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Chumley
Senior Member
Username: Chumley
Post Number: 3634
Registered: 02-2003
Posted From: 71.37.188.229
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 13, 2005 - 08:27 pm: | 
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That is to say, the price of bulk malt shipping - ouch.
I've been doing a little comparison shopping on the internet on where to get the best deal on 4 sacks of base malt for the fall brewing season. A couple of years ago, I bought 4 sacks from North Country. Although they are in New York and I live in Montana, they are so cheap that they actually worked out to be the best deal. $20-$25 bucks per sack plus $25 per sack shipping came out still under a buck a pound.
Not anymore. I just priced shipping from North Country to Montana via UPS - $40 per sack! North Country's prices, by contrast are now more like $23-$27 per sack - still a good deal for those of you who live back east. Spending $40 per sack shipping UPS goes against my grain, especially after how those wangs broke my NHC entries this year. 
I see B3's 4 sack shipping is around $50-$60 per sack, but they are still including free shipping (for now!) My alternative is to wait until I go to Portland the 1st weekend of October and hope to find some LHBSs with some cheap deals, but right now I am inclined to order from B3 as I am a malt snob and want to buy European.
Side question: Durst or Castle pils - which would be a better choice? They cost the same. |
Steve Jones
Member
Username: Stevej
Post Number: 102
Registered: 08-2001
Posted From: 24.159.40.39
| | Posted on Tuesday, September 13, 2005 - 10:51 pm: |
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Chumley,
I'm not familiar with their prices, but I know a place that will drop ship supplies. They get the wholesaler to ship directly to the consumer.
Their website is being rebuilt, so you'll have to call them. I do know a couple of folks who got bags of malt for under $50 including shipping.
Asheville Brewers Supply
Asheville, NC
(828) 285 0515
Steve
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Chris Vejnovich
Intermediate Member
Username: Cjv85vmax
Post Number: 257
Registered: 06-2003
Posted From: 4.253.99.147
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 01:04 am: |
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Chumley, isn't there a brew pub with in a 100 miles of you or so? I don't recall where you live in Montana. Buy a couple of bags from them. The only reason that I don't do that is because we have a good LHBS here in Lincoln. |
Patrick C.
Intermediate Member
Username: Patrickc
Post Number: 397
Registered: 01-2001
Posted From: 24.131.56.12
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 01:32 am: |
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You may just have to suck it up and buy domestic. Aren't there any maltsters nearby you could back a truck up to? |
Chumley
Senior Member
Username: Chumley
Post Number: 3635
Registered: 02-2003
Posted From: 207.225.3.167
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 03:14 am: |
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Hmmm...I like the buy it from a brewpub idea, especially since the brewpub I have in mind was once upon a time my LHBS, before they decided there was much more profit in being a microbrewery instead of a LHBS.  Knowing these guys use Crisp M.O. is another reason to pester them - dammit, they owe me!
Patrick, there are no maltsters in Montana at the present; however, construction has been going on for over a year at Great Falls (85 miles from me) on a new plant. Rest assured I will be pestering them when they come on line. |
George Schmidt
Advanced Member
Username: Gschmidt
Post Number: 594
Registered: 08-2004
Posted From: 68.251.104.225
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 06:01 am: |
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Do you have a shipping dock where you work? On a whim, I asked if I could recieve a palletized shipment at work and they were fine with it. I got 6 bags shipped to Indy for $90. Obviously, Montanta won't be that cheap, but it surely won't be $240 either. Something to check out, anyway.
Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors -- and miss. ~~Robert A. Heinlein: The Notebooks of Lazarus Long
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Vance Barnes
Senior Member
Username: Vancebarnes
Post Number: 1843
Registered: 03-2003
Posted From: 208.49.148.10
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 03:14 pm: |
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Yea, I don't remember what the minimum is but NCM will palletize an order and ship it common carrier if you have a dock they can unload at. Well actually my lhbs does that and they don't have a dock. Should be lots cheaper that way than UPS. |
Denny Conn
Senior Member
Username: Denny
Post Number: 5063
Registered: 01-2001
Posted From: 140.211.82.4
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 05:41 pm: |
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Durst or Castle??? Tough choice..I've ben using 'em both lately and really like both of them. I don't think you could really go wrong with either, so you may want to let price decide for you. I DO really like the Durst TurboPils, though, since it's specifically malted for a single infusion. I've been using the Castle without a protein rest, but I think it might benefit from a short high temp protein rest.
LIfe begins at 60...1.060, that is.
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Randy McCord
Intermediate Member
Username: Mccord
Post Number: 419
Registered: 02-2003
Posted From: 216.174.177.201
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 06:42 pm: |
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Do brewpubs regularly sell bags of grain if requested? I'll be going to Upland brewery this weekend and might try to score a bag or two. Sorry Chumley, not trying to highjack the thread. |
Tom Burk
Junior Member
Username: Tomburk
Post Number: 97
Registered: 03-2003
Posted From: 66.231.36.176
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 08:36 pm: |
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Randy and Chumley, several of the brewers around me will order extra malt for me when they are ordering malt. They don't, except Michigan Brewing that has thingsbeeras as a hbs, sell from their stock. I usually buy at thingsbeer and pick it up at the shop, I don't know what their shipping charges are. |
Bill Pierce
Moderator
Username: Billpierce
Post Number: 3487
Registered: 01-2002
Posted From: 24.57.229.8
| | Posted on Wednesday, September 14, 2005 - 08:54 pm: |
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Some brewpubs and microbreweries are happy to sell malt to homebrewers. Others don't really have a procedure in place for selling ingredients or don't wish to be seen as competing with a local homebrew shop. So the answer is it depends. But of course it doesn't hurt to ask. |
Miker
Intermediate Member
Username: Miker
Post Number: 278
Registered: 02-2003
Posted From: 69.15.183.207
| | Posted on Thursday, September 15, 2005 - 03:13 pm: |
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I don't understand why their UPS rates are so high. We ship 50 lb bags every day from work (fertilizer) and if I pick a couple of zip codes from New York to Montana from our files and plug them in for a UPS quote, I get a total rate (once you reach 200 lbs you are not charged per package but get into hundred weight shipping rates) of about $75. If not in a box they may get you for an additional fee but I think that's $5/piece which would bring you to about $95 total shipping. We do have UPS discounts in place, but so should North Country. You might ask them why they are wanting to charge $40 per bag shipping?
We rarely find it cheaper to go by truck on shipments of less than about 250 lbs. UPS is usually as cheap or cheaper and more convenient. |
Vance Barnes
Senior Member
Username: Vancebarnes
Post Number: 1847
Registered: 03-2003
Posted From: 208.49.148.10
| | Posted on Thursday, September 15, 2005 - 06:32 pm: |
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Most companies quoted UPS shipping charges are actually higher than the real UPS charges, ie "handling charges". Same as if you went to a UPS store compared to shipping it yourself from work or an actual UPS facility. |
Tom Fries
New Member
Username: Tfries
Post Number: 6
Registered: 12-2003
Posted From: 57.68.136.115
| | Posted on Thursday, September 15, 2005 - 07:00 pm: |
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Hey Denny,
I really like the Turbo Pils too. Our local supplier no longer carries it though and I have run out Do you get yours locally? |
Roger Herpst
Intermediate Member
Username: Roger456
Post Number: 271
Registered: 12-2004
Posted From: 64.142.50.192
| | Posted on Thursday, September 15, 2005 - 07:05 pm: |
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I've noticed that my UPS shipping costs for the last couple of month have been adjusted from the World Ship quoted price for fuel surcharges. Those surcharge adjustments haven't been cheap, either. |
Denny Conn
Senior Member
Username: Denny
Post Number: 5067
Registered: 01-2001
Posted From: 140.211.82.4
| | Posted on Thursday, September 15, 2005 - 09:10 pm: |
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Yeah, I do, Tom, but it was locally through a club buy that Kaz arranged. ;) Guess you'll be in on the next one, huh?
LIfe begins at 60...1.060, that is.
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Dave Witt
Advanced Member
Username: Davew
Post Number: 799
Registered: 03-2003
Posted From: 64.12.116.14
| | Posted on Friday, September 16, 2005 - 01:23 am: |
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I've been thinking lately about placing an order at NCM. I was at their website the other night and it appears as though they ship FedEx, at least looking at the homebrewers section.
I have a friend who has access to a loading dock. Last year, I ordered along with him and several other people, about 18 sacks total. The shipping charge per bag was only $6-7, IIRC, to Chicago. Of course MT is much farther and there's the high cost of fuel this year.
Do you have friends that brew AND have access to a loading dock? |
Brews and Views Archive 2005 
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