Any beer drinkers here? I have a question!

[Ano Genitus]

Beer prices look set to rise over the next while - does this worry you? Will it change your beer drinking habits at all? How do you plan to cope?

If you don't mind, give me your first name (or make one up) when you answer. I'm writing a little article for a local community paper on the scourge of rising beer prices.

Thanks!

[Parche]

1. Heineken

I pay anywhere from $11.99-$16.99 for a half case,
and i will keep having my beverages no matter what the price is.

:hi:
:toast:

[BOSSHOG]

10. They'll get my Bud Can

when they pry it from my cold dead hands.

[x-g.o.p.er]

2. Call me Ishmael, ha ha...

But to answer your questions:

No, it doesn't worry me and I don't plan on changing my drinking habits. A couple of bucks a six pack isn't a big deal, because a six pack can last me three to four weeks. Unless, of course, I'm with my brothers. Then we help pay the Leinenkugel's light bill that month, ha ha.

No coping mechanisms needed for the time being, but if it gets ridiculouslt expensive, I'll brew my own.

[AlCzervik]

3. beer prices will not affect my drinking habits at all, not one bit.

[quip]

4. Good luck with getting responses. Not many beer drinkers in the Lounge I suspect. Further Boston

isn't much of a college town, either.

[Ano Genitus]

6. I had hoped there might be one or two around...

[quip]

9. thousand!

:rofl:

[Joey Liberal]

21. Boston isn't much of a college town?

Are you nuts?

[quip]

31. No, it is YOU who are nuts, because I'm betting you've never seen "This is Spinal Tap"

(It's a Tap reference)

[Taverner]

5. Not really...I drink nightly, but only 22-34 oz per night

[BOSSHOG]

7. Prices have been creeping up BUT

I doubt it will effect my drinking habits. What are we gonna do? Go on strike?

I'm John by the way. How are you?

I drink Bud in Cans and buying by the case is about two dollars cheaper (per quantity) then buying a 12-pack. Also there are several local retailers which sell my brand and I can usually find it somewhere in town on sale every week. My wife also has her eyes out for any on sale. When I was a young lad and not near as wise as I am today, I used to buy cheap beer. Not very smart.

I believe you have hit upon a really important issue here. Thanks for carrying forward with it.

[Ano Genitus]

12. No problem! This issue affects us all.

I'm not saying there aren't other problems in the world, but this is an interesting one, particularly for beer drinkers who also try to live with some modicum of environmental responsibility. For you see, the rising prices are in great part driven by the fact that many farmers are giving up on barley and hops and turning to biofuel crops like soy, corn and canola instead. These crops require less specialized equipment and, for the moment, a better return.

[BOSSHOG]

13. I must add, since you mention environmental responsibility

that I take my cans to the SPCA which recycles them and uses the money to take care of the puppies.

[redqueen]

19. Awwwww

:)

[BOSSHOG]

27. There is a sweet little lady

at the SPCA who takes the cans in her little truck to the recycling plant and she says they make about 300 bucks a month from can contributions. Beer drinkers are the salt of the earth.

[madinmaryland]

17. I pretty much drink Busch here.

It went up a dollar recently, to $14.99/30-pack at the packy store a block away. It went up a dollar a couple of months ago.

Do you have deposits on cans there? We don't here.

So no, I will still buy beer!

BTW, I drink Busch because I enjoy pissing Bush out and flushing it down the toilet!!1!!

:hi:

[jmowreader]

22. Bud is an upgrade for you?

A man who waxes poetic about Budweiser should never, ever go to Europe.

[BOSSHOG]

36. Hey

I don't wax poets, I don't even wax my truck. And I've been to Philadelphia, how much more European can ya get?

[DarkTirade]

8. I must drink beer.

Beer is the mind-killer. Beer is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my beer. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the beer has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.

[MilesColtrane]

11. Early Precursor to the Stillsuit:

[taterguy]

14. What choice do we have? Some of us rely on our beers to get to work

If you need a first name for that quote please use Tim.

[evlbstrd]

15. I brew my own.

The prices for hops and grain are rising. I'll be growing at least some of my own. And I recycle brown bottles.
Call me evlbstrd.

[DarkTirade]

23. A wise choice.

I don't have the patience for brewing beer, so I'm starting with something that costs a little more in materials, but less in equipment and time. Mead. :)

[evlbstrd]

32. Funny you should mention that.

I've decided to expand into wines and meads. Fermentation rules!

