewwarehouse.com.au - $28.20
aussiebrewmakers.com.au - $35
www.liquorcraft.com.au - $49.90

I can understand there might be differences in the type of FV, although the Aussie Brew Makers and LiquorCraft FV's look exactly the same from the photo's. And it's not just a couple of bucks, BrewCraft's FV is close to 50% more exxy than anyone else's.

Same seems to apply to the yeast, a 11.5gm WB-06:
discounthomebrewwarehouse.com.au - $4.20
grainandgrape.com.au - $5.95
www.liquorcraft.com.au - $7.95

Again the BrewCraft guys are around 50% more exxy. Bit annoying given it's the closest to me, and I could avoid delivery charges by just nicking down there. Anyone know why stuff is so much more pricey there?

The Discount HB Warehouse seems the cheapest by far, but I can't tell what they're delivery prices will be unless i fill my cart first. And if I add something like the 30l FV the shipping estimator jumps to $44 which is unlikely to be right.

 

[DU99]

you forgot Greensborough Home Brewing,also cellarplus which are in the cbd/epping,also http://www.corebrewingconcepts.com.au/

 

[Juzdu]

you forgot Greensborough Home Brewing,also cellarplus which are in the cbd/epping,also http://www.corebrewingconcepts.com.au/

Thanks, but both are a bit far from Thornbury, compared to Heidelberg anyway. And Cellarplus have all their prices as "POA" so I can't compare how competitive they might be.

 

[DU99]

give cellarplus a ring..corebrewing offer free postage if you look on ebay.

 

[AndrewQLD]

Being new to the game having a homebrew shop you can walk into and ask questions of somebody with some experience is worth a lot more than the few bucks you will save online, and the $44 for delivery is probably right since it would most likely be calculated by volume not just weight.

Remember that most of these online stores that don't have a physical store front have veryyyy low overheads and can afford to have a lower mark up, on the other hand they will be absolutely no help at all when you need advice and if you receive faulty stock your up the proverbial.

Andrew

 

[Juzdu]

give cellarplus a ring..corebrewing offer free postage if you look on ebay.

Nah, CellarPlus need to understand that in this day and age people don't want to call them every time they want to know the price for something. If they can't be bothered putting their prices online, I can't be bothered shopping with them!

Will check out Core Brewing, thx.

 

[QldKev]

I don't think you will find a all in one best price shop

Fermentors go to Bunnings under $20 for a 30L and search on here for 'glad wrap'.

Yeast and most the smaller bits I use Craftbrewer / the LHBS, but pick your favorite local after comparing prices. I re-use my yeast many many times. Rather than trying to save a dollar upfront here read up on propagating yeast. Just find a supplier who looks after the yeast (ie stores it in a fridge) prior to you getting it.

As AndrewQld mentioned, paying $1 extra for a product and getting some good knowledge at the time from a LHBS is worth it.

QldKev

 

[jaypes]

I don't think you will find a all in one best price shop

Fermentors go to Bunnings under $20 for a 30L and search on here for 'glad wrap'.

Yeast and most the smaller bits I use Craftbrewer/the LHBS, but pick your favorite local after comparing prices. I re-use my yeast many many times. Rather than trying to save a dollar upfront here read up on propagating yeast. Just find a supplier who looks after the yeast (ie stores it in a fridge) prior to you getting it.

QldKev

<My2c>
I just bought a $20 30L carboy from bunnings, I took it back the next day as the inside was very rough and pitted plus nobody in bunnings could tell me if it actually was food grade.

Went to my local HBS (Who sells the complete FV for $40) and gave me a Copper Tun FV + tubing for prime bulking + 1kg of dex for nothing - all food grade as well (plug Daves home brew )

I should have gone there first, I will be happy to go there again - even if it costs me a few dollars extra. Besides I can ask the local HBS guy questions at the same time.

</My 2c>

 

[Juzdu]

Being new to the game having a homebrew shop you can walk into and ask questions of somebody with some experience is worth a lot more than the few bucks you will save online, and the $44 for delivery is probably right since it would most likely be calculated by volume not just weight.

Remember that most of these online stores that don't have a physical store front have veryyyy low overheads and can afford to have a lower mark up, on the other hand they will be absolutely no help at all when you need advice and if you receive faulty stock your up the proverbial.

Andrew

Agreed Andrew, that's why i'd like to shop at Brewcraft, and if it was just a few bucks I wouldn't mind. But if I go there today and buy a 2nd FV, couple of malt extract cans, DME, dex, carb drops, racking hose and some yeast, it looks like it's gonna cost me a good $30 or $40 more for the pleasure. Just seems strange that we're talking 50-100% more expensive for most items. As i said I wouldn't think twice if it was 20%.

