Your best excuse for not going AG

[Pogierob]

Can you back that up with actual figures? I've read people saying the cost of grain is $7-8 for a brew and I've looked into sourcing it to get that cost but the best I can come up with is this:

To achieve let's say a 1.050 wort you use around 5kg of ale malt? (i'm guessing here as I obviously don't AG) and to keep things cheap I'l use barrett burston ale malt bought for $65 from my LHBS per 25kg sack which works out to $13.

In the other corner I've bought 20kg DME from Ross for $110 of which I need approx 3kg to get to 1.050 which costs $16.50.

If it can be done significantly cheaper, please enlighten me as I would love to add weight to the argument for going AG!

Cheers, Matt

http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/products/search?search=traditional+ale

buy over 20kg and you get it for $1.90 per KG

usually a few dollars cheaper(per 25kg sack) than that in bulk buys also.
so for a 5kg batch you are looking at $9.50 by my calculations you are saving $7

this isn't Barrett Burston, but they are similarly priced in Bulk buys within a couple of gold coins for a 25kg sack.

see below an example of prices from the most recent Bulk buy

2015Melb Barrett Burston Pale 25 $1.80 $45.00
2023Melb Barrett Burston Ale 25 $1.80 $45.00
2018Melb Barrett Burston Wheat 25 $2.20 $55.00
2020Melb Barrett Burston Caramalt 25 $2.36 $59.00


Edit. added bulk buy prices

 

[Dunkelbrau]

Your right guys but even that amount will have to be a 2016 budget. Remember I've also spent on a gas bottle, reg, tap, hoses etc etc. even SWMBO doesn't quite know the full extent, so no more this year.
Cheers

Well, for a technicality the (2015/)2016 financial year is only a few weeks away ;-)

 

[Grott]

good point but not in our house
Cheers

 

[Matplat]

http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/products/search?search=traditional+ale

buy over 20kg and you get it for $1.90 per KG

usually a few dollars cheaper(per 25kg sack) than that in bulk buys also.
so for a 5kg batch you are looking at $9.50 by my calculations you are saving $7

this isn't Barrett Burston, but they are similarly priced in Bulk buys within a couple of gold coins for a 25kg sack.

see below an example of prices from the most recent Bulk buy

2015Melb Barrett Burston Pale 25 $1.80 $45.00
2023Melb Barrett Burston Ale 25 $1.80 $45.00
2018Melb Barrett Burston Wheat 25 $2.20 $55.00
2020Melb Barrett Burston Caramalt 25 $2.36 $59.00


Edit. added bulk buy prices

Il have to look in to the cost of shipping from grain and grape, CraftBrewer is significantly closer to me, but still sells sacks of BB ale malt for $65 same as my LHBS...

 

[Matplat]

Currently half way through a glass of extract nelson sauvin pale ale... not convincing me that AG is necessary

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Currently half way through a glass of extract nelson sauvin pale ale... not convincing me that AG is necessary

Time....it will only take time....

 

[mikeintmba]

For me the reason for not going AG was a frame of mind. I simply believed making beer the real way was too hard. I spent 20 years making kit beer then finding this forum. The ideas here got me adding malt and hops to kits then making a beer from extract and hops. Now I BIAB and sometimes lament the time a brew can take but I enjoy the beer I make and the price per litre is fantastic.
Cheers