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I hate how Costco doesn't share their store inventory. So I just went to one in Phoenix and took a photo of every price tag in the liquor section, then transcribed all 68 items into this spreadsheet!
Maybe there's a better way to crowdsource this information?
Of course, prices vary by state and time, and inventory varies by store, but I like being able to keep track of this sort of thing.
Most of the typical "better" beer cases were priced between $21.99 and $23.99 some time in the middle of last year. When I checked them out more recently in December, they were all priced at $29.99! Is there a nationwide beer shortage? Or did Costco hold steady with beer pricing for a long time and was finally forced to catch up with inflation with a single big price jump?
Yeah inflation is affecting literally everything. The price jump could be because a certain price was locked in by a contract that ended last year.
Beer prices are increasing due to the conflict in Ukraine. Barley that would be intended for beer is now being used to fill the gap that exists because Ukraine can’t produce. I believe I heard a craft brewer say malt increased by 75% in the past three months ($0.60 a pound to $1.05 a pound). The situation is only going to get worse.