B0179ZH89Y

This is a great basic starter home brewing kit. I brewed the Block Party Amber Ale that came with the kit and it surpassed my expectations… delicious! A couple of notes: buy some extra sanitizer because the kit only comes with enough to make 1 gallon. I was expecting the fermentation to bubble co2 from the airlock. After a week I did not think it was fermenting as there was no bubbling so I added another pitch of yeast that I bought from a local brew shop. What I now realize is the bucket will allow gas to release around the edges as it is not sealed air tight locked with a gasket hence the lack of bubbling activity. Also, don’t bother opening your bottled beer after just one week. Give it at least 2 weeks to bottle condition even though it is hard to wait. The finished product is great and may even improve some in the coming weeks if it lasts that long. I bottled close to 50 (12 ounce) bottles. Enjoy!

This is my first time brewing. Everything is included in this kit to make 5 gal (46 bottles -12 oz ea) of Amber Ale EXCEPT the bottles. You will need pry top glass bottles. Here was my time schedule:

4 hrs for brewing day
3 wks for fermentation (bubbling stopped after 4 days, but I let it set for 3 wks to clear)
2 hrs for bottling day (messy)
2 wks for carbonation

PROS-
Fast shipping, fresh ingredients.
The online video instructions were very helpful and needed.
The telephone support was good.
Sturdy, reusable products.
Good tasting ale (but with homebrew taste), not bitter, clear body with medium foam that doesn’t last long.

CONS-
The laminated two page instructions weren’t detailed enough.
The 2 oz of sanitizing powder only makes two gallons of solution (big problem), and is different than the starsan liquid used in the online video.
The lid is difficult to pry off the fermenter bucket, use a screwdriver.
The room temperature for fermentation is not specified. The amber ale instruction says optimum yeast temperature is 57° – 77° F. But fermentation stopped when room temperature dropped below 65°F.
Bottle capper is tricky, press too hard it’ll break off the bottle top, too light it won’t seal. Two weeks later, three caps leaked, when I pried them off, the bottle top broke, the ale inside was flat.

Husband LOVES this. Bought it based on other reviews saying you couldn’t go wrong and happily, they were right! My husband is now on his second brew. It does take time and commitment to the process and it will stink up your house on “cook night”, but if you have the interest in brewing your own beer and are more than just curious to do it, this kit is a good starting place. The company offers lots of support and information as well as a place to purchase additional brew recipes and supplies. One thing we didn’t consider was once it was made how to store it. Duh. Obviously bottles are the answer, so we bought two 24 packs of bottles (it was cheaper through them) and the next kit. My husband also bought a bottle holder, a sterilizer, thermometer, cleaner and some sterilizer solution. He might have bought a few more things that have gone under the radar…I told him he needs to cool it with the spending already. He still WANTS a hydrometer to measure alcohol content. Anyway, you really do need the supplies if you plan to make more brews. 😀 So keep in mind that the starter kit is wonderful, but you will definitely see some additional expenses after you buy it. That said, my husband really enjoys the process (he is a reader and spent some good time learning about the different stages of brewing and how to avoid various newbie mistakes. AND, in case you are wondering, the first batch came out very good tasting which is a big bonus and incentive to keep making more.