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Brewcrew86 · 02-01-2012, 01:37 AM

I am going to brew a cream ale soon. I was wondering how the brewers best kits compare to Midwest, northern, or Austin homebrew? My LHBS carries bb.

Thanks for the help!

**Austinhomebrew** · 02-01-2012, 02:08 AM

I am biased but these people seemed to like the Austin Homebrew kit:

Comment by Zack F
I brewed this for my wife, thinking that I wouldn't like it much since I'm a hophead. My wife loved it, I loved it, everyone who tasted it loved it, and it was gone in a week! This is a simple crowd pleaser that I will be making more of.

Comment by Josh G
One of the best beers I've made yet. The creamy aftertaste was great! I will be brewing this one more often.

Comment by Andrew F
This was an awesome beer! It took about 3 weeks to carbonate, and it was amazing. I gave a few bottles to my sister for her and her husband, now they want to pay me to make it for them lol. I will definitely be brewing this again, but I might have to do double batches so it lasts a bit longer. Thanks AHS

Forrest

maffewl · 02-01-2012, 02:26 AM

I would say they would be close to the same, with the edge going to the homebrew shops, if you are using extract. My guess is that the recipes created by the homebrew shops would have more thought put into them, and probably fresher ingredients. The yeast will make a difference too, since I think BB comes with dry yeast that has been sitting at room temp for who knows how long. Either way, I would support one of the brew stores before buying a commercial kit, but that's just me. Those are some of the big names on your list, I would also take a look at Rebel Brewer. Like I said though, in terms of quality, I don't know that there would be a drastic difference, but I'd support the homebrew stores.

**HopSong** · 02-02-2012, 03:43 AM

I've been VERY happy with all the BB kits I've done.

**Austinhomebrew** · 02-02-2012, 06:55 AM

Nothing wrong with Brewers Best kits.

Forrest

**Airplanedoc** · 02-02-2012, 07:34 AM

I made 1 a while back it was ok. I don't have a Local hbs its more like a regional HBS so I order most of my kits from Northern Brewer. However, I was ready for a kit so I picked one up when I was over that way. I would certainly buy another if I were in the market for a kit and heading toward my RHBS

cmendo2005 · 02-02-2012, 07:41 AM

I've picked up a few Brewer's best kits and they've always turned out pretty great so personally I'd say give it a try. Never tried the cream ale yet however, let us know how it is!

MikeWI · 02-02-2012, 01:48 PM

My first batch was the Brewer's Best Cream Ale, which I've been drinking for the last week or so. I love it, but I really can't compare against any of the other kits. It's fruity, but that's been mellowing out as it matures. It's crisp and the foam retention is getting better with time. I compare it to a fresher, more flavorful Miller Genuine Draft. It was also dead simple to make, which was great for my first batch. It'll be three weeks in the bottle this Saturday.

I'd say to compare the ingredients if you can. BB has it on their website, but they only list the hops as "bittering" and "flavor". And see if one has more of something that appeals to you (hops, ABV, simplicity, etc).

Mike

Magnum25 · 02-02-2012, 08:30 PM

I've done 4 BB kits and they have all come out nice. I also recently did partial mash kits from AHS. The AHS kits were fun to make and one step closer to all grain, but I didn't need any additional equipment. I can't wait to see how the beer comes out. AHS delivered very timely, and the packaging was great. All of the ingredients seemed very fresh. I will go to AHS and my local going forward.

RRR_BrewCo · 02-02-2012, 09:03 PM

I made the bb cream ale kit with one slight change. I brewed it according to the kit directions, primary fermented for 2 weeks, secondary for one week, then did one additional week in the secondary with some whole cascade hops to dry hop. Gave it a beautiful aroma and was a huge success.