A slab (24 x 330ml) of Himmel Hund locally brewed, craft beer (4.6% ABV) for $39, delivered free to Melbourne. It's a Belgian style wheat beer, and the closest comparison I can think to a mass-produced beer is Hoegaarden, though Himmel Hund is about 100 times better in my opinion.
BB date 16/12/15 as on the photo
Ordered two, they said they have second batch that expires in March/April
Still haven't received mine, I've sent them a quick inquiry
Just curious, what makes it a Belgian Beer if it's a beer brand brewed in Melbourne? Either way, great to see some local beer being supported by the Ozbargain community.
It'll be Belgian Style. They've probably even imported hops from Europe or grown their own.
brewed in melbourne - tick! All those complaining about the quality of the current dan murphys $10 six packs should be all over this and supporting a small independent company
Not really, There's a reason people are looking at trying $10 six packs rather than trying out slabs. if a 6 pack was available at a discounted price I'd try this because I don't really like to have 24 beers laying around to have a drink every night for two weeks.
Himmel Hund is about 100 times better than Hoegaarden?
A bold statement, VB yes, Hoegaarden? I need to try for myself.
Yup and Hoegarden at 4.9% and $54.95 a case (Himmel Hund usually $60). Would be keen to try some at this price if i was in Melbourne and love craft beer, just think local crafted should be cheaper (RRP) than imported beer…
Hoegaarden is locally brewed under license. The major breweries can offer beer cheaper due to economies of scale.
Well I can say as an all grain brewer that I know how cheap it is to make 'clone' quality beer. Craft Brewers also brew at scale to produce enough for supply and demand. A humble one keg brew (over 2 cases) is usually around $25. Now add into further reductions in wholesale bulk grains, hopps etc and this further drops.
Sure there is packaging, licensing etc but spread that out across the amount of cases you produce and its still a massive mark up.
Love craft brewing but to make it popular you need to sell it for less than mainstream boutique beer otherwise people gravitate to what they know and the fact its cheaper. Maybe its a Melbourne thing as craft beer locally is at a good price.
Really? Are you sure? I've never seen a bottle of Hoegaarden in Australian that wasn't imported.
@stinx2001:
Tax is calculated at what you sell it for. So say the RRP is $60 for these cases. That's $24 in Tax (just over (39%), price is lower, then you pay less so its not the deciding factor in how you price liquor.
That is also adding GST into the raw $60 but gst is only calculated of your profit come tax time (i.e costs to make removed..)
Not meant to be a debate on the actual mark up, more highlighting that we would all rather see money go to the craft brewers but they are never priced to do so and can be priced to do so. You walk into a store, you see a case of Hoegardens, next to it is a case of craft beer that you have never tried. You walk away with the Hoegarden because you have saved a buck and know what its all about…its the sad reality of a consumer mind (the majority anyway)
@worthy1: Sorry should have been clearer. I was referring to excise which is calculated on alcohol content.
@stinx2001:
The first 1.15% alc is free so…
(4.6 – 1.15)% x 8 litres x $60 = $16.56 or $2.07 per litre.
It's ABV that determines excise (http://www2.deloitte.com/au/en/pages/consumer-business/artic…)
This is partially why craft beers, which tend to be higher ABV, generally cost more.
That assumes craft brewers are getting free labour, rent, etc
I don't see any Australian craft brewers getting rich.
@prhino:
umm yes, I mentioned that above….
They don't just say 'oh its $30 in excide for 4.5%', 'but sir I only sold a 6 pack for $15'. The excise is worked out by the ABV and then applied to both the volume and how much its sold for. Anything over Mid strength is going to be slogged the same so has nothing to do with it being a craft beer. So to break it down again for you, this is what their $60 rrp case looks like:
(4.6 – 1.15)% x 8 litres x $60 = $16.56 or $2.07 per litre.
Lets say they sell it for $50
(4.6 – 1.15)% x 8 litres x $50= $13.8 or $1.7 per litre.
So there you go, simple maths to show excise has nothing to do with what you sell it for in the end. You lower the price, you don't pay as much in excide, evens out.
@prhino: No it doesn't assume any of that actually.
On the contrary most of Australia's mainstream beer players started as craft brewers and are now very rich. And do you think coming into the market and pricing yourself above popular beers will help them do it….If you think there is no major markup on craft brew your crazy, they are in it to make money and thats great but again the point is they would make more if it was priced slight less then the mainstream (consumer mind 101)
How many of the people on here would have bought it if it was the $60, I think you will find the number drop especially when they know they can walk into the local DM and get Hoegardens for $55.
Bit ironic having a debate about it making good business sense to price it under the mainstream on a forum where people want the lowest price and bargain hunt for it hey… :)
Yeah, sorry, missed your post about the excise.
Completely agree with the irony. :) Personally I'd be happy to pay $60 for a slab. Certainly happier than I would be to pay $54.95 for a slab of Hoegaarden (Dan's price).
However, I don't agree that craft brewers could sell their stuff for less than mainstream brewers and make money.
Yes, Little Creatures started off as a craft brewery, but I doubt they became rich prior to selling it to Lion Nathan.
@prhino:
Absolutely they can. Mainstream has a crazy markup to as we all know so they are not scraping bye either.
You have to step in mind of a consumer. They want quality and they want it cheap. You have hoegarden sitting there for $55, next to it is another Belgian at $52. I guarantee the consumer will pay for the cheaper option 9 times out of 10 (as long as the quality is there)
The same goes for it its prices higher than hoegarden. Pretty simple to see that pricing it less than mainstream will generate more sales and no, with the markup, doing so wont make them lose money.
