All Reviews
Every guide we've published, newest first.
How to Brew an Oktoberfest Lager from an Extract Kit
2026-10-02
An Oktoberfest lager extract kit gets you a clean, malty fall beer without a mash tun. Here is the brew day workflow, the gravity readings that matter, and the gear worth owning before you boil.
The Best Small Batch Home Brewing Kits for a First Batch
2026-09-22
A practical comparison of small batch home brewing kits, from one gallon starter sets to two gallon conical fermenters, plus the transfer gear that makes bottling day go smoother.
The Best Home Brewing Starter Kits and Brew-Day Gear for 2026
2026-09-22
A home brewing starter kit comparison covering a complete 2-gallon beginner set, an American cream ale ingredient kit, airlocks, a quiet pump, a mobile brew bench, and one stainless curveball.
Home Brewing Starter Kits and Kettles: What Actually Earns Bench Space
2026-09-22
A practical comparison of home brewing starter kits, refill packs, kettles, and all-in-one electric systems, matched to batch size, heat source, and what actually comes in the box.
Home Brewing Equipment Worth Buying: 6 Picks for Better Brew Days
2026-09-22
A practical look at home brewing equipment for small-batch brewers, from a 5-gallon stainless kettle and a 1-gallon starter kit to the temperature control and bench tools that make a brew day repeatable.
Best Home Brewing Starter Kits for Beginners: What Actually Ships in the Box
2026-09-22
A comparison of home brewing starter kits and extract kits, from 1-gallon stovetop setups to 5-gallon batches, covering what each product includes, which equipment it assumes you already own, and the brewer it fits.
Best Home Brewing Kits and Gear for Your First or Fifth Batch
2026-09-22
A practical comparison of home brewing kits and the gear around them, from 1-gallon starter setups and 5-gallon extract recipes to a stainless fermentor, matched to the batch size and the space you actually have.
Best Home Brewing Equipment: Kettles, Systems, and Bottling Gear
2026-09-22
A spec-first comparison of all-grain home brewing equipment, covering pre-drilled stainless kettles, two electric all-in-one systems, a bench capper, and a no-rinse cleanser.
Best Home Brewing Equipment for a Cleaner Brew Day
2026-09-22
The right home brewing equipment controls temperature, measures gravity honestly, and survives a full boil without scorching or leaking. These picks cover all-in-one systems, kettles, hydrometers, temperature controllers, and kegging gear.
A Smarter Brew Bench: Six Tools Worth the Counter Space
2026-09-22
A home brewing equipment roundup for the brew bench and the kitchen counter, covering a one-gallon mead kit, a 304 stainless immersion wort chiller, a wheeled stainless prep table, bulk clay field conditioner, a sourdough starter culture, and a stainless pet fountain.
Homebrew Bottle Cleaning Gear: Two Washers, One Kit, One Cat Fountain
2026-09-12
Homebrew bottle cleaning gear gets judged honestly here: two washer-sterilizer-dryers, one amber ingredient kit, and a stainless cat fountain sharing the same counter.
Home Brewing Starter Kits Compared: Which One Survives Batch One?
2026-09-12
Home brewing starter kits compared by a brewer who logs every batch. What each box actually gives you on brew day, what breaks first, and which one to buy.
Home Brewing Starter Kit vs Ingredient Kit: What to Buy First
2026-09-12
A home brewing starter kit is only half the decision. Here is the order I would buy these four pieces in, what each one actually does on brew day, and where beginners waste money.
Home Brewing Kits and a Refractometer: A Four-Way Bench Comparison
2026-09-12
A home brewing kits comparison built from 50+ logged batches: two beer ingredient kits, a one-gallon mead kit, and the dual-scale refractometer that keeps all of them measurable.
Home Brewing Gear That Survived My Brew Day Tests
2026-09-12
Home brewing gear compared by a brewer who logs every batch. Kegerators, refractometers, and Campden tablets that earned their spot on my bench.
