A Coupon Code is applied in the shopping cart and usually a discount on the items being purchased during a certain time period. A Promotional Code can only be applied when creating a new account and is applied on every purchase you make (these discounts do change from time-to-time).

Once you have added product to the shopping cart, go to the checkout page and choose the radial button "Use Coupon Code" (under "What would you like to do next?") and enter the coupon code (codes are case sensitive, so make sure your caps lock key is turned off). Then click "Apply Coupon" button, it should say "Success: Your coupon discount has been applied!" in a white rectangular box. Click anywhere out that box and continue with your checkout.

Everything! This is the most important step in the brewing process. It kills any bacteria, wild yeast and mold that can cause off-flavors in your beer. It’s important to sanitize everything that comes in contact with your beer.

After you have sanitized your fermenter, empty  some of this solution into a spray bottle and spray down the parts that may contact your beer. Don't have a spray bottle? Pour some solution onto a clean paper towel and wipe down any surface that may come in contact with your beer.

Good question. After your fermenter has been sanitized, you can pour this solution into a bowl or sink to sanitize any remaining items. Let these items soak for an additional 10 minutes.

One Step is the only environmentally sound no-rinse cleanser in the home-brew market today and, unlike other cleansers that require rinsing (because of their alkaline nature or use materials that can be harmful to the environment), One Step is the original no-rinse cleanser and uses active oxygen to clean your home-brew and winemaking equipment.

Oxygen. The high oxygen levels provided through a dry form of hydrogen peroxide minimizes contact time, making One Step fast and effective. One Step is completely non-toxic and contains no ecologically harmful substances and quickly biodegrades into naturally occurring substances. And unlike other no-rinse cleansers, One Step doesn’t stain skin, clothing or work surfaces.

Simply add 1 tablespoon of One Step to a gallