Cheap Beer
Words of wisdom I learned long ago... "There are two types of beer in the world, cold beer and 
free beer. Free beer is always better!"
In these hard economic times everyone needs to reevaluate our priorities in life. Tighten our belts, go without and make what little we have last longer. Pass up that case of Newcastle Brown Ale ($25) for a 12 pack of Miller High Life ($6.99). Search the sofa cushions for wayward quarters and dimes. What do you do when times are tough and you yearn for that malty hoppy goodness? This question has made man pause for thought for generations. Being schooled in the art of home brewing, the obvious answer is to make your own. Rewarding and fun but it's also time consuming. If I started a batch tomorrow, I would have to wait at minimum 6 weeks to reap the rewards of my hard work.
Of course drinking a less expensive brew is an obvious option. But how to justify the reduced expense with the reduced quality and flavor? I think that Yeungling is the one of the better price/quality/flavor beers around.
My solution to cheap beer involves my second hand kegerator. A few years ago I bought an old second refrigerator from a coworker. When I went out to his house to pick it up I noticed a box of old beer dispensing equipment. Since he was well past his prime drinking age, had teenage children around often and was recently more involved in his local Baptist church, he gladly threw in the kegerator parts with the price of the fridge figuring (correctly) that he probably would never set it up again. He also recounted many a tales of excess (beer in Cheerios, etc..) to warn me of the dangers of keg beer the house. After fixng a few parts and replacing a few hoses and gaskets, I had it up and running in no time. I can certainly attest to the dangers of keg beer in the house. With no empties to count, having one or four too many is very easy. Also, anyone who wants to loose weight shouldn't have draft beer in the house. But I digress, this post is supposed to be about reducing the cost of beer in your budget...
As I said before, I find Yeungling Lager one of the best mix between taste and cost. 6 Packs go for $4.99 at the local gas stations. 12 packs run between $7-8 and out on the town, a draft pint is usually under $3. A pony keg of Yeungling runs between $42-$47 plus a refudable $10 deposit.(Yeungling 1/4 kegs also come tall & skinny and fit nicely in the fridge by only taking out the sleves on one side, leaving the other side for other beverages or food). The CO2 tank lasts about 3 to 4 kegs before having to refill, about $30. At $45 for 7.5 gallons, doing the math gives me $0.89/pint. I also get coolness points and rarely have to "make a beer run" in the middle of the big game.
A couple of tips. 1) keep a hand pump handy. It really sucks to have a full keg and run out of CO2 during a big game. Plenty of beer and no way to get to it. 2) you will drink more, no matter how you rationalize this to you wife.... with beer on tap in the house, you will drink more than just buying a 6 pack at a time.... This may lead to a quick extra 10 pounds.
I actualy use a travel version I made from a plastic trash can and few pieces of scrap wood more than the original set up. It's invaluable at sporting events (see picture in my profile at a SC football game) and other gatherings where copious amounts of beer will be consumed. Also using CO2 instead of a hand pump to dispense the brew eliminates the oxidization of the beverage and reduces much of the "skunk" taste of leftovers. Just keep everything cold (draft beer isn't pasturized) and you'll never have to worry about bad keg beer again.
So, pass along your ideas for drinking on the cheap, hopefully without sacraficing quality!
free beer. Free beer is always better!"In these hard economic times everyone needs to reevaluate our priorities in life. Tighten our belts, go without and make what little we have last longer. Pass up that case of Newcastle Brown Ale ($25) for a 12 pack of Miller High Life ($6.99). Search the sofa cushions for wayward quarters and dimes. What do you do when times are tough and you yearn for that malty hoppy goodness? This question has made man pause for thought for generations. Being schooled in the art of home brewing, the obvious answer is to make your own. Rewarding and fun but it's also time consuming. If I started a batch tomorrow, I would have to wait at minimum 6 weeks to reap the rewards of my hard work.
Of course drinking a less expensive brew is an obvious option. But how to justify the reduced expense with the reduced quality and flavor? I think that Yeungling is the one of the better price/quality/flavor beers around.
My solution to cheap beer involves my second hand kegerator. A few years ago I bought an old second refrigerator from a coworker. When I went out to his house to pick it up I noticed a box of old beer dispensing equipment. Since he was well past his prime drinking age, had teenage children around often and was recently more involved in his local Baptist church, he gladly threw in the kegerator parts with the price of the fridge figuring (correctly) that he probably would never set it up again. He also recounted many a tales of excess (beer in Cheerios, etc..) to warn me of the dangers of keg beer the house. After fixng a few parts and replacing a few hoses and gaskets, I had it up and running in no time. I can certainly attest to the dangers of keg beer in the house. With no empties to count, having one or four too many is very easy. Also, anyone who wants to loose weight shouldn't have draft beer in the house. But I digress, this post is supposed to be about reducing the cost of beer in your budget...
As I said before, I find Yeungling Lager one of the best mix between taste and cost. 6 Packs go for $4.99 at the local gas stations. 12 packs run between $7-8 and out on the town, a draft pint is usually under $3. A pony keg of Yeungling runs between $42-$47 plus a refudable $10 deposit.(Yeungling 1/4 kegs also come tall & skinny and fit nicely in the fridge by only taking out the sleves on one side, leaving the other side for other beverages or food). The CO2 tank lasts about 3 to 4 kegs before having to refill, about $30. At $45 for 7.5 gallons, doing the math gives me $0.89/pint. I also get coolness points and rarely have to "make a beer run" in the middle of the big game.
A couple of tips. 1) keep a hand pump handy. It really sucks to have a full keg and run out of CO2 during a big game. Plenty of beer and no way to get to it. 2) you will drink more, no matter how you rationalize this to you wife.... with beer on tap in the house, you will drink more than just buying a 6 pack at a time.... This may lead to a quick extra 10 pounds.
I actualy use a travel version I made from a plastic trash can and few pieces of scrap wood more than the original set up. It's invaluable at sporting events (see picture in my profile at a SC football game) and other gatherings where copious amounts of beer will be consumed. Also using CO2 instead of a hand pump to dispense the brew eliminates the oxidization of the beverage and reduces much of the "skunk" taste of leftovers. Just keep everything cold (draft beer isn't pasturized) and you'll never have to worry about bad keg beer again.
So, pass along your ideas for drinking on the cheap, hopefully without sacraficing quality!
posted by James at 10:07 PM
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