Also, Grain & Grape have a storefront, and Aussie BrewMakers where I bought my original kit were brilliantly helpful when I emailed them a couple of times..initially looking for advice on if I needed a heat pad or not, then when I asked to switch the TC Lager kit over for a TC wheat in their Deluxe II kit. Then a couple more times when I was about to do my first brew, I was asking questions about the use of dex vs malt, that sort of thing. So not every online store "will be absolutely no help at all"...but I know where you're coming from.

 

[Juzdu]

Went to my local HBS (Who sells the complete FV for $40) and gave me a Copper Tun FV + tubing for prime bulking + 1kg of dex for nothing - all food grade as well (plug Daves home brew )

I should have gone there first, I will be happy to go there again - even if it costs me a few dollars extra. Besides I can ask the local HBS guy questions at the same time.

</My 2c>

Yeah, you're lucky mate, I wish we had Dave's down here....to use my comparison above, Dave's home brew sell the WB-06 yeast for 30% less ($6) and the 30l FV kit for 25% less ($40) than Brewcraft, my LHBS.

 

[Nick JD]

As AndrewQld mentioned, paying $1 extra for a product and getting some good knowledge at the time from a LHBS is worth it.

Round here, the LHBS advice is worth minus $1. I recall one shop by me in mid summer having no aircon and seeing an airlock in there doing 6000 rpm. BLIPBLIPBLIPBLIP.

"Do you have any US05?" "Yes - don't worry about the date (2007)."

Another guy where I just wanted to buy some LDME for starters tried to sell me a kit beer. I made the mistake of telling him I was a grain brewer...

Walk into Craftbrewer and you can discuss the fine points of phenolics in a particular type of beer from one small country.

All HBSs are not created equal. No you shouldn't run a heatpad under your lager at 28C.

 

[manticle]

Grain and Grape are far away from you but do deliver and will spend time talking through stuff on the phone. Their advice is usually very good too whereas Brewcraft franchises are not renowned as the best.

Not shopped with Dave/greensbourough but he does have a good reputation and I have chatted to him about sponsorship for a melbourne Brewers competition - he was helpful, friendly and happy to chat (and sponsor) so i figure he's the same with customers.

Depends a lot on what you are shopping for.

Quite a few retailers on this forum too who are more than happy to answer PMs- the main ones I know of will post or courier - MHB, Nige/Brewadelaide, craftbrewer etc.

 

[Chuckie]

Agreed Andrew, that's why i'd like to shop at Brewcraft, and if it was just a few bucks I wouldn't mind. But if I go there today and buy a 2nd FV, couple of malt extract cans, DME, dex, carb drops, racking hose and some yeast, it looks like it's gonna cost me a good $30 or $40 more for the pleasure. Just seems strange that we're talking 50-100% more expensive for most items. As i said I wouldn't think twice if it was 20%.

Also, Grain & Grape have a storefront, and Aussie BrewMakers where I bought my original kit were brilliantly helpful when I emailed them a couple of times..initially looking for advice on if I needed a heat pad or not, then when I asked to switch the TC Lager kit over for a TC wheat in their Deluxe II kit. Then a couple more times when I was about to do my first brew, I was asking questions about the use of dex vs malt, that sort of thing. So not every online store "will be absolutely no help at all"...but I know where you're coming from.

I can't speak highly enough of Dave at Greensborough Home Brewing. It may be a little bit further from Thornbury than Heidelberg but Dave's happy to help and his prices are a LOT cheaper than Liquorcraft. Typically I just buy enough for about 4 brews on the one visit and it saves me a heap.
Cheers,
Andrew

 

[Juzdu]

I can't speak highly enough of Dave at Greensborough Home Brewing. It may be a little bit further from Thornbury than Heidelberg but Dave's happy to help and his prices are a LOT cheaper than Liquorcraft. Typically I just buy enough for about 4 brews on the one visit and it saves me a heap.
Cheers,
Andrew

Cheers...I have got relatives in Diamond Creek so will have to time my visits so that I can stock up at Greensborough on the way through.

 

[jaypes]

Yeah, you're lucky mate, I wish we had Dave's down here....to use my comparison above, Dave's home brew sell the WB-06 yeast for 30% less ($6) and the 30l FV kit for 25% less ($40) than Brewcraft, my LHBS.

Check this guy out, even though he is in Syd NSW, the shipping is reasonable to your location. His prices are cheapest I have found in Sydney (unfortunately its about 40kms from my house)
http://www.thebrewshop.com.au/

 

[mikec]

Check this guy out, even though he is in Syd NSW, the shipping is reasonable to your location. His prices are cheapest I have found in Sydney (unfortunately its about 40kms from my house)
http://www.thebrewshop.com.au/

Also known as ESBrewing - one of the site sponsors.

