Pinter - anyone got one and any good?
Discussion
A friend has bought one, not used it yet but I’m looking forward to the results . Only does ten pints so depending on how much you drink,you will possibly need three of them. One fermenting,one conditioning, and one drinking.. I think they do an extra barrel for exactlty this scenario..
fourfoldroot said:
A friend has bought one, not used it yet but I’m looking forward to the results . Only does ten pints so depending on how much you drink,you will possibly need three of them. One fermenting,one conditioning, and one drinking.. I think they do an extra barrel for exactlty this scenario..
That's useful to know. Please give me some feedback when you've tested please mate Just got one and have a brew started now.
First impressions are good though, seems well made, the packaging is awesome.
Takes about 20 minutes to do, my only complaints really are
1. Instructions are video based and yes you can pause and go back, the video is too quick with little text to go with (that is a personal preference)
2. It says that you do not need to rinse the brewing dock out after the purifying, but I still had some purifying crystals left in mine, the bottle says do not ingest, so I rinsed it, that needs clarification
3. My handles a little bent on the cap
4. Doesn't say you need space on draining board, but that is more my issue and not really thinking about what I was doing, and being lazy by not putting dishes away.
Looking forward to it, I have the hazy cider brewing at the moment, not sure how I am going to fit in the fridge to condition it, it's not big but it isn't small, 1.5 times bigger than one of those mini kegs you can buy.
First impressions are good though, seems well made, the packaging is awesome.
Takes about 20 minutes to do, my only complaints really are
1. Instructions are video based and yes you can pause and go back, the video is too quick with little text to go with (that is a personal preference)
2. It says that you do not need to rinse the brewing dock out after the purifying, but I still had some purifying crystals left in mine, the bottle says do not ingest, so I rinsed it, that needs clarification
3. My handles a little bent on the cap
4. Doesn't say you need space on draining board, but that is more my issue and not really thinking about what I was doing, and being lazy by not putting dishes away.
Looking forward to it, I have the hazy cider brewing at the moment, not sure how I am going to fit in the fridge to condition it, it's not big but it isn't small, 1.5 times bigger than one of those mini kegs you can buy.
My mate (as above) bought one. He tried a brew but it was very cloudy using the shortest brewing and conditioning times. I advised him to leave it for a few days and try it again. Sadly by then the tap started leaking so he lost the entire brew. He rang Pinter and they sent him a replacement improved tap and a new kit foc by return post so top marks for customer service. He is now having dry January so has lent it to me. I have brewed American IPA. I have given it 8 days to brew and settle before removing the brewing dock. Tomorrow will be 5 th day of conditioning .
I shall report back tomorrow evening with tasting notes and a photo.
I shall report back tomorrow evening with tasting notes and a photo.
I tried a mate's brew (stop sniggering at the back!) over the NY period, all within COVID guidelines of course, and thought it was superb...I think it was the IPA. Have since ordered my own which finally arrived yesterday. I think the instructions work quite well as online videos as long as you pause etc as you go along. Also had a few purifying crystals left in the brewing dock so I did rinse those out just in case. Now looking forward to the first brew of the Republic Lager in a week or so.
So far, so good and it's encouraging that some new lines are being added to the line up of beers.
So far, so good and it's encouraging that some new lines are being added to the line up of beers.
I would recommend the Phillips Perfect Draft.
Huge range of kegs with more being added all the time, has something for everyone from Stella and bud to tiny rebel craft IPA's.
Roughly 10 pints per keg and it chills them for you so fridge space needed.
Only negative is that the price has gone up for the kegs quite a bit since I first got one many years ago.
£5 back on every keg you return also.
ETA completely different level to the sub and no foam when you start pouring.
Huge range of kegs with more being added all the time, has something for everyone from Stella and bud to tiny rebel craft IPA's.
Roughly 10 pints per keg and it chills them for you so fridge space needed.
Only negative is that the price has gone up for the kegs quite a bit since I first got one many years ago.
£5 back on every keg you return also.
ETA completely different level to the sub and no foam when you start pouring.
Slightly disappointing.. it tastes ok but hasn’t cleared. I certainly wouldn’t describe it as superb. Also when I turned carbonation dial to off it released the pressure and a load of foam that spilled all over the insides of the fridge. Had to turn it back to carbonation again to stop it.
Hmm. Will leave it a few days to settle and try again.
