What's really gone up in price is beer. I remember when Bud Light was $5.99 for six bottles. Now it's $9.99. In fact most beers lowest prices are 8.99 or higher. Christmas Ale is $13.99 for six bottles this year.
Brewing isn't a difficult hobby to pick up and can wind up paying for itself.
It can be a fun hobby if you have the time. Because it still takes 3-4 hours of labor per a typical 5 gallon batch. So if you value your labor at $15/hour, you're losing once you factor in the cost of raw materials and energy to brew.
Also, having gallons of beer constantly available tends to lead to alcoholism.
At 8.99-9.99 for dumbestics with craft being 9.99-10.99, why drink something that's owned by an international corp, inbev, over something produced locally?
Domestic beers are designed to be the least offensive to the most people's tastes. They're made to be drank extremely cold and not have strong flavors.
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