This review is from: Mr. Beer Premium Gold Edition Home Brew Kit (Kitchen)
My wife got me this for my birthday last month, and I was really excited about trying it out…which, like a kid with a new toy, I did almost immediately. The instructions are easy to follow and the components are easy to assemble and use — I had my first batch (of ‘Cowboy Lager’) sitting in the keg after about 45 minutes of reading and work in the kitchen.
The minimum amount of time the mix needs to sit in the keg is 7 days — I let this first batch sit for 11. The longer the time in the keg, the more flavor it’s supposed to develop. I bottled the mix — 8 liters in all — and that was another simple process, going exactly as described in the instructions. The beer has to ferment in the bottles for no fewer than 7 days in order to carbonate. My 8 bottles are still sitting, after 8 days. I plan on letting them sit for another week before putting them in the fridge so they’ll be ‘conditioned’ in time for Christmas.
I did, however, make an extra bottle from the first batch, in an extra bottle I had. I drained the keg almost dry to do it, even pouring in some of the sludge that had settled at the bottom. The stuff was orange and cloudy! I let that sit for the minimum 7 days, and let it condition in the fridge for only 1 (although the instructions recommend at least a week). I wanted to try something close to the minimum standard for the mix and the kit in general…and I have a mug of the stuff next to me as I type. Final verdict on this ‘minimum mix’ — it’s quite good! It was adequately carbonated, and produced a smooth head that had a nice smell and flavor. The beer itself is about the same color as a typical American brew — Coors or Michelob — and has a very light flavor, with a slightly dry aftertaste. It’s something I could enjoy in the middle of summer. And remember: this, according to the instructions, is the swill. The better stuff will come out of those bottles that are going to ferment for another week before I cool them.
I’m fired up! I made my next mix today — American Blonde — which was also included in the set. I’ll let that sit in the keg even longer to see how the flavor develops. All in all, I’m really happy with this as a present, and even happier about what’s it’s produced. This isn’t just a gift that seems cool: it’s already exceeded my expectations.
This section added on 8 June 2009: I’m now carbonating my 17th two-gallon batch. Yes, that’s a lot of beer, considering that each batch makes 20-24 bottles, depending on how much water I decide to add (sometimes a little more if it’s a heavy brew with a lot of ingredients). ANYWAY, I’m still as fired up about this thing as I was when I got it. We’ve bought two six-packs and one twelve-pack of beer from the store since December, and that was mostly to harvest bottles for future use. I do not miss buying beer at the store…mine is better, and cheaper, too. My only recommendation is to get 12-oz brown glass bottles, a hand-held capper, and O2 barrier caps — then you can bottle your own ‘normal’ bottles, and you can reuse them. The 1-liter PET bottles that came with my set are fine, as they keep the carbonation well, but I don’t like opening that much beer at once unless I have people over. Standard bottles are far more convenient. Mr. Beer rocks. That is all.
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This review is from: Mr. Beer Premium Gold Edition Home Brew Kit (Kitchen)
The Mr. Beer Premium Gold Edition Home Brew Kit plus Amazon’s free shipping equals beer-making’s Keep It Simple and Sweet solution. As a beginning home brewer, I didn’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on an elaborate home brew kit nor have to read tons of books on how to do it. My goal was to try it, and if I liked the finished product, play with it some more.
Well, after my first two batches of Mr. Beer brew, a lager and a pale ale, I can attest to the simplicity and convenience of this product. The beer making process was somewhat simple. I followed the directions that came with the kit about sanitizing, brewing, bottling, and conditioning almost to the letter. Almost anyone with a high school reading level can make their own beer using a Mr. Beer kit without terribly screwing anything up. The beer that is fermenting in the Mr. Beer keg doesn’t make your entire house reek of a micro-brewery. As a matter of fact, the only time you do smell beer is when you’re preparing the wort and when bottling. Although I’m not really a fan of the light beers, I was quite happy with my first couple batches of home brew and have subsequently ordered more Mr. Beer refills from Amazon.
If you want fast, effort-less beer, visit BevMo! My own bit of advice to getting optimal flavor in your brew is to be patient. Let the beer brew (ferment) in the keg for two weeks to give it favor and alcohol content. Then after bottling, let it sit for two more weeks to fully carbonate. Finally, let it chill in the refrigerator for 2 weeks before enjoying your home brew. It’s the 2-2-2 rule! Bottoms up!
Rather than using glass bottles, which probably look better and feel more like beer in your hands, I prefer to use the plastic bottles. I think plastics are easier to clean, not prone to bursting or breaking like glass, and you can easily tell if your beer is fully carbonated by squeezing the bottle. Since this brew kit only came with 8 1-Liter bottles and I had multiple fermenters, I needed to get more bottles! Rather than paying $14.99 for the Mr. Beer empty bottles on Amazon, I decided to buy the 16 oz. plastic 7-Up bottles instead. One Mr. Beer fermenter will yield 16 of the 16 oz. bottles of beer. As long as you use plastic bottles made to hold carbonated beverages, you can use it to bottle your Mr. Beer home brew. If you want to use the smaller 12 oz. soda bottles, you will require 21 12 oz. bottles for your 2 gallon batch of Mr. Beer.