Well I have just taken the docking station off mine, couple of tips, definitely do this slowly in the sink, the other is use the handle on the back to hold it and move it, because if you accidentally press on the carbonation dial this happens.
It does not fit in my small fridge at all, so I have opted for the shed, what this means come summer (if it is any good) is that I will need a bigger fridge, from above post though, I think touching the carbonation dial maybe wise to do it with a cloth over it, from what I understand it is a non return valve air vent, so the possibility is that it (as I now know) fire cider all over your leg.
I tasted some of the brewing dock residue, hopefully my guts are as hardy is I think they are, but a mere taste, fruity, very sweet, I am looking forward to it.
It does not fit in my small fridge at all, so I have opted for the shed, what this means come summer (if it is any good) is that I will need a bigger fridge, from above post though, I think touching the carbonation dial maybe wise to do it with a cloth over it, from what I understand it is a non return valve air vent, so the possibility is that it (as I now know) fire cider all over your leg.
I tasted some of the brewing dock residue, hopefully my guts are as hardy is I think they are, but a mere taste, fruity, very sweet, I am looking forward to it.
Tried some yesterday, found it really cloudy so I have left it another day and will try it later, flavour is good, but found it went flat quite quickly, I will persevere with it and see what happens, I am not overly fussy about it being crystal clear, I have drunk much worse than that before
Right, just poured another off.
Yesterday after one day conditioning
Two days conditioning
It does seem to be a little clearer but not noticeably, the taste is the same and it is pretty good to be fair, I am not sure what to make of it, whether that's right or not as it is supposed to be hazy apple
ETA: Their website says the following
"Sweet, moreish and seductively tart. Bursting with flavour from Herefordshire apples to produce a perfect session drink.
Developing Your Cider
Our brewing times get you an incredible Fresh Cider. You can develop your cider further by brewing for longer. Fermenting apple cider for up to 5 days in total and conditioning for up to 7 days in total will increase clarity and produce a more rounded and clear taste.
Type: Cider
ABV: 4.5%
Makes: 10 Pints
Brewing Time: 3 days
Conditioning Time: 1 day"
Personally would have preferred that to be on the instructions as opposed to the 4 day brewing time
Yesterday after one day conditioning
Two days conditioning
It does seem to be a little clearer but not noticeably, the taste is the same and it is pretty good to be fair, I am not sure what to make of it, whether that's right or not as it is supposed to be hazy apple
ETA: Their website says the following
"Sweet, moreish and seductively tart. Bursting with flavour from Herefordshire apples to produce a perfect session drink.
Developing Your Cider
Our brewing times get you an incredible Fresh Cider. You can develop your cider further by brewing for longer. Fermenting apple cider for up to 5 days in total and conditioning for up to 7 days in total will increase clarity and produce a more rounded and clear taste.
Type: Cider
ABV: 4.5%
Makes: 10 Pints
Brewing Time: 3 days
Conditioning Time: 1 day"
Personally would have preferred that to be on the instructions as opposed to the 4 day brewing time
Edited by pits on Tuesday 26th January 15:19
Here we are after 12 days conditioning. I think it may have been user error the cloudiness pictured in my previous post, as I think I turned the carbonation dial off too quickly, instead of over 5 seconds to gently release the pressure.
Anyway, it has now cleared well, any haziness is just condensation on the glass. Tastes as good as pub beer. Certainly much better than my usual kit homebrew efforts. I will definitely be doing another brew when this has been drunk. They are gradually introducing more kits including a stout that I want to try.
Anyway, it has now cleared well, any haziness is just condensation on the glass. Tastes as good as pub beer. Certainly much better than my usual kit homebrew efforts. I will definitely be doing another brew when this has been drunk. They are gradually introducing more kits including a stout that I want to try.
Mine has not cleared at all, but I have come to the conclusion that I have ballsed it up a bit.
I bottled it all, and of course in the cloudiness of it all didn't see how much sediment was in there, they have now settled and there is loads of sediment, so tonight I have taken all the bottles out and strained it through some kitchen paper, I know I will lose some fizz, but to be honest it tastes good flat.
I am going to keep going with it, there seems to be a lot of negativity towards them, but I hope it works, it feels a little rushed and I don't think they expected such a surge of people buying and errors have been made, but it isn't bad for what it is, I would easily do £75 a week in booze anyway at the pub, so within a week or so it would have paid for itself (if you had brewed enough)
Lager next, but I am not really looking to do it, as I don't really like lager that much anymore unless it is a crisp Germans Pilsner.