From Grain Mill to Kegerator: Four Home Brewing Upgrades Compared
2026-09-12
Four pieces of home brewing equipment compared by a brewer who logs every batch: a 7.5-gallon kettle, a two-roller grain mill, a double-faucet kegerator kit, and the auto siphon that ends mouth-started transfers.
First Homebrew: Mr. Beer Kit vs an Amber Ingredient Kit vs an Add-On
2026-09-12
Beginner homebrew beer kits compared: a complete two-gallon setup, an amber ingredient kit for brewers who already own gear, and the inexpensive add-on that fixes what both kits leave out.
Essential Home Brewing Gear: 4 Tools Compared for Real Brew Days
2026-09-12
Essential home brewing gear compared after 50+ logged batches: an all-in-one electric system, a lager yeast, a temperature controller, and the hydrometer that keeps every number honest.
Bottling Drops, a Kegerator, and the Small Gear That Saves a Brew Day
2026-09-12
A working homebrewer compares homebrew bottling and kegging gear: carbonation drops, a single tap kegerator, adhesive fermometers, and one item that does not belong in a brewing cart.
Diacetyl Rest What It Is And When To Do It
2026-09-03
Diacetyl rest what it is and when to do it, explained by a reviewer who actually lives with the gear. No fluff, no marketing language, just what works and what doesn't.
How To Sanitize Home Brewing Equipment Properly
2026-08-31
How to sanitize home brewing equipment properly, explained by a reviewer who actually lives with the gear. No fluff, no marketing language, just what works and what doesn't.
Beer Fermentation Temperature Explained
2026-08-29
Beer Fermentation Temperature Explained Related: Best Fermentation Temperature Controllers: The Inkbird Files
The 6 Best All-Grain Brewing Systems (Grainfather, Anvil Foundry & Brewzilla, Side by Side)
2026-08-28
What is the our pick: grainfather g30 best for The Grainfather G30 is the benchmark for a reason. It's the system I reach for when I'm brewing a recipe I actually care about, and it's the one that's survived the most abuse without complaint.
Best Beer Brewing Ingredient Kits: Extract, All-Grain & Everything Between
2026-08-27
What is the craft a brew hefeweizen best for The biggest problem with this kit is that it's a 1-gallon kit, and you'll outgrow it by batch three. That's not a criticism of the beer itself, which is genuinely good.
Best Beer Brewing Kits for Beginners: 6 Starter Kits That Won't Collect Dust
2026-08-26
I started homebrewing on a dorm-room hot plate with a Mr. Beer kit that scorched so badly I invented what I called 'burnt adjunct lager.
Best Bottle Cappers: Bench vs. Wing, 400 Bottles Later
2026-08-25
I bottled batch 47 last Saturday: a 1.058 ESB that finished at 1.014, 5.8% ABV, 41 bottles in 22 minutes.
Best Bottle Washers: Never Rinse 50 Bottles by Hand Again
2026-08-24
Well, the marketing copy says these machines will “end bottle washing drudgery forever” and “sanitize better than your dishwasher.
Best Brew Kettles for 5–10 Gallon Batches: We Boiled in All of Them
2026-08-23
I’ve got a confession to make. I killed a batch of Irish stout in 2021 because I trusted a kettle’s welded thermometer over my own hydrometer.
Best Extract Brewing Kits: Big Flavor Without the All-Grain Fuss
2026-08-22
What is the our pick: northern brewer bourbon barrel porter best for The Bourbon Barrel Porter is the kit that made me stop apologizing for extract brewing.
Best Fermentation Temperature Controllers: The Inkbird Files
2026-08-21
What is the our pick: inkbird itc-308 best for The Inkbird ITC-308 is the controller I've recommended to every homebrewer who asks, and the one that's been sitting on top of my chest freezer since March of last year.
The 7 Best Homebrew Fermenters, From Bucket to Pressure Conical
2026-08-20
What is the fastrack 6.5 gallon fermenting bucket best for The version I own has a crack in the lid from where I dropped it on concrete in 2021. It still seals.