My only complaint is that Amazon doesn’t sell the other ingredients nor accessories sold only on the Mr. Beer website, such as the Unhopped Malt Extract which allows you to add additional flavor, body, alcohol and malt characteristics to your beer. At […], you have to pay quite a bit for shipping, and you only get free shipping if your order totals $99. However, with their Brew Club, members get $5 shipping on all club orders over $29.99. Happy green brewing!
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This review is from: Mr. Beer Premium Gold Edition Home Brew Kit (Kitchen)
I give this item five stars, not because it is the best homebrewing kit out there, but because it is probably the most economical choice for a person looking for an introduction to homebrewing.
I finished making my first batch of beer, and have the second batch fermenting now. My first batch was the American Blonde Ale that came with the kit. Being a pretty avid beer drinker, I will say it here that the beers that come with this kit are not going to knock your socks off. But I WILL say that it is still decent beer, and just knowing that you made the beer makes it all that much better. You can indeed buy better beer mixes from the Mr. Beer website, although it can be a little costly. Much of them are available here on amazon as well, and if you take advantage of 4-for-3 (buy three and get one free), it’s not too expensive. Anyway, I would still prefer to drink the basic beers that came with the kit than buy a pack of Coors/Bud in the store, because the experience of creating and eventually tasting your own homebrew is very enjoyable 🙂
The good news about this kit is that, if you decide to “graduate” from making basic kits from Mr. Beer, you can still use the supplies (the fermenter, the PET bottles) while customizing your own ingredients, instead of buying Mr. Beer refills. The fermenter is great because it’s just 2.5 gallons. It will make about twenty 12-oz. bottles of beer, and quite honestly, this is the best way to go for a lot of people. Most beer kits make 5 gallons of beer (or 45 12-oz. bottles), which is great if you are a hardcore beer drinker or really know what you are doing. But for beginners, making smaller batches is a great way to get your feet wet, and if things go bad (or you don’t like a batch for some reason), you are wasting less beer.
My recommendation: If you want to start understanding the basics of brewing beer without forking over a boatload of cash, get this kit. It can always be customized at a later date if you decide to get into more complex brewing. This is a small price to pay to begin learning the homebrew process, and to start enjoying your very own beer.
Also, if you get this kit, take note that although Mr. Beer says its beers are ready to drink within two weeks, you need to give them at least four. They should ferment for two weeks, then transfer to bottles to carbonate/condition for two weeks. It’s even recommended to then put them in the fridge for another two weeks before breaking them open.. if you have the self restraint to wait that long 🙂 This is additional conditioning time that allows the flavors to mesh together. You will definitely taste the difference. This is called the 2-2-2 rule (two weeks per stage of brewing).
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I’m really impressed with the kit and the beer it makes,
The minimum amount of time the mix needs to sit in the keg is 7 days — I let this first batch sit for 11. The longer the time in the keg, the more flavor it’s supposed to develop. I bottled the mix — 8 liters in all — and that was another simple process, going exactly as described in the instructions. The beer has to ferment in the bottles for no fewer than 7 days in order to carbonate. My 8 bottles are still sitting, after 8 days. I plan on letting them sit for another week before putting them in the fridge so they’ll be ‘conditioned’ in time for Christmas.
I did, however, make an extra bottle from the first batch, in an extra bottle I had. I drained the keg almost dry to do it, even pouring in some of the sludge that had settled at the bottom. The stuff was orange and cloudy! I let that sit for the minimum 7 days, and let it condition in the fridge for only 1 (although the instructions recommend at least a week). I wanted to try something close to the minimum standard for the mix and the kit in general…and I have a mug of the stuff next to me as I type. Final verdict on this ‘minimum mix’ — it’s quite good! It was adequately carbonated, and produced a smooth head that had a nice smell and flavor. The beer itself is about the same color as a typical American brew — Coors or Michelob — and has a very light flavor, with a slightly dry aftertaste. It’s something I could enjoy in the middle of summer. And remember: this, according to the instructions, is the swill. The better stuff will come out of those bottles that are going to ferment for another week before I cool them.
I’m fired up! I made my next mix today — American Blonde — which was also included in the set. I’ll let that sit in the keg even longer to see how the flavor develops. All in all, I’m really happy with this as a present, and even happier about what’s it’s produced. This isn’t just a gift that seems cool: it’s already exceeded my expectations.
