i luv mes some beer
Suddenly, I am thirsty…
I have this kit. It includes everything you need to get a brew started but it can be pretty messy.
The instructions are a bit vague with what you need to do. Research how to actually brew beer to get a better understanding before attempting to use this kit.
It’s not really worth it, even at this low price. In the end the only thing you’ll be able to make is vinegar. The keg is plastic, it’s not airtight, the ingredients come in a can… it just isn’t the right way to make good home brew. You’d be better saving your money and investing in a decent (real) home brew kit.
Have one of these. It’s best for a test run to see if you really want to get in to beer making without spending a lot of money. The beer itself is drinkable, but tends to be low on actual alcohol content.
If you’re a serious beer snob this obviously isn’t for you, but if you think you might want to get in to beer making think of this as like buying a bike from a department store. You don’t necessarily want to jump right in to that $7000 custom made carbon fiber road bike, but you want to see if it’s something worth exploring a bit more before you drop a ton of cash.
Been using the Mr. Beer products for a while now and have been able to produce some tasty beer. Good price on the kit. You can modify the stock recipes from Mr. Beer to make it even better. Lots of friendly help and advice available at mrbeerfans.com as well.
Relax, Don’t Worry, Have a Home Brew!
Amazon has it for $35. This is a decent deal. Whether the beer is decent…
Amazon linky:
http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Beer-Premium-Microbrewery-System/dp/B00007G2IX
That name again is Mr. Beer
just in time for learn to home brew day
Got one of these for my brother for xmas a few years back, and recently a refill for his birthday. He seems to enjoy the process and described the beer as being better than the cheap stuff, but still not near as good as any quality beer you would buy.
The amount of recipes/flavors offered through Mr. Beer’s official website is really impressive. Got this for myself and a couple of friends last Christmas, we have a lot of fun getting together every few months to try a bunch of different kinds of beer. If you want to ease into home brew this is a good place to start. If you’re just looking to drink, probably gonna be cheaper to go the store.
For those who end up purchasing, Mr. Beer Fans is a good community with lots of tips, tricks, advice for this system and beyond.
Mr. Beer is a great introduction to extract homebrewing. I made 6-8 batches of Mr. Beer before getting the urge to brew more complex recipes in 5-gallon buckets. Since I’ve migrated to a 5-gallon buckets with airlocks, I no longer use my 2 Mr. Beer barrels for fermentation, but I do still use the 1L bottles and other accessories I received with my kit. They are thick, brown plastic (PET) that seal in carbonation but will prevent explosions that many newcomers to homebrewing experience with glass bottles. The eight 1L reusable bottles alone run $21.90 with shipping on their site, so this is quite a deal. I don’t imagine anyone sticks with Mr. Beer for more than a year or so. If you love the hobby and stick with it, you will likely upgrade to better equipment, but you can always keep reusing the bottles. Happy brewing!
Loads of homebrewers have started with this classic:
The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
And when you finish it, this is a great second book:
Dave Miller’s Homebrewing Guide
p.s. One of the most important tips to good homebrewing - keep things sterile! Many beginners spoil their beer through carelessness: dropping stuff, sloshing, poorly cleaned tools.
Great write-up for this. Congrats to the author(s). Very entertaining.
@NightGhost
The fact that you look up everything every night, on OG Woot, Kids and Sellout…well, cheers to you.
As others have posted, this makes a great starter kit. If you find you enjoy the hobby, you can move on to better equipment, and make beer that’s better than a lot of the commercial stuff.
If you really get into it, you can enter your home-brewed beer into contests. Many professional microbrewers started that way.
Thanks. It’s a great hobby that entails helping people.