The 7 Best Home Brewing Kits of 2026, 50 Batches In
2026-08-19
What is the our pick: northern brewer starter set best for The Northern Brewer starter kit is the best first-kit value in the hobby, and it’s not close. The equipment is honest: a 6.
The 7 Best Homebrew Books, From First Batch to Master Brewer
2026-08-18
I still own my original copy of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, the one with the spiral binding and a wort stain on page 87 from a boilover that nearly.
Best Homebrew Cleaners & Sanitizers: Star San vs. PBW vs. One Step
2026-08-17
What is the five star star san 32 oz best for Let's get the complaint out of the way first: Star San foams like a shaken soda. If you're new, that foam will terrify you. It looks like you ruined your gear. You didn't.
Best Homebrew Hydrometers & Refractometers, Gravity-Checked Against My Lab Unit
2026-08-16
Should You Buy a Hydrometer or a Refractometer Buy both. The hydrometer is your source of truth for OG and FG. The refractometer is your speed tool for pre-boil checks and in-mash sampling. If you can only afford one, buy the hydrometer.
Best Homebrew Scales & Thermometers for Consistent Batches, Batch After Batch
2026-08-15
What is the our pick: craft a brew fermometer best for This is a strip of adhesive-backed liquid crystal that you stick on the side of your fermenter. It costs $8.99. It has no moving parts, no battery, and nothing to calibrate.
Best Keg Kits & Kegerators: Skip the Bottle-Capping Grind Forever
2026-08-14
What is the our pick: kegco bf stck-5t standard tower kegerator conversion kit best for The Kegco kit is the one I’d buy again, and I’m not saying that because it’s the most expensive thing on this list. At $174.
Consumer Reports Magazine December 2022 Our Top Picks
2026-08-13
Consumer Reports magazine issue, December 2022 Our Top Picks.
Extract vs. All-Grain Brewing: Which One Should You Actually Start With?
2026-08-12
Should you buy the Northern Brewer kit Yes, if you've never brewed a batch. This is the best first-kit value in the hobby. The equipment is honest, the ingredients are fresh, and the hydrometer means you're measuring instead of guessing. At $69.
Extract Vs All Grain Brewing Which Is Better
2026-08-11
Extract vs all grain brewing which is better, explained by a reviewer who actually lives with the gear. No fluff, no marketing language, just what works and what doesn't.
How Long Does Homebrew Take? The Honest Timeline, Batch by Batch
2026-08-10
Well, the marketing says a batch of homebrew is ready in "about two weeks." I've been logging every batch since 2014, and I can tell you the honest number.
How Long Does Homebrew Take From Brew Day To Glass
2026-08-09
How long does homebrew take from brew day to glass, explained by a reviewer who actually lives with the gear. No fluff, no marketing language, just what works and what doesn't.
How To Bottle Homebrew Without Oxidation
2026-08-08
Oxidation is the silent killer of homebrew. It doesn't show up in the fermenter. It shows up six weeks after bottling, when a beer that tasted bright on.
How to Brew Beer at Home: A Step-by-Step Guide From 50 Batches of Mistakes
2026-08-07
What is the our pick: beer brewing bliss: extract brewing basics best for This is the first book I'd hand to anyone who asks "how do I brew beer at home?
How To Fix Homebrew That Tastes Like Banana
2026-08-06
What is the drop your fermentation temp 5 to 10°f best for This is the move. It works because isoamyl acetate production roughly halves for every 5°F drop in fermentation temperature in the 60-75°F range.
How To Make A Starter For Liquid Yeast
2026-08-05
How to make a starter for liquid yeast, explained by a reviewer who actually lives with the gear. No fluff, no marketing language, just what works and what doesn't.
Hydrometer Vs Refractometer For Homebrew
2026-08-03
I keep both on my bench. I trust one of them more, and it's not the one with the digital screen.
Keg Vs Bottle Conditioning Which Is Better
2026-08-02
What is the keg vs bottle conditioning: which is better best for Forced carbonation in a corny keg finishes a batch in three days. Bottle conditioning takes three weeks. The beer comes out the same ABV.