 

[Charst]

Thanks, but both are a bit far from Thornbury, compared to Heidelberg anyway. And Cellarplus have all their prices as "POA" so I can't compare how competitive they might be.

Hi not sure if your in a car or not but Greensborough is all of 5 minutes past Heidelberg,

Shops great.

Not quite the range of G&G but top shop

 

[JaseH]

The Brewcraft near me is also quite expensive in comparison. Luckily Kegking is nearby as well and generally have the cheapest prices around for what they stock. I also buy online from Craftbrewer/Gain and Grape/Beerbelly, they all ship quickly, have good range of stock and prices are good.

Brewcraft look to target the K&K crowd, they obviously sell plenty at those prices or they'd be out of business. A business can sell at whatever price they want - the market will decide if it actually sells or not.

 

[Nossil]

Check this guy out, even though he is in Syd NSW, the shipping is reasonable to your location. His prices are cheapest I have found in Sydney (unfortunately its about 40kms from my house)
http://www.thebrewshop.com.au/

+1 brewshop/ESB.


I've shopped around to other places in Sydney and the brewshop are by far the cheapest! I wonder how much it costs to ship 25kg of grain...

 

[FuzzyDropbear]

I love my local HBS, every time I go in there I never get out in under 30 minutes. There's always something to ask about or they're always up for a chat or giving me different options on what to do, so I'm more than happy to pay the extra few $$ to support them, considering it's their livelihood and the advice I get is top quality (from what I've had anyway). Unfortunately it doesn't sound like everyone has a local like we do in Ballarat.

Sounds like I got Grain and Grape on a bad day, I rang to inquire about the price of kegging gear and what I would need for a basic 2 keg system and the bloke was pretty unhappy that I had called because he was serving a customer and was actually quite rude about it. I would have understood if it had've gone to voicemail etc. because they're a store, they can't man the phone all the time or they'd get no work done. Bloke didn't even want my number to call me back when he had a few spare minutes to chat, or even put me on hold, it was up to me to call back.. So that weekend I went elsewhere and gave my money to another business. But that's only my experience, most people seem to have good experiences with them, but I'm not going to drive down to Melb. just to see which side of the coin I will get.

Cheers

 

[manticle]

There's one bloke who works there who may or may not have rubbed people up the wrong way at times in the past.

Mostly though, the good experiences far, far outweigh any negative ones and as a commercial entity, they are extremely supportive of the HB community as a whole including hosting grain bulk buys and being seminal in the organisation of ANHC.

 

[Juzdu]

I love my local HBS, every time I go in there I never get out in under 30 minutes. There's always something to ask about or they're always up for a chat or giving me different options on what to do, so I'm more than happy to pay the extra few $$ to support them, considering it's their livelihood and the advice I get is top quality (from what I've had anyway). Unfortunately it doesn't sound like everyone has a local like we do in Ballarat.

Well i'm frustrated to have to say my first visit to my local HBS today was a real disappointment...I was the only one in the store but the guy working there was just simply not interested, I had to drag info out of him, despite telling him I was a first time home brewer. I was looking for advice on yeast to use on my wheat beer, and how to brew an Irish Ale, and he just wasn't interested...other than trying to sell me a $60 kit brew off the shelf.

I was also asking questions about how to store left over fermentables post brew, and it was like trying to get blood from a stone. Such a disappointment given my excitement at this new hobby i've discovered.

I guess i'll drive out to Grain & Grape or the one in Greensborough next time. Or just keep buying online and getting my advice from these forums.

 

[stakka82]

+1 for Grain and Grape from me.

Been to a few brew shops over the last few years, but G &G trump them all. Only drawback is I can only ever go on saturdays, and it gets pretty pumped. Even though they're getting pumped, the guys there are still happy to offer advice, or explain alternatives.

I'm not close to them at all, but I buy up big when I go, so I only have to go every 2 months or so. Totally worth the drive.

 

[beerDingo]

I live close to you, and I regard my local HBS as Greensborough (http://www.greensboroughhomebrew.com.au/). His site isn't always up to date, unless he's started doing it more lately.

I make All Grain, so the Heidelberg shop is pretty useless for me unless I can't get to Greensborough, and only need a pack of yeast or some other odds and ends.

These guys are the closest for yeast (http://www.costanteimports.com.au/locate), but don't know the price as they don't keep it in the fridge... And not a HBS, but a food/catering/appliance shop

I've always found Dave (Greensborough HBS) extremely helpful to everyone who has walked in while I've been there.

Happy to give his shop a shameless plug, as he's treated me well over the years.

 

[beerDingo]

Sounds like I got Grain and Grape on a bad day, I rang to inquire about the price of kegging gear and what I would need for a basic 2 keg system and the bloke was pretty unhappy that I had called because he was serving a customer and was actually quite rude about it. I would have understood if it had've gone to voicemail etc. because they're a store, they can't man the phone all the time or they'd get no work done. Bloke didn't even want my number to call me back when he had a few spare minutes to chat, or even put me on hold, it was up to me to call back.. So that weekend I went elsewhere and gave my money to another business. But that's only my experience, most people seem to have good experiences with them, but I'm not going to drive down to Melb. just to see which side of the coin I will get.

Cheers

+1

they are extremely supportive of the HB community as a whole including hosting grain bulk buys

+1

It is good for the shop too, as it gets people through their doors who may not normaly go there. And then buy a few extra things at the same time.

 

[RobW]

Well i'm frustrated to have to say my first visit to my local HBS today was a real disappointment...I was the only one in the store but the guy working there was just simply not interested, I had to drag info out of him, despite telling him I was a first time home brewer. I was looking for advice on yeast to use on my wheat beer, and how to brew an Irish Ale, and he just wasn't interested...other than trying to sell me a $60 kit brew off the shelf.

I was also asking questions about how to store left over fermentables post brew, and it was like trying to get blood from a stone. Such a disappointment given my excitement at this new hobby i've discovered.

I think you'll find that's a common perception - certainly has been for me on the couple of times I've needed to go there.

I guess i'll drive out to Grain & Grape or the one in Greensborough next time.
Or just keep buying online and getting my advice from these forums.

Make the 10 minute trip to Greensborough and see Dave. He's a good bloke who knows his stuff and is always happy to have a yarn.

 

[HoppingMad]

Grain & Grape for everything. But you have to pick around it as otherwise you pay through the nose. But for range and sensible advice from people who know - they come up trumps. Some people swear by Dave at Greensborough too on the same front, but never had the pleasure of checking his stuff out.

Cellarplus - website issues aside they are freaking cheap on a lot of fronts. They mainly cater for the winemaking italian crowd and take it from me those guys won't pay full price if they can help it either. I challenge you to try finding an italian spiral burner or a stainless/ally pot cheaper at your LHBS. Particularly when they have a sale on, they blitz everything. I have found their 100g bags of hop pellets to be way cheaper than the 'up there' prices charged at most other LHBS. G&G stock theirs in 80g packs and you'll find that Cellarplus' are actually cheaper and they give you 100g! Mind you I wouldn't get all hops there as some don't even list the AA% right - but for something simple like East Kent Goldings why not?

Brewcraft - well haha okay, with most stuff you will pay a grain & grape price plus some more. Had the Brewcraft Richmond guy tell me that much of their stock comes through G&G and then has margin added to it, particularly the grain - so if you want to pay some of the 'loco' Brewcraft prices that's your folly.

Yours in tightwaddyness,

The Hopper.

 

[JaseH]

On my way home from work one night, looking to put down a brew that night, in desperation I popped into a Hydroponics/Home Brew shop near me looking for a pack of US-05.

Asked the scruffy looking old bloke behind the counter where his brewing yeast was. He proceeded to scratch around on a dusty shelf, eventually found a sachet of yeast which looked to have been salvaged from under the lid of an old kit can, blew the dust off it and slapped it down on the counter.

I politely declined. <_<

 

[manticle]

Cellarplus - website issues aside they are freaking cheap on a lot of fronts. They mainly cater for the winemaking italian crowd and take it from me those guys won't pay full price if they can help it either. I challenge you to try finding an italian spiral burner or a stainless/ally pot cheaper at your LHBS. Particularly when they have a sale on, they blitz everything. I have found their 100g bags of hop pellets to be way cheaper than the 'up there' prices charged at most other LHBS. G&G stock theirs in 80g packs and you'll find that Cellarplus' are actually cheaper and they give you 100g! Mind you I wouldn't get all hops there as some don't even list the AA% right - but for something simple like East Kent Goldings why not?

When I was kit and extract brewing I used to use the Cellar plus in north melbourne quite a bit. I found their friendliness and service to be amiable. they were more than happy to give advice and while I didn't know much at the time, I can't remember ever being given really awful advice.

However in regards to hops - the pellets are always kept on shelves rather than in the fridge, at least at North melbourne.

Still I rarely buy 40 or 80g packs unless trying a new hop - those I use regularly come mainly from ellerslie hops. Small bag hop prices are pretty ridiculous, especially when you are extract brewing (the most expensive method ingredients wise in my experience)

 

[going down a hill]

Dave is a great bloke.

Best way to get there from Thornbury is to drive down Plenty Road and turn right into Grimshaw Street, when you get to the KFC turn right and drive straight through the weird round about till you get to Louis Street. A lot easier than going up Bell St IMO.

You wont be sorry for long!