1964 Beer Prices - Adjusted for Inflation
I read complaints about the "high cost"
of beer all the time on the various beer groups. I read one "expert"
say that beer goes up 50¢ to $1 a case every 6 months. (I tried doing that math
for the 30+ years I've been buying beer and it didn't really work...) Hey, as a 50+ year old guy, I hear MYSELF complain about the high cost of
*everything* these days ($12 pizza! $11 sub sandwich! $4 gas!).
So, a year or so ago, using one of those "probably-only-barely"
scientific inflation converters (here's the US Government BLS's) I entered the 1964 Official NJ State prices of six packs for the following
beers [original '64 price in brackets] and came out with these prices of what
the beer would cost in 2007 if prices had kept up with inflation.
$7-9 six-packs doesn't sound too bad for craft beer:
Horlacher (PA cheapie) - [79¢] - $5.30 Reading, Stegmaier, Yuengling (PA locals) – [95¢]- $6.37 Schmidt's of Phila., Ortlieb, Iron City (PA regionals) [99¢] $6.64 Foxhead 400 (mid-West regional) [$1.05] - $7.04 Ballantine Beer (large NJ regional) - [$1.10] - $7.38 Schaefer, Rheingold (large NY-NJ regionals) – [$1.15] - $7.71
NATIONAL Pabst (locally-brewed national- "popular priced") – [$1.10] - $7.38 Budweiser, Schlitz (locally-brewed national) – [$1.25] - $8.38 Miller (distant national) – [$1.29] - $8.65 Ballantine XXX Ale (regional premium) - [$1.30] - $8.32
US SPECIALTY Prior Double Dark (regional superpremium) – [$1.35] - $9.05 Country Club Malt Liquor - [$1.39] - $9.30 Ballantine IPA (regional specialty) – [$1.42] - $9.52 Neuweiler Stock Ale (regional specialty) [$1.80] - $12.04 Michelob (national superpremium) – [$2.25] - $15.09
NORTH AMERICAN IMPORTS Black Horse Ale (Canada) - [$1.49] - $9.97 Dow Ale*, O'Keefe* (Canada) - [$1.75] - $11.70 Molson*, Labatt*- (Canadian) [$1.85] - $12.40 Moctezuma (Mexican) – [$2.40] - $16.09
UK + EUROPEAN IMPORTS Heineken, Amstel [$2.49] - $16.70 Pilsner Urquell– [$2.50] - $16.76 Guinness Foreign Extra Stout*, Smithwicks– [$2.50] - $16.76 Bass Ale*, Mackeson Stout* – [$2.64] - $17.66 Beck's Key Brand, St. Pauli Girl, Holsten - [$2.70] - $18.06 Berliner Weisse [$2.76] - $18.46 Lowenbrau (best selling German import) - [$2.80] - $18.77
ODD SIZED IMPORTS (12oz X 6 pack equivalent price for 2007) Manx Oyster Stout - 6 oz. [$1.80 = $3.60] - $24.08 Beamish Irish Stout 6.33 oz. [$1.50 = $2.84] - $19.00 Pschorr-Brau Weiss 17 oz. [$4.20 = $2.96] - $19.80
Remember these are the SIX PACK prices * Came in bottles of 11-11 2/3 ounce size |
|
