I made beer a lot in my 20's, then fell away from the hobby. I made one batch about 20 years ago & just made my first batch since then, using a recipe from a book about making beers like different commercial microbrews. I'm (hopefully) cloning Bass Ale. It'll be ready to try in about a month. Back when I first started, it was definitely a cost-effective way to make beer; it doesn't seem to be that so much currently.