American Porter 2 Gallon Homebrewing, Refill

Good beer extract

Ordered 3/12/2015 and was promptly shipped and was very fresh. The expire date was 1 year and several months out. This was my 4th Mr Beer brew and my best so far.This kit does a great job, no issues and I will be buying again soon I'm sure.Modifications -I wanted a little more ABV so I added an additional 1lb 2.4 oz Briess Amber LME (I was shooting for 1lb) and also added 1oz Hallertau hops to balance the additional malt. I used a glass carboy instead of the Mr. Beer keg since I had a carboy available.Recipe -I brought ~1.5 gallons of spring water to a boil, added the 1 lb 2.4 oz Amber Briess LME and the hops, boiled for 20 minutes. Burner off. Added the Mr Beer hopped extract, cooled in ice bath. Added spring water to about 2+ gallons for an OG of 1.054. I aerated the wort (shook the glass carboy for several minutes) and pitched the dry Mr. beer yeast. Fermentation took off within 8 hrs, the yeast did a great job and active fermentation tapered off within 5 days.I left it in the carboy for 4 weeks to finish. FG was 1.007, which is ~87% attenuation and ABV ~6.3%.I kegged straight to a corney keg, and forced carbonated.Taste-Malty and smooth, great head that sticks around. Nice finish and good ABV level.Additional thoughts -Mind your sanitation, I'd recommend getting some Star San and use as directed.Oktoberfest technically is a lager recipe but this kit is intended to be fermented at ale temperatures and does so very well. I would recommend keeping the fermentation temp on the low end ~68. My first few batches fermented warmer than ideal and you could tell.Also, do not be in a hurry! Let this sit for a few weeks at least. Dark ales should be 3-4 weeks. Green beer is not good!Summary -This kit was fresh, yeast performed well, the extract was tasty, and I ended up with a great brew.Will buy again!Update -That 2 gallons did not go far, the keg kicked tonight. :o(That was a really nice brew.I already have my next brew lined up but I'm very tempted to jump on the Mr. Beer website's 30% off sale and grab some for some double batches... that sale is going on for a few more days.(I gave in - double batches of Oktoberfest, Voodoo, and Dark Forest Stout are on the way :o)

I am really happy to see Mr. Beer is participating now on Amazon! I wish the description would provide some background about what the beer is like. I had to go to their website to figure out what kind of beer this refill is like. For some reason, the URL will not paste into this comment box. Here is the product info:"Also referred to as Märzenbier, this malty, deep amber colored beer features a smooth body, toffee-like malt richness, and a full, biscuit like bouquet. Sample the celebrated beer of Munich's world famous Oktoberfest."I got a Mr. Beer keg kit back in 2006. I did some brewing for two or three years but then got caught up in grad school and work. I am getting back into the swing of things and trying out the various flavors. This Oktoberfest seemed a little light on taste. I served it at a party and people said they tasted fruits, nuts, and coffee. I thought, it was a decent batch but not the best flavor I have brewed before with Mr. Beer.Finally, ignore the initial reviewer of this product. I did not have trouble realizing that the booster was already included (starts at 3.7%ABV), added some sugar (increasing it 1.5%), and filled up the whole plastic keg. The instructions are clear. I also like not having to include the booster because it didn't always dissolve quickly in boiling water. The prepped malt is a nice change!

This was a last minute purchase to prep some beer for a party. Had my doubts…but was happy all around. Easy to make and was very tasty. 2 gallons goes fast when it has good flavor. Will buy again!

The measurements on the label must be for a newer brewing kit as mine does not have the same graduations on the keg, not a huge deal that there is some guesswork. The flavor has a little bitterness to it that I would not expect with a lager. Overall not bad, and it does make a lot of beer with few needed ingredients.

This was my first attempt at brewing my own beer. I am impressed! Directions were easy to follow, and I’m amazed at how good my beer is!

I use my Mr Beer about 6 times a year, love it! This is one of my favorite flavors...

This was my very first Brew ever, and I ended up with weak tasting beer. I am kicking myself for not taking gravity readings like I could have. The overall taste of this beer is good but I probably did something wrong or added too much water or something to make it come out weaker than it probably could have been.Liquid extract kits seem to be pretty cool, but you need to practice with just water to learn how your equipment behaves. Like siphoning water into bottles and messing with your stuff before you actually have beer/wort flowing. It also helps to have super hot water running out of a sink or whatever to get the remaining extract out of the can to add to your Brew.Also, if you are brand new to Brewing go ahead and Prime your beer bucket with corn sugar / water instead of the little drops. It is so much easier.

First time making it, I did what the instructions said except left ferment exactly 3 weeks, then bottled with sugar and tried one after 2 weeks (as the bottle was rock hard) and it tasted really good, but a slight sweet side. It was good and very bubbly (I used a slight excess sugar than recommended, which is why probably the sweet to it, it wasn't 'apple cider tasting' as many have said after a couple weeks). I waited a few more days and had a few more. Good again, not really any sweetness but these 2 bottles were just a bit cloudy when pouring the second glass out of the same bottle (like the first). Which is to be expected. I'm leaving the rest bottle for 4 weeks and I'm sure it will be a great beer. Longer you wait, the better the beer. I'd have to say it tasted almost exactly like dos equis for some reason. I liked it, and won't need a liquor store any longer. Will try a couple others like the Cdn blonde and Am light (since it came with the kit, although I hate light beer)

I've been using the Mr Beer system for the past couple of months and the first beer i did was the one that came with the kit called 'american light', it was ok but not exactly to my tastes so i thought i'd try the 'St Patrick's Irish Stout'. Well it turned out perfectly, actually a delicious beer that i'd be proud to pour for friends or family and this is one that will no go on repeat. I dont know if it helped but i used beer conditioner rather than sugar and i put slightly more than the recommended amount into the bottles. This one is worth a go if you enjoy a stout.

Came with the bottle wash which always seemed missing when purchased in store and arrived quickly.Not the best value but these kits are never as cheap as making beer from scratch.

Not sure who to fault for this, but the "best before" date on the bottom of this product shows that it expired back in March 2015 which was over a year-and-a-half ago. (There's no way for anyone to know this until they open the box because it's only stamped on the bottom of the tin, not anywhere on the outside of the box.) Still, we're hoping that it'll be okay and will give it a try.

What can I say, it makes delicious beer. Ensure you want to leave it for 6 to 8 weeks, definitely no less than 4. I left it a little longer than I should have on my second batch and it went bad. Also I'm sure you follow the directions closely, disinfecting everything appropriately is very important. It's quite surprising how tasty this homemade beer actually is.