Well, it's been a year since my last calculations regarding the cost-effectiveness of homebrewing, so I think I'll re-run the numbers for my experience thus far.
Take Nugget IPA as an example: $26.10 or so in ingredients, which works out to 77¢/pint or about $1.04 for a 22oz bomber (most batches are in the 4.3 gallon neighborhood once all is said and done). This is a bit less than the $1.39 of a year ago, but I've saved money by using tap water and buying hops in bulk for the last year or so. Also, I worked out how much gas and water I use during a brewday -- about 8¢ of water and 25¢ of gas, which adds about a penny a pint to the whole works.
And what about capital goods? Well, because of new equipment (keg system, extra kegs, new mash tun, etc.), I'm up to about $1,000 worth of brewhouse stuff. This works out to about $35.71 per batch over my 28 batches, which is about $1.05 per pint or $1.42 per bomber. My average last year was $2.17/bomber, but I was predicting getting as low as 63¢; clearly, that didn't happen.
Still, that means that a glass of decent IPA is costing me $1.83 per pint or about $2.47 per bomber. A good IPA is at least $3.99 for a bomber, sometimes as high as $5.99 before getting into DIPA territory. That means that Nugget saves me a rough average of $2.52 per bomber, or about $63 per batch. Woot! Still savin' money!
Monday, September 20, 2010
Employment Singel
So, yesterday I brewed up my 28th batch: a Belgian pale ale/abbey singel that is based on a recipe out of Randy Mosher's Radical Brewing. I named it in honor of my wife's just having got a new job! Yay!
The Recipe:
6 lb European Pilsner malt
3 lb European pale ale malt
8 oz Belgian aromatic malt
6 AAU (13g @ 13% AA) Nugget @ 60
3 AAU (24g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 30
2 AAU (16g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 5
2 AAU (19g @ 3% AA) Hallertauer @ 5
Wyeast 1214 - Belgian Abbey
Mashed at 151° for an hour using 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170° water.
O.G.: 1.050
Est. IBU: 36.7
Once again used the 10-gallon tun, although I discovered I had a broken hose clamp connecting the braid to the internal hose barb so I had to temporarily bridge the gap with a piece of plastic tubing. I really must get new hose clamps before brewing again. Other than that, this was an uneventful brewing session; reached 79% mash efficiency which is well within expected parameters.
Yesterday I also made a first pass at cleaning out the chest freezer I got. The vast majority of the nasty mold-or-whatever-it-is is gone, but I still want to bleach the inside to be sure. If I do that tonight, then I might even be able to get some beer carbonated for poker on Thursday! That would be nice.
The Recipe:
6 lb European Pilsner malt
3 lb European pale ale malt
8 oz Belgian aromatic malt
6 AAU (13g @ 13% AA) Nugget @ 60
3 AAU (24g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 30
2 AAU (16g @ 3.5% AA) Czech Saaz @ 5
2 AAU (19g @ 3% AA) Hallertauer @ 5
Wyeast 1214 - Belgian Abbey
Mashed at 151° for an hour using 12 quarts of water. Batch-sparged (needed 2 batches since I can't quite heat enough water to do it all in one batch after the mash) using 170° water.
O.G.: 1.050
Est. IBU: 36.7
Once again used the 10-gallon tun, although I discovered I had a broken hose clamp connecting the braid to the internal hose barb so I had to temporarily bridge the gap with a piece of plastic tubing. I really must get new hose clamps before brewing again. Other than that, this was an uneventful brewing session; reached 79% mash efficiency which is well within expected parameters.
Yesterday I also made a first pass at cleaning out the chest freezer I got. The vast majority of the nasty mold-or-whatever-it-is is gone, but I still want to bleach the inside to be sure. If I do that tonight, then I might even be able to get some beer carbonated for poker on Thursday! That would be nice.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
A Freezer Odyssey
Through the generosity of Emily's grandparents, I now have a used chest freezer (generously transported from Tacoma by my mother-in-law) which I will be converting into a kegerator for my homebrew. It is kind of manky inside and will require some cleanup, but I am told it is otherwise functional.
The most important thing about this is that I will soon be able to properly carbonate my kegs of homebrew, which in turn means that I will be able to bottle and growlerize homebrew without it going flat. I look forward to being able to share my brew once again with friends and family. Really, isn't that what this is all about?
Oh, also, a Cherry Brevity update: all the cherries have floated to the top of the carboy and the liquor is starting to develop a rusty red hue. Capital!
The most important thing about this is that I will soon be able to properly carbonate my kegs of homebrew, which in turn means that I will be able to bottle and growlerize homebrew without it going flat. I look forward to being able to share my brew once again with friends and family. Really, isn't that what this is all about?
Oh, also, a Cherry Brevity update: all the cherries have floated to the top of the carboy and the liquor is starting to develop a rusty red hue. Capital!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Slow Month
September has been pretty slow, brewing-wise. I was able to eke out some time yesterday, however, to handle a few brewhouse tasks.
First, I kegged Pyatiletka Stout and Nugget IPA. I ended up leaving Nugget in the secondary on its dry hops for two weeks, and it has come out pretty interesting. Although the sample I had was flat, it shows some promise: hop aroma is funky and citrusy, and it's got a big hit of bitterness backing it up. It finished at 5.8%, and Pyatiletka clocks in at 8.1%, which, although lower than I had planned, still ain't bad.
Second, I racked Cherry Brevity onto its cherries. I ended up with 4lb 2oz of de-stemmed but not de-pitted cherries which I threw into the secondary before racking. The cherries are sweet red cherries which I bought in season and then froze for a couple of months. As of this morning, most of the cherries are still at the bottom of the carboy but some have floated to the top. Should be interesting!
First, I kegged Pyatiletka Stout and Nugget IPA. I ended up leaving Nugget in the secondary on its dry hops for two weeks, and it has come out pretty interesting. Although the sample I had was flat, it shows some promise: hop aroma is funky and citrusy, and it's got a big hit of bitterness backing it up. It finished at 5.8%, and Pyatiletka clocks in at 8.1%, which, although lower than I had planned, still ain't bad.
Second, I racked Cherry Brevity onto its cherries. I ended up with 4lb 2oz of de-stemmed but not de-pitted cherries which I threw into the secondary before racking. The cherries are sweet red cherries which I bought in season and then froze for a couple of months. As of this morning, most of the cherries are still at the bottom of the carboy but some have floated to the top. Should be interesting!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)