Keg Beer is not Cheaper

[mikepman]

So i just paid $78 for a sixel keg of Sam Adams Alpine Spring.
Math: $78/56.889twelve ounce beers per keg = $1.37per 12 ounces

Could have bought a case (24) of 12ounce bottles for $28.
That's only $1.17per 12 ounces

Shopped around after and found a "know a guy" price of $70 per sixel
That's still $1.23per 12 ounces

Let's not even talk about Co2, electricity, or the $600 initial investment.

When I bought my kegerator about 5 years ago I thought I would be saving money.(At least that's what I told my wife.) Anyone else having similiar experiences?

[Sketch]

Sixtels are the most expensive way to buy beer - they are often higher than the equivalent in bottles or cans.

Depending on what beer you buy will of course also factor into the savings. I typically pay $120 for a 1/2 and $60 for a 1/6 of New Belgium beers - which is substantially cheaper than $70 or $78.

The Co2 expense is minimal - it costs me $18 for a 5lb refill - worst case scenario and I only get 5 kegs out of it - that's only $3.60 a keg. Electricity is minimal for me, I have had it unplugged for a couple months and haven't noticed much change on my electric bill.

I also purchase kegs because I prefer the taste - if I save money, that's just a bonus.

[mikepman]

I keg mostly for homebrew and haven't bought a commercial keg for awhile. I was surprised at how much the prices had increased. I used to pay $62 for a sixel.

[TomJ]

I too purchase sixtels, typically Sam. For me it the taste, I prefer draft and don't mind paying a premium. Recognize that it sounds counter to cost more than bottles, but I look it at as cheaper than the bar - not to mention convent and greener ( I think, or at least that is what I tell the wife). Cheers,

[cubby_swans]

Let's refine that statement and make it honest. It should say "Keg beer is not cheaper if you buy kegs that are not cheaper than bottles or buy the most expensive draft option available." There are plenty of beers available in various sized kegs that are cheaper than bottles. Sixtels are your worst option. If your goal was to save money, stop buying sixtels of commercial brew, which it sounds like you did.

I buy mostly 1/2 barrels. However, I only pay $50 for a sixtel of our local brewery, Schlafly, and $100 for 50L kegs. 1/2 barrels of New Belgium beers are $140 here. I have saved a fortune with my kegerator over the years. It makes zero sense to me to purchase kegs of something I can get in bottles for the same price, since the kegged beer is the same as the bottled beer for every beer I drink.

[redhawk]

Some kegs are cheaper and some are not. I can get a 1/2 barrel of Shiner Bock here for $95 and it costs me $8 for a six pack of Shiner Bock. The keg comes out to about 60 cents a glass whereas the six pack comes out to $1.30 a bottle. I save over half on the Shiner Bock.

My wife loves Covington Strawberry which only comes in 1/6 barrels for $75 or $1.35 a beer. The six pack costs $9 or $1.50 per bottle. But the taste of the Strawberry on draft is wayyyyyyy better than the bottle. Wife won't even drink it from the bottle, but loves it on tap.

[scriptohio]

My experience is 1/6 cost more than bottles. ¼ is about the same as bottles the real savings is for ½ barrels. I’ve been doing only ½ s for over a year. The money I save just buys me more beer.

[cubby_swans]

My wife loves Covington Strawberry which only comes in 1/6 barrels for $75 or $1.35 a beer. The six pack costs $9 or $1.50 per bottle. But the taste of the Strawberry on draft is wayyyyyyy better than the bottle. Wife won't even drink it from the bottle, but loves it on tap.

I wouldn't drink anything from a bottle unless a glass wasn't an option. Pour it in a glass. When you drink from a bottle your nose can't smell the beer, and a large portion of your taste comes from the smell of whatever is going in your mouth. I would do a blind taste test with her. Pour her a glass of draft Strawberry and pour a fresh bottle of Strawberry in a glass and see if the difference is so huge. I bet its not that much different given product of similar freshness.

[bkl63]

Draft Beer just tastes better and brew your own own of you want it to be cheaper, I generally have a 1/6 of something nice and a 1/2 of Miller Lite on tap. Right now I have one 5 gal batch of an American Pale Ale homebrew I'm kegging today, and getting ready to Brew two more 5 gallon batches, one a Cherry Wheat and the other a Honey Oat Lager (A test of some Ingredients I have laying around). In process of adding another handle to make it three on my Kegerator and will have a sampling handle for a 4 Corny inside, for my hidden stash Future has a Key Lime Wheat for summer.

[cubby_swans]

Draft Beer just tastes better

That's a pretty broad statement. In some cases, yes. In some cases no. In many cases it's the exact same beer from the exact same tank.

[redhawk]

I wouldn't drink anything from a bottle unless a glass wasn't an option. Pour it in a glass. When you drink from a bottle your nose can't smell the beer, and a large portion of your taste comes from the smell of whatever is going in your mouth. I would do a blind taste test with her. Pour her a glass of draft Strawberry and pour a fresh bottle of Strawberry in a glass and see if the difference is so huge. I bet its not that much different given product of similar freshness.

This is how we drink all of the beers at our house. The draft version is night and day better than the bottle version for this particular beer.

[ramcharger1979]

Agreed, I have never had a beer in a bottle that tasted better than a draft beer.

[morepour]

Is there a thread anywhere in this forum that gives the specs on kegorators? Just wanted to know roughly how long a keg takes inside them before its ready to serve and a bit of info on the different model types.

[mikepman]

morepour,
That's what the entire forum is about. I've had the best luck searching by thread title using relevant terms.

[russianriver29]

Sixtals

I live in the Philly area and usually get my kegs from Victory and Yards. I pay $55 for Yards Philly Pale ale, which I love, and about the same at Victory for sixtals. Higher octane brews are a bit more. Keg deposit at Yards is $30. Victory takes a $90 keg deposit (crazy) but when you return it you get $95 plus they give a $5 discount on each keg you buy. Got a sixtal of hop devil recently and with discount paid $49 (plus 6% PA sales tax). I balked at the $90 keg deposit but finally gave in because I love their beers. For anyone who can swing it I highly recommend getting kegs from breweries for two reasons - they're always fresh and usually cheaper than buying from a distributor.