The gang over at Keg Works have sharpened their pencils, done some math and made something purdy. The created an infographic exploring the cost of gas versus the cost of beer. As it turns out, homebrew is cheaper than gasoline, but Labatt’s Blue costs more per gallon. Good to know.
Of course if you ever get the chance to try my homebrew, you’re probably better off finding that red plastic jug in your garage and taking a swig from the nozzle. Sure it costs a bit more per gallon, but it probably tastes better – you get what you pay for!
Beer & Whiskey Brothers 
Gas prices are ridiculous!… thank god I ride a bike…
Jim, is your homebrew that bad, really?
A friend brought over a growler of an India Pale Ale from a brewpub. We compared it to the IPA that I had brewed using the same recipe. My homebrew tasted pretty darn good. The brewpub (who shall remain nameless) tasted a bit like hoppy diesel #2.
As for price, at ~$0.93-$1.03 per 12oz, my homebrew comes out 2-2.5 times more expensive than gas purchased locally (CA). Must be the price of the hops!
Did you brew with extract?
Nope. All grain.
Granted I don’t buy in bulk and I tend to go for higher gravity homebrews, but that seems awfully cheap for 15.5 gallon batch, though I guess a relatively low gravity beer would work out like that… but still, I’ve made 5 gallon extract batches that costed more (again, not buying in bulk and extract is more expensive than all grain, but still). Then there was the Simcoe hopped beer I did, which cost a ridiculous amount because them hops are expensive!
Gasoline tastes pretty awful. Don’t know how anyone can drink 15.5 gallons of it.
I would like to see the numbers reflect a five gallon batch, which is what most homebrewers I know brew. Even going all grain, rather than extract, to get anything with body would (I’m guessing) be around $45-$50 for about five gallons.
Every time I buy at the LHBS that’s about what I pay, maybe a little less but not much.
Here’s a price-comparison for a recipe with 3 LHBSs:
Grain – 12# 2-row
Grain – 1# 40L
Grain – 1# Carapils
Hops – Amarillo 1 oz
Hops – Citra 1 oz
Hops – Columbus 2 oz
Hops – Simcoe 2 oz
Yeast – White Labs CA ale
It ran $35-$40 for a 5 gallon batch or $7-$8 per gallon.
The hops have to be bought in 1oz increments even if you need just 0.5oz for the recipe. You can get economies of scale when you do larger batches.
Thanks! I think your numbers more accurately reflect what the average homebrewer spends, if they go whole grain.
I don’t have the room or time to do that, so I’ve been doing hybrid batches of extract with grain. I recently brewed a batch of IPA that borders on an Imperial, and spent around $90; 6lbs extract, 2lbs of various grain, and a total of 10oz. of hops.
Hey Bob Barker…get your prices right!
Jim, I’ll be happy to help you refine that “gasoline”–just sayin’.
Buying your 2-row in bulk can significantly reduce your cost, especially if you go in with a group and purchase an entire pallet from a malting operation (i.e. $20 for a 48 lb bag of 2-row). They’re also probably only counting the cost of yeast once, which is entirely feasible, especially if you make a starter or multiple starters. I think it would be possible to make a low ABV stout for that price. With that said, my cost before fuel for a 6 gal batch is usually around $38.
It’s greener than gas, too 🙂
http://www.examiner.com/green-drinks-in-philadelphia/green-homebrewing