How much are you willing to spend on a beer?

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by cheesepuffs, Mar 4, 2016.

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  1. SDDLSK

    SDDLSK Initiate (0) Jan 25, 2015 Minnesota

    Bought a Sam Adams Utopias this last year, so guess that is my limit!

    Seriously though, these threads interest me for the chance to see different view points on the issue. I almost never think about the cost of any specific beer. The day that happens, I personally feel I need to re-evaluate my spending habits as a whole. Most times I do try to stay on a budget for the trip to the liquor store. If the store had a good week and has several new things, I may grab that $30 bomber and pass on the 2 six packs at $9.99. It depends completely on what I want to try more, and which one has the better chance of still being there the next time I am in.

    On the other hand, on Black Friday when it seemed every other shop we stopped at had BCBS Rare available, that budget went right out the window, and I don't regret it one bit.

    I understand everyone is in a different situation due to income, family, and such, but my belief has always been (I am living with my gf, don't share bank accounts so that might influence this thought) that if my bills are paid and there is a little in the bank for an emergency, who cares how much or where I spend my money.
     
  2. pagriley

    pagriley Initiate (0) Oct 27, 2014 Illinois


    Sorry bro - not enough utility continuing conversation with you sice you cant read, or at least comprehend what I actually said in my last post
     
  3. coldy

    coldy Initiate (0) Sep 16, 2010 Delaware

    I drink what I like, and it is usually in small amounts, so price is less of an issue. I refuse to drink anything I don't like just because it is cheap or available...that would be alcoholism
     
  4. cheesepuffs

    cheesepuffs Initiate (0) Feb 21, 2010 Connecticut

    I completely agree with the hype arguments. I think the majority of being into the craft scene these days isn't even about how the beer tastes. It's just about gaining some false sense of status because you overpaid for something overhyped.

    The perception is that finding whales or whatever you guys call them now is some delightful experience. Do you realize these companies have you by the balls? You patiently wait for a product that they intentionally make a small run of it to manipulate the demand, and then you drive maybe some ridiculous distance to spend too much money on it and they hardly had to do anything extra to reap huge benefits except keep it "rare". It's beer. It's not supposed to be this inconvenient, this status driven, or this expensive. People need to stop falling for it or it's only gonna get worse.
     
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  5. utopiajane

    utopiajane Initiate (0) Jun 11, 2013 New York

    If it's a beer I am going to really drink a lot of all the time I want it cheap. Like $8.99. My nooner pils was $8.49 and I would have had the case except the dates were different. Dortmunder lager, bittburger stuff like that. I rarely buy bombers any more and my splurges are increasingly on sixers from brewers with a good reputation and that are dated. I will pay $12.99 for a sixer but not 15. I will pay up to 10 a bomber but no more. I am fond of singles but $4 is the limit for one beer. Most range about $2- $3.50.
     
  6. rjcohen

    rjcohen Devotee (305) Oct 9, 2013 Maryland

    I spent 14 euros for a bottle of Westvleteren 12. But that was a specia case, I can't see myself doing that often.
     
  7. Oktoberfist

    Oktoberfist Initiate (0) Nov 26, 2014 Pennsylvania
    Deactivated

    $7-8 for a bomber and $12 for a 6 pack. I can find really awesome beers at this price and be happy - no need to spend more on something people just hype up.
     
  8. paulys55

    paulys55 Initiate (0) Aug 2, 2010 Pennsylvania

    I used to have 2 children...
     
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  9. fearfactory

    fearfactory Initiate (0) Aug 12, 2012 Massachusetts

    I can't figure out if you don't like the price of great beer, or the taste of it...either way, no one is forcing you to drink it, and no one is saying you have to be a snob to enjoy it.

    This sounds like someone who's been reading the "Latest Hauls" thread too much, and is a little jelly....and your diatribe has a bunch of untruths in it.
     
  10. cheesepuffs

    cheesepuffs Initiate (0) Feb 21, 2010 Connecticut

    I never said you had to be a snob to enjoy it.

    I can't remember the last time I clicked the latest hauls thread.

    There are zero untruths in my "diatribe", but there's a forced sense of one-ups-man-ship to your vocabulary.
     
  11. RockRuler

    RockRuler Pundit (841) Dec 27, 2014 Mississippi
    Trader

    Around $20 for a bomber.....
     