[JVS]

33. Mead actually takes more time if you want it to taste good.

Whereas most ales need only a few weeks of aging, a good mead can easily take a year. I made some quick mead with friends. It was bad!

[DarkTirade]

37. I mean time that I spend on it. :)

Beer takes a lot more time and effort in the brewing part, but it finishes faster. Whereas mead takes very little time in the brewing part, but then you let it sit and brew longer. And preferably age a bit after that. Right now I've got two test batches aging and one (hopefully) final batch brewing. :) Each batch only took me a little while to get started. Whereas beer is something you do on a day when you're free. :)

[Adams Wulff]

16. Dave Says:

My beer habits will not change, for I drink GOOD beer. And GOOD beer is worth it.

[sasquatch]

18. Seconded

[trotsky]

29. Well said.

I'll gladly pay the microbrews for the work they do.:toast:

[av8rdave]

20. They can take my beer

when they pry it from my swollen, hungover fingers. Dave

[Inchworm]

24. I drink tallboy Budweisers

I sometimes take the orange price sticker off and stick it to my desk here. It is nearly a timeline from when my beer was 99 cents in 2004.

I see
$0.99
$1.09
$1.15
$1.19
$1.24
And finally hells of $1.49s

One tall Bud is $1.49 and I assume it has remained there for quite a while according to the sticker tale. I've cut down on my drinking so the change wasn't noticed.

I'll always buy beer. The people won't let it get out of reach I don't think. Beer keeps the sheeple from asking too many questions :P

:hi:

[Ano Genitus]

25. Thanks to all who responded. Here's the relevant part of the article you've all helped with:

...Between the popularity of biofuel crops, the hop shortage and the poor barley harvests of the past year, the raw materials for beer are becoming more expensive and less available every day. How will the beer drinker cope?

By drinking, many say. "What are we going to do? Go on strike?" wonders one Mississippi-based beer drinker , who gave his name as John. Other beer aficionados plan to begin brewing their own, even growing their own hops and grains for the purpose. Still otherss express that they simply don't know what they're going to do if prices continue to rise.

But the feeling by and large is that beer drinkiers will continue to quaff their liquid of choice no matter what the price to buy it or the effort required to make it. Such is the power of beer.

[DarkTirade]

26. But I'd wager that very few will actually brew their own.

The prevailing attitude lately in most 1st world countries is that when you want something, you buy it. The idea of making something yourself is very foreign to most americans. When I mentioned that I was homebrewing to some co-workers a while back, they were all aghast and amazed. They just didn't understand why I'd do such a thing when there are liquor stores in existance.

[mainegreen]

28. We've switched to PBR in the bottle, and now get large cases at the discount store.

Plus PBR in the bottle is the king of cheap beers. Really tasty.

And union made to boot!

:P

[seemunkee]

30. I'm a home brewer

I'll probably not brew my Imperial IPA this summer, the amount of hops will make it pretty pricey.
One of the better IPA's in this area is not available due to a certain variety of hops not being available.
Call me seemunkee or I can PM you my name if you want

[fizzgig]

34. beer prices are already going up in my area

i'm in northern colorado and there are a lot of microbreweries around here. the local brews jumped a buck a six pack within the past few months.

that stuff was expensive enough as it was (for me at least), now it's going to become an even rarer purchase. i can buy a 12 pack of pbr (a beer i quite enjoy) for a bit less than a six back of my favorite local brew. i don't buy beer often, but it's likely that when i do, i'll stick with my pbr.

-sara

[ironflange]

35. doesnt affect me much

i dont go through more than two or three a week

good thing too
since im kind of a beer snob
cant stomach the cheap weasel piss

[GoddessOfGuinness]

38. I don't drink enough to make the price hike a big deal...

When I do drink, I consume high quality brews which cost more anyway.

Prices have inflated on everything else...why not beer?

Brenda :hi:

[Beer Snob-50]

39. The price of beer going up will not change my drinking habits

I like a good cold beer but I don't drink enough where the cost will affect me. I tend to drink the micro-brews and go through a six pack in about 2 weeks.

btw my name is John

[Bake]

40. My two favorite kinds of beer

Cold. And FREE.

Having said that, I haven't really noticed the price creeping up, but it wouldn't surprise me in light of the higher fuel/energy costs that affect the farmers, brewers, and distributors. I doubt it will change my consumption much; it's one of my few "vices" and it keeps me sane. Maybe I can write it off as a medical expense!

Bake (but you can call me Dave)