Definitely brew longer, definitely condition longer.
I bottled it all, and of course in the cloudiness of it all didn't see how much sediment was in there, they have now settled and there is loads of sediment, so tonight I have taken all the bottles out and strained it through some kitchen paper, I know I will lose some fizz, but to be honest it tastes good flat.
I am going to keep going with it, there seems to be a lot of negativity towards them, but I hope it works, it feels a little rushed and I don't think they expected such a surge of people buying and errors have been made, but it isn't bad for what it is, I would easily do £75 a week in booze anyway at the pub, so within a week or so it would have paid for itself (if you had brewed enough)
Lager next, but I am not really looking to do it, as I don't really like lager that much anymore unless it is a crisp Germans Pilsner.
Definitely brew longer, definitely condition longer.
I’ve just put my first APA in the fridge. Done an extra couple of days initially, and I’ll do an extra couple of days in this stage too.
There are a few bits to the kit that could be better .. the arrow stickers have already started peeling off; the metal circle decorative piece by the handle was loose in the box on arrival; and (unless it’s my eyes) there’s no internal level to indicate where to fill to (definitely not a red one like the instructions say). But, I’ll do the brew and then probably moan a bit at them
ETA I’m quite pleased with the brew. Very lively on day 1, much less so on day 3 (well on its way to flat). For an APA it’s perhaps a little too cloudy but is tasty enough, no real complaints. Will definitely be trying some other beers, and will probably get another keg so can have two different brews on the go.
There are a few bits to the kit that could be better .. the arrow stickers have already started peeling off; the metal circle decorative piece by the handle was loose in the box on arrival; and (unless it’s my eyes) there’s no internal level to indicate where to fill to (definitely not a red one like the instructions say). But, I’ll do the brew and then probably moan a bit at them
ETA I’m quite pleased with the brew. Very lively on day 1, much less so on day 3 (well on its way to flat). For an APA it’s perhaps a little too cloudy but is tasty enough, no real complaints. Will definitely be trying some other beers, and will probably get another keg so can have two different brews on the go.
Edited by bigandclever on Wednesday 10th February 21:53
My Dad got me one of these which arrived today, and at lunch I put my first brew of Pilsner together.
Same as some comments here, there were some purification crystals still there which I rinsed quickly. The rest of the process was spot on really, and it is now resting in our bedroom for a few days (currently got no heating downstairs so figured best to keep it warm/room temp in the bedroom)
Having never done anything at all like this, I'm not overly confident that I'm going to nail it first time - I really struggle to believe I'm going to have a beautiful clear, fizzy Pilsner in a week or so. And the requirement to put it in the fridge for a few days is going to be tough - I think we'll have to have a fridge rather bare of food for a bit!
Question I have is that presumably it'll need to live in the fridge (given Pilsner is meant to be served cold?)??
It'll be interesting to see how I get on, but at this stage quite excited to give it a go.
Same as some comments here, there were some purification crystals still there which I rinsed quickly. The rest of the process was spot on really, and it is now resting in our bedroom for a few days (currently got no heating downstairs so figured best to keep it warm/room temp in the bedroom)
Having never done anything at all like this, I'm not overly confident that I'm going to nail it first time - I really struggle to believe I'm going to have a beautiful clear, fizzy Pilsner in a week or so. And the requirement to put it in the fridge for a few days is going to be tough - I think we'll have to have a fridge rather bare of food for a bit!
Question I have is that presumably it'll need to live in the fridge (given Pilsner is meant to be served cold?)??
It'll be interesting to see how I get on, but at this stage quite excited to give it a go.
Hi UtH, I am by no means an expert as only on 2nd brew......
The greater good pinter website on Instructions page has a tips and tricks section. It recommends a slightly cooler fermentation stage and cooler conditioning. Personally I would give it a week for each. It also recommends using filtered bottled spring water for lagers.
One other tip, when moving the carbonation dial, do it slowly, otherwise it disturbs all the sediment. Good luck.
The greater good pinter website on Instructions page has a tips and tricks section. It recommends a slightly cooler fermentation stage and cooler conditioning. Personally I would give it a week for each. It also recommends using filtered bottled spring water for lagers.
One other tip, when moving the carbonation dial, do it slowly, otherwise it disturbs all the sediment. Good luck.
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