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Northern Brewer Homebrew Starter Kit

Last updated: November 16, 2020


This homebrew kit has rightfully earned our Best Overall rating. It has everything needed to brew at home, including a five-gallon steel kettle. It also includes additional key features, like a long spoon and auto-siphon, which many other options lack. You won't find a better kit to guide you through brewing your first batch.

Northern Brewer Homebrew Starter Kit
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We looked at the top Homebrew Kits and dug through the reviews from some of the most popular review sites. Through this analysis, we've determined the best Homebrew Kit you should buy.

Northern Brewer - Essential Brew. Share. Enjoy. HomeBrewing Starter Set, Equipment and Recipe for 5 Gallon Batches (Block Party...

Northern Brewer - Essential Brew. Share. Enjoy. HomeBrewing Starter Set, Equipment and Recipe for 5 Gallon Batches (Block Party...
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Product Details

Key Takeaway: Take the guesswork out of homebrewing with this all-inclusive homebrew kit.

In our analysis of 47 expert reviews, the Northern Brewer Homebrew Starter Kit placed 6th when we looked at the top 12 products in the category. For the full ranking, see below.

From The Manufacturer

Beer Share Enjoy BREW BREWING MADE SIMPLE Brewing with our signature kit is just as easy as making mac ‘n’ cheese.Here’s how it works: You choose the beer style. The kit lands on your doorstep. Open the box. Get brewing. Brew Share Enjoy THE ONLY THING BETTER THAN BREWING… … is brewing with your friends. We make it easy, so you can sit back and sip beer while you work: Print instructions with visuals Digital manuals Online videos The Brew Share Enjoy makes 2 cases of your very own craft beer. More than enough to show off to your friends. Brew Share Enjoy QUALITY INGREDIENTS If you’re reading this, you appreciate good beer. Or someone in your life does. Which means you need a kit with truly high-quality ingredients: Premium grains and malt Flavorful & aromatic hops Expert-selected yeast Think you already love craft beer? Wait ‘til you try your own. DESIGNED BY BREWMASTERS FOR THE BEST BREWING EXPERIENCE Brew Share Enjoy Brew Share Enjoy Brew Share Enjoy SERVING THE HOMEBREWER COMMUNITY SINCE 1993 Talking about brewing is almost as fun as brewing; having a beer while talking about brewing gives it a run for its money. We believe this conversation is important, ongoing, dynamic, and bridges the gaps of age, gender, politics, etc. We bring homebrew to the masses (classes, demonstrations, competitions, beer festivals, and advertising outside hobby publications), Northern Brewer has been in the thick of it since 1993. THE PERFECT STARTER KIT FOR CRAFT BEER ENTHUSIASTS We’ve built this all-inclusive kit to be fun and foolproof with some of the most trusted instruction in homebrewing. Rest assured that no matter what your method of learning is, your first homebrew is sure to be a success. WATCH. LEARN. ENJOY. Our Brewmasters are very passionate about brewing and want you to have an amazing brewing experience. Watch our detailed step by step brewmaster videos so you too can brew your best. Someday we want homebrewing to be as common a household craft in America as vegetable gardening, and we know that our hobby/craft/shared passion/obsession won’t get there through complacency

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Our Expert Consultant

Julie Chernoff
Culinary Expert

Julie Chernoff is a long-time member of Les Dames d’Escoffier (past president of the Chicago Chapter, and current co-chair of the LDEI Legacy Awards Committee), the Association of Food Journalists (AFJ) and the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

Chernoff is the dining editor of Better, a lifestyle website and print magazine. Her journalism started in the test kitchens of Weight Watchers Magazine. She holds a BA in English from Yale University and is a graduate of the California Culinary Academy. She has spent the last few decades styling, photographing, teaching, developing recipes, editing, thinking and writing about food.

Expert Reviews


What reviewers liked

The other standout component is the spoon. Of the 23 starter kits we looked at, this was one of only four that included a spoon (all of them 21 inches long); it was also one of four out of the seven kits we tested that came with an auto-siphon instead of a racking cane.
- New York Times Wirecutter
The best thing about this kit is that it truly has everything you need to brew beer at home. In addition to the 5-gallon stainless steel kettle, it comes with an auto-siphon instead of the more-difficult-to-use racking cane. The kit also includes very clear easy-to-follow instructions that are laminated. Beer brewing can be a messy business, so believe us — You'll appreciate the lamination when it's time to wipe those instructions clean.
- Business Insider
Extras include a long stainless spoon to stir your wort, a bottle brush to clean reusable glass, and bottle caps—something some kits inexplicably leave out.
- Reviewed
This beer making kit takes things up a notch from some of the more streamlined kits available. It includes a 6.5-gallon fermenter with airlock, bottling bucket with spigot, a bottle filler, 5-gallon stainless brew kettle, a spoon, auto siphon, sanitizer, oxygen wash, bottle capper and more.
- The Spruce Eats
It comes with every component to make the most of your brews, including foolproof instructions that will make you feel like a pro even if it is your first time seeing a fermenter.
- Beer Collections
Amber pale ale recipe and all ingredients included with kit
- Best Home Brewing Kit
What’s special about this kit is that it includes a lot of essentials that most other kits seem to leave out. Things like a 5-gallon stainless steel brew kettle, a 21” stainless steel spoon and their Block Party Amber Ale recipe kit,
- Beer & Wine Reviews
This home brewery kit not only comes with all of the necessary brewing equipment, accessories and tools required to make a small batch of beer or even gallons of beer, but it also comes with the ingredients and IPA beer recipe kits for an amber ale (malt extract, grains, and hops included).
- 52 Brews
Another great feature is that grains and malt come raw. While it makes the process a bit longer, it gives you a more extensive range of opportunities.
- Homebrew Academy

What reviewers didn't like

The Brew Share Enjoy kit doesn’t include a hydrometer. This is not necessary to brew right out of the box, but if you want to know how alcoholic your beer is, and if you want to know when primary fermentation has finished, you need to buy one.
- New York Times Wirecutter
You don't get a hydrometer, so you can't determine your ABV and might leave yourself open to nasty bottle bombs. Also missing are sanitizer, a thermometer, and bottles.
- Reviewed
The kit is designed to provide everything you need out of the box to brew your first five gallons of beer, except that you will need to buy the bottles once you’re done with fermentation.
- The Spruce Eats
Lids are not 100% airtight
- Beer Collections
The secondary brewing fermenter is plastic, not glass
- Best Home Brewing Kit
The kit does not include a glass carboy as the Ale recipe included does not require the second step fermentation, but other recipes you may want to try later could. If you want to bottle your beer for easier storage and sharing you’ll need to buy those separate, as well as a hydrometer to test gravity.
- Beer & Wine Reviews
Beer is susceptible to light, and those containers can put yours at risk. You'll need to take special care of your mixture. Otherwise, you run the risk of spoiling it.
- Homebrew Academy

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View our Homebrew Kit buying guide for in-depth advice and recommendations.

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