Brewing Beer with the PicoBrew Pico S: Racking, Kegging, and Tasting!

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So … 36 hours have passed, my beer should be carbonated; now it’s time to dial the CO2 regulator counterclockwise to close it and then (carefully) remove it. Now you insert the dispensing bung plug into the bung hole, and you’ll throw away the spent CO2 cartridge. Obviously, you’ll want to keep the CO2 regulator for future use.

Let’s have a taste, shall we? To dispense the beer, lift the red tab on the dispensing bung, and turn it counterclockwise to the “1” position, which opens the vent for serving.

Then, you pull out the serving spout.

After you pop the tab at the top, the spout pulls out about two inches.

It’s a pretty simple operation; to serve beer, you’ll twist the serving spout counterclockwise to open and clockwise to close. Take a look at my golden hop-magic.

Half-squeezed IPA is freaking delicious, and I basically brewed it with zero experience and mostly on my own — with the exception of a bit of help on brew-night from my husband.

So what’s my final verdict on the PicoBrew Pico S? In case it wasn’t obvious, I love it. Since receiving the review package from PicoBrew, I’ve ordered an extra serving keg and two more PicoPaks to brew; I feel like I have a new hobby! Best of all, I am brewing beer on my own that I would be proud to serve to anyone.

Even better, my husband told me that the beer I brewed was delicious and that he thought my results were as good or better than anything he had ever brewed with his setup. I’m not gonna lie; this made me feel immensely proud.

But wait; there’s more.

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About the Author

Judie Lipsett Stanford
Judie is the co-owner and Editor-in-Chief of Gear Diary, which she founded in September 2006. She got her start in 1999 writing software reviews at the now-defunct smaller.com; from mid-2000 through 2006, she wrote hardware reviews for and co-edited at The Gadgeteer. A recipient of the Sigma Kappa Colby Award for Technology, Judie has written for or been profiled by nationally known sites and magazines, and she has served on multiple industry hardware and software award panels. She is best known for her device-agnostic approach, enjoyment of exploring tech, gadgets, and gear, and her deep-diving, jargon-free reviews.