Buying Grains Online

Brewing Processes
1

I’m curious to know who does what.

How are you buying grains?
  • Buying Grains Online and crush at home
  • Buying Grains Online (crushed by retailer)
  • Buying Grains Locally at LHBS
  • Other (please explain)
0 voters
2

I buy my base grains locally in 55 lb. sacks. Specialty grains online, usually in 5 or 10 lb. bags, shopping around for prices. More Beer has good prices and free shipping when you buy $60 or more. I keep a supply of grains and hops on hand, so that I can brew anything I want whenever I have time, when the fancy hits me.

I crush all my grains at home on brew day.

3

Didn’t know that Morebeer shipped the bags of grain for free. Thought it didn’t apply to bulky items

4

I don’t know about 55 lb. sacks, but I just got a box with a couple of 5 and 10 lb. bags that qualified for the free shipping.

5

I wait for Label Peelers to have a 25% off sale when I need base malts. I’ll order about 200 lbs online for store pick up. Then when it’s ready, I drive the 45 minutes to pick it up. I also crush my own. So it’s a hybrid of everything lol.

6

Grain is an item that I learned to purchase locally fairly quickly.  Shipping usually more than offsets any savings gained by not purchasing locally when purchasing malt in bulk.  I have a very good LHBS that will special order a bag of any malt that they can get through one of there distributors.  Remember, your LHBS owner stocks what sells, but he/she is also in the business of making money; therefore, most shop owners will take special order grain requests if one is willing to be patient.

7

One last thing, a roller mill is a good investment.  Pre-crushed malt is to freshly milled grain what pre-ground coffee is to freshly ground coffee.  The joy of using a well-designed mill lingers long after the sting of purchasing it fades.

8

I wait until I’m in Nashville and but the years worth every fall.  I also wait until companies offer flat rate and I buy the rest.  Locally they sell Briess, I just cant do that brand, so I buy in bulk with pickup or flat rate.

9

MoreBeer will ship all but full sacks for free. The price of a full sack with shipping is still cheaper versus 10lb bags. Local is the best deal in my experience.

10

Have you ever asked one of your LHBS owners if they take special orders?  The distributor that distributes Briess also distributes domestic malt from Canada Malting, Gambrinus, and Great Western as well as imported malt from Baird, Best Malz, MFB, and Thomas Fawcett. You may have to wait until the owner orders his/her next pallet of malt.

11

I don’t have an LHBS to speak of, so online is a necessary evil for me. I try to buy in bulk when I see a decent deal, or order a few 5lb bags when I’m ordering from someone who offers flat rate shipping.

12

Same advice I give myself for most brewing purchases!  I have a Thermapen on it’s way here as of a few minutes ago.

13

Lucky to be in a region that has options for a LHBS.  One downside is the community mill and while they do their best to keep it dialed in I suspect it varies by visit.  That brings it around to buying a mill.  While I can(have) trolled the internet for reviews and wasted plenty of time, anyone want to weigh in on the best three options out there?

14

There are plenty of threads discussing this. That said, I am more than happy with my 2 roller monster mill. A bit of a PIA to assemble the hopper, but i do not regret it at all.

15

I always buy uncrushed. I have purchased online before, but usually I buy from my LHBS. My latest supply comes from part of a bulk purchase together with other homebrewers directly from the maltster.

16

I purchased a Thermapen last year during an “open box” sale.  I do not know if was a sales gimmick, but the box in which my Thermapen arrived appeared to have never been opened.  I thought that my Thermapen was going to be the most ridiculous, money burning a hole in my pocket purchase that I have ever made, but it turned out to be one of the most frequently used pieces of gear that I own.  I also purchased a rubber boot for it.

17

If money is a constraint, it’s hard to beat the pre-adjusted Schmidling Model P Malt Mill.  I have a Schmidling Model Model P and a 3-roller Monster Mill, guess which one sees the most use?  My current Schmidling Malt Mill is actually the second Model P that I have owned. I sold the original pre-adjusted Malt Mill that I owned for over a decade when I let the hobby for several years.  I crushed just shy of two tons of malt on that mill, and the guy who currently owns it is now over three tons of malt on the same set of non-case hardened rollers.

With that said, if I had to do it all over again, I would purchase another Malt Mill.  I seriously doubt that I would purchase another Monster Mill.  While the overall build quality is good, there’s more play in the rollers on a Monster Mill, which makes getting the rollers aligned such that they all spin freely with no binding more difficult. The hopper is also tricky to assemble. The Schmidling Mill is basically a bolt, screw, and crush mill.  Now, dealing with Jack Schmidling is an entirely different subject.  He’s a unique character.

18

I work at my LHBS so im very spoiled.

19

I saw the Cereal Killer was on sale for around $99.

20

What gap setting do you use on your mill?  I’m starting the same thing and don’t really have any idea on a starting point.  I bought myself a Cereal Killer mill as a late birthday present. [emoji6]