This section added on 8 June 2009: I’m now carbonating my 17th two-gallon batch. Yes, that’s a lot of beer, considering that each batch makes 20-24 bottles, depending on how much water I decide to add (sometimes a little more if it’s a heavy brew with a lot of ingredients). ANYWAY, I’m still as fired up about this thing as I was when I got it. We’ve bought two six-packs and one twelve-pack of beer from the store since December, and that was mostly to harvest bottles for future use. I do not miss buying beer at the store…mine is better, and cheaper, too. My only recommendation is to get 12-oz brown glass bottles, a hand-held capper, and O2 barrier caps — then you can bottle your own ‘normal’ bottles, and you can reuse them. The 1-liter PET bottles that came with my set are fine, as they keep the carbonation well, but I don’t like opening that much beer at once unless I have people over. Standard bottles are far more convenient. Mr. Beer rocks. That is all.
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|Mr. Beer + Amazon = KISS,
Well, after my first two batches of Mr. Beer brew, a lager and a pale ale, I can attest to the simplicity and convenience of this product. The beer making process was somewhat simple. I followed the directions that came with the kit about sanitizing, brewing, bottling, and conditioning almost to the letter. Almost anyone with a high school reading level can make their own beer using a Mr. Beer kit without terribly screwing anything up. The beer that is fermenting in the Mr. Beer keg doesn’t make your entire house reek of a micro-brewery. As a matter of fact, the only time you do smell beer is when you’re preparing the wort and when bottling. Although I’m not really a fan of the light beers, I was quite happy with my first couple batches of home brew and have subsequently ordered more Mr. Beer refills from Amazon.
If you want fast, effort-less beer, visit BevMo! My own bit of advice to getting optimal flavor in your brew is to be patient. Let the beer brew (ferment) in the keg for two weeks to give it favor and alcohol content. Then after bottling, let it sit for two more weeks to fully carbonate. Finally, let it chill in the refrigerator for 2 weeks before enjoying your home brew. It’s the 2-2-2 rule! Bottoms up!
Rather than using glass bottles, which probably look better and feel more like beer in your hands, I prefer to use the plastic bottles. I think plastics are easier to clean, not prone to bursting or breaking like glass, and you can easily tell if your beer is fully carbonated by squeezing the bottle. Since this brew kit only came with 8 1-Liter bottles and I had multiple fermenters, I needed to get more bottles! Rather than paying $14.99 for the Mr. Beer empty bottles on Amazon, I decided to buy the 16 oz. plastic 7-Up bottles instead. One Mr. Beer fermenter will yield 16 of the 16 oz. bottles of beer. As long as you use plastic bottles made to hold carbonated beverages, you can use it to bottle your Mr. Beer home brew. If you want to use the smaller 12 oz. soda bottles, you will require 21 12 oz. bottles for your 2 gallon batch of Mr. Beer.
My only complaint is that Amazon doesn’t sell the other ingredients nor accessories sold only on the Mr. Beer website, such as the Unhopped Malt Extract which allows you to add additional flavor, body, alcohol and malt characteristics to your beer. At […], you have to pay quite a bit for shipping, and you only get free shipping if your order totals $99. However, with their Brew Club, members get $5 shipping on all club orders over $29.99. Happy green brewing!
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|Great for what it is,
I finished making my first batch of beer, and have the second batch fermenting now. My first batch was the American Blonde Ale that came with the kit. Being a pretty avid beer drinker, I will say it here that the beers that come with this kit are not going to knock your socks off. But I WILL say that it is still decent beer, and just knowing that you made the beer makes it all that much better. You can indeed buy better beer mixes from the Mr. Beer website, although it can be a little costly. Much of them are available here on amazon as well, and if you take advantage of 4-for-3 (buy three and get one free), it’s not too expensive. Anyway, I would still prefer to drink the basic beers that came with the kit than buy a pack of Coors/Bud in the store, because the experience of creating and eventually tasting your own homebrew is very enjoyable 🙂
The good news about this kit is that, if you decide to “graduate” from making basic kits from Mr. Beer, you can still use the supplies (the fermenter, the PET bottles) while customizing your own ingredients, instead of buying Mr. Beer refills. The fermenter is great because it’s just 2.5 gallons. It will make about twenty 12-oz. bottles of beer, and quite honestly, this is the best way to go for a lot of people. Most beer kits make 5 gallons of beer (or 45 12-oz. bottles), which is great if you are a hardcore beer drinker or really know what you are doing. But for beginners, making smaller batches is a great way to get your feet wet, and if things go bad (or you don’t like a batch for some reason), you are wasting less beer.
My recommendation: If you want to start understanding the basics of brewing beer without forking over a boatload of cash, get this kit. It can always be customized at a later date if you decide to get into more complex brewing. This is a small price to pay to begin learning the homebrew process, and to start enjoying your very own beer.
Also, if you get this kit, take note that although Mr. Beer says its beers are ready to drink within two weeks, you need to give them at least four. They should ferment for two weeks, then transfer to bottles to carbonate/condition for two weeks. It’s even recommended to then put them in the fridge for another two weeks before breaking them open.. if you have the self restraint to wait that long 🙂 This is additional conditioning time that allows the flavors to mesh together. You will definitely taste the difference. This is called the 2-2-2 rule (two weeks per stage of brewing).
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|