I don't think the data supports your argument. People are happy to pay for quality. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/craft-beer-industry…
@prhino:
Sorry I cant access that site, the quality wasn't up to scratch. Actually no im just tight and don't want to pay to read the news…. :)
You have to get people to find out its of quality first to want to pay for it and if people aren't trying it because its more expensive then you have shot yourself in the foot.
Its not really an argument in the alcohol world either, especially beer. The consumer knows he rents it, yes he wants to drink something tasty but he also wants to get the tastiness at the cheapest rate. Its not a vintage bottle of wine that the customer wants to put away as an investment. Surely VB, Melbo's etc show you this. We all know they are not the tastiest stuff but the reason people buy them is the cheaper price and the fact they don't want to try something different, especially since it costs more. Imagine if you tapped into that market and those people now had something tastier at the price they want, sales go up, so does profit…hence the boom of the cervesa.
Definitely a case of both having opinions here, just thought it would be pretty clear that if you want to compete with the big boys you don't price above them. You price slightly lower and you get more sales because of it, not price higher and get less sales, business 101. They may have a niche and it is a big city so they may do well for their client base but I wouldn't recommend this approach to new business. You start under, build the brand and then you can sell for more…sorry years of a business relationship manager harping on here….
Yeah if you are a beer fan who isn't just looking for a bargain, it is a bit tougher.
I prefer beer to wine as I prefer the grain based flavors rather than fruit based flavors. I love the savory drink experience, and no matter what type or quality of wine I don't get the same enjoyment. I have no issue paying a lot for a carton of beer. I've got a carton of Chimay cork tops, and a couple of other cartons european corked beers. That said I do enjoy some cheaper beers at least as much and maybe more than them. For example Southwark Stout, a 7% Aussie stout made by a company that is owned by a multi national, and is still shipped in 375ml bottles. Can get it shipped to me for $60 from DM. It is a cracker of a beer.
Beers like Southwark are a big reason I have passed on this offer. It is great to see, but it is an unknown flavour to me, and given a 4.6% ABV, and it'd cost me $50, to me it is a hard sell. I can pay $10 extra for a 7%ABV carton of stout I know I'll love, or spend $50 to eperiment with a mid strength beer I might not like. If the beer they were hocking was a dark ale or porter or stout, I might have been swayed just to experiment. But each time I get a beer I only just "like" I keep thinking "I wish I was drinking a Southwark, or a Zywiec porter". Citrus-sy beers I don't mind, but to me I find the lighter beers (including all the pale ales and lagers) more of an occasional summer thing.
But a good bargain is often the only way I'll talk myself into trying something new now… Not enough drinking time left…. :P
Extra great if you're in Melbourne.
Great to see a small craft beer with a price. And proper sized cartons. I should buy a case even though I'm more a dark brew drinker. Just for support. I might like it!
thanks man. SOLD!
PS. $11 shipping for interstate
Checkout complete. Nice one!
Not usually my style, and haven't heard of the brewer, but for $39 worth a try and happy to support someone who looks to be going about business the right way. Be sure buy more at full price if it's good!
I ordered a slab tonight and then had a question about delivery. I asked through their website and have got a positive response already. Seem to be based in Port Melbourne.
I sent a question (about delivery) after midnight and got a helpful and positive reply 3 minutes after.
Those guys are awesome! If the beer is as half as good as their customer service it will be $39 well spent!
thanks OP, i just ran out of beer last night
anything close to hoegaarden sounds good to me
Great deal - always enjoy trying some new Australian beers, ordered a slab. Looks like a small contract brewer - trying to create a small business. Good luck to them and cheers I say!
thanks OP. ordered 1.. fingers crossed it is a good brew!
Wow, that's a staggeringly cheap price for Melbourne brewed craft beer.
Ordered. thanks OP
Order to Regional Vic, Only $7 Postage still - I love Belgian style wheat beer, so keen to try :)
Comments here persuaded me to put an order for a slab, thanks OP
Ordered, looking forward to trying it. Thanks for the post!
God damn it. I don't have any excuse not to try some.
I can vouch for this, they were doing tasting at the Public Brewery in Croydon a few weeks back and it's good. Thanks for posting
Tried 2 different cards, with 2 different names.
Kept getting this error "Your payment could not be accepted. Please ensure that the card information entered is correct. "
pulled the trigger, anyone received theirs yet?
ordered last night, delivered today - yet to open :)
bb 16/12/15
Damn that was fast. Hopefully I will get mine soon too :P Can't wait to try!
Thanks for ordering Himmel Brewing witbier and supporting our "Build a Brewery" fund! We have started to deliver the cases and you can expect to receive yours within approximately 7 business days of your order date (interstate may be longer as we are outsourcing the deliveries outside of Melbourne).
We will be delivering during business hours and on weekends to selected areas.
Got mine
Just ordered a slab. Happy to support local business.
Have not received yet
Got it delivered today not a bad drop if I may say!
This beer is exceptional. I agree with OP. Much better than Hoegarden. For those who prefer darker beers, their Vienna Larger is very good too (I believe they will have another batch ready in December. Service is also exceptional. Get on board and support this local brewer, you won't regret it. Actually, it must be time to crack one open right now!
still havent received mine
Price now $59
Still waiting. What a joke
Got mine delivered today.
Still waiting on mine too. been well over 7 business days…
Still waiting on mine too. Been over 2 weeks since ordered.
Should have bought 2 slabs when it was on special. Great beer. Tempted to buy a slab of the lager that they've just released now. Thanks OP.
Never tried it but for price and free delivery can't go wrong, ordered 2 slabs!