  12. kalosjakar

    kalosjakar Initiate (0) May 5, 2014 Rhode Island

    I recently reviewed this beer and found Todd's review kind of funny. It shows how much beer has creeped up in price. His review was from 2001.

    http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/193/615/

    "I thoroughly enjoyed this oatmeal stout. Very robust, complex, extremely flavourful and textured. In a market of wimpy and nitro'd stouts, this one stands out. However, the $9.99 a 6-pak price tag stood out the most. As much as I liked it, I would not drop that kind of money a second time."



    Today, I would love if a great 6 pack only cost 10 bucks, hell a great 4 pack for that matter. Now I usually spend 14-16 bucks for a 4 pack.
     
  13. fearfactory

    fearfactory Initiate (0) Aug 12, 2012 Massachusetts

    IDK, any time I walk into a store, and find a whale, it most certainly is a delightful experience....:wink:
     
    #93 fearfactory, Mar 5, 2016
    Last edited: Mar 5, 2016
  14. stouts4everyone

    stouts4everyone Initiate (0) Feb 26, 2016 Georgia

    Depends on the beer. I would pay several hundred dollars for rare lambic I've never had. stouts wise, I wouldn't pay more than $200 for any of them tbh.
     
  15. Zlatan

    Zlatan Initiate (0) Nov 27, 2015 Wisconsin

    @pagriley saw this post and couldn't wait to write about how much money he "nets". That book you wrote up there must have cost you like $50 bro. Im with @elucas730
     
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  16. fearfactory

    fearfactory Initiate (0) Aug 12, 2012 Massachusetts

    Not driving too far, not standing in line, not spending an arm & a leg. But certainly into it as a hobby, not just drinkin' beer, so willing to spend a little more for a better experience.

    Not chasing trucks, not trading, not hunting whalez, but if my beer guy can take my name for a list, that's easy enough. I fully accept there will be others that take this hobby to the extreme, as there are in all my other hobbies. They are always the minority.

    Not sure what's the most I've spent on a beer, but for $ per oz., I'd say it was at a bar for sure.
     
  17. jvgoor3786

    jvgoor3786 Grand Pooh-Bah (4,186) May 28, 2015 Arkansas
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    For years I have weighed my hourly work rate when deciding to do something myself or pay someone. This week my flooring guy told me I could save $200 by pulling up my own carpet, but it would take me six hours. Is it worth six hours to save $200? Not now, but it would have been 20 years ago when I made $8/hr. I am also limited in the money I can earn (I'm salaried), so that needs to be a factor in my calculations too. It's not like I can work an extra couple hours to pay the flooring guys. I've never applied that to beer though. I enjoy shopping for beer, so I don't calculate the opportunity cost. I just decided if it's worth more to me than the cash in my pocket. It's a sliding scale, depending on the beer, my mood, and current cash flow.
     
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  18. AdmiralOzone

    AdmiralOzone Grand Pooh-Bah (3,988) Jun 26, 2014 Minnesota
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Last year I crossed the border into Wisconsin to find a bottle of The Bruery's Cuivre. Was really angry when I saw the price ($35), but then took it off the shelf and put it in my cart because I had made the road trip for it. Then the guy at the liquor store "saved" me a bottle of Utopias (I had not asked him to do it), and after I bought that ($169), a bottle of BC Rare seemed a steal at $65. So I guess I have no limit. :slight_frown: Fortunately my wife enjoys her PBR ($14 a case) and doesn't mind my hobby.
     
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  19. Apellonious

    Apellonious Pooh-Bah (1,690) Oct 25, 2008 North Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Always love reading the posts on this topic. In the end, the decision encompasses everything from simple economics, marketing, behavioral/psychology make up, the places we buy, etc...Not sure I can add to what is already been said, but I can spit out some price points that will make me pause (but not for too long, that increases time value cost!!!)

    A six or high ABV 4 over $15
    Bombers over $20 (for higher ABV or rare beers in bomber only format), probably closer to $10 for beers that are low ABV and/or also available in six/four.
    Singles/16.9 over $5
    32 oz growlers and 64 oz growlers follow the same logic as bombers ($10 and $20)
     
  20. lightman1

    lightman1 Zealot (595) Oct 19, 2013 Arkansas
    Trader

    I don't have set prices or limits on beer. My working career is over, my kids are educated and on their own and my bills are paid. I pretty much buy what I want. Its the reason I worked 40 years. When I was a broke college student I drank Schlitz and Bud if I could afford it.
     
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