This clever homebrewer turned me into a beer master in just 9 days
Over the past few weeks I’ve transformed part of my kitchen into a mini bar and brewery, after devoting some counter space to the Igulu F1 smart beer brewer.
As the name suggests, this neat, barrel-shaped device is a smart home appliance, specifically designed for brewing beer at home – or wine, or cider, or kombucha, if you’re not looking for something alcoholic. Additionally, you can insert a compatible keg into the machine to serve pints immediately if you don’t want to wait for a batch of your own brew to be ready.
If you do make your own beer, this smart device promises to take all the hassle off your hands. It can automatically change the temperature from 35°F-86°F (2°C-30°C) to best suit the needs of your brew. Thanks to an automatic pressure management system, if the Igulu F1 brewer notices that the fermentation process is building up too much pressure, it can release some of it to return to a safe value. This should prevent your system from exploding; something that can happen if you are not careful when brewing with a manual kit.
To see if brewing beer at home is really as easy as Igulu suggests, I thought I’d give the F1 a try myself, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the results. So much so that I’m already brewing my second batch.
My beer brewing redemption arc
I have exceptionally limited experience in the art of beer brewing. I helped my dad with some beer-in-a-bag kits when I was a teenager (the results tasted like day-old urine) and even though my biotech major briefly brewed beer, all I remember of it was that reading is autobrewery syndrome – a condition where your body essentially becomes a brewery; you eat carbohydrates and then wandering gut microbes produce alcohol in you. If I contract that, something has gone seriously wrong.
It’s not out of the question: I worked in a pub for a summer when I was home from university and was never asked to work there again, so you can guess how that went.
To help me get started on a more successful brewing adventure, Igulu sent me three of his bagged brew kits. If you’re an inexperienced brewer like me, this is an excellent place to start. Similar to an alcoholic Hello Fresh delivery, they come with pre-portioned ingredients and instructions.
Additionally, once you’ve followed the recipe and added all the ingredients to the F1’s removable barrel, simply place it back into the machine’s tank and then tap a spot on the machine’s logo with an included RFID chip machine. This starts a pre-programmed brewing process that does everything for you: manipulate the pressure and temperature to meet the beer’s precise needs, making the beer as cold as 35°F and as hot as 86°F (2°C and 30°C).
After waiting nine days for the machine to say my beer would last (and then letting the brew cool), I was finally able to drink some. I was happy to invite some family to come and taste it too, and I think my father summed up the result best: “It tastes like beer.”
Even if this isn’t the highest compliment, I consider that mission accomplished.
Flying near a disaster
The only thing I would criticize about the Igulu beer brewing machine is that the instructions are not always 100% clear.
For example, the instructions on the back of the beer pouch I used gave me precise details on when and how to add all but one of the ingredients inside. Then I had to do quite a bit of online research until I found a video explaining what to do to avoid disaster.
Additionally, the main machine’s instruction manual, while comprehensive, is not laid out in the best way. It jumps back and forth between different stages of the brewing process and the end result was that sometimes I didn’t quite understand what to do, so I made a few avoidable (but thankfully minor) mistakes.
I also had trouble setting up the Igulu app on my phone. I’ve never needed it though, so I can’t complain overly about this aspect.
Should you buy the Igulu F1?
Despite my issues, I find the Igulu F1 brewer delicious. Even though I didn’t put much effort into drinking the beer I brewed – which mostly tasted good – it had the sweet taste of satisfaction. Saying that, I also like that it can double as a keg cooler for those occasions when I want to pour a cold pint for myself or a guest, but I don’t want to wait more than a week for a batch to finish brewing.
However, with its significant asking price of $699 / £555, I would compare it to a high-end espresso machine in terms of the people who should consider buying it.
If you drink beer regularly and want to try making your own, it might be worth getting this gadget. That’s especially true if you don’t have the time in your busy schedule to operate a more manual beer brewing system, or if you’re concerned about the brewing risks that the Igulu F1’s safety features help limit.
If this isn’t you, you might be better served by regular store-bought beer, or wait until Igulu releases a cheaper model – although there’s no word on when or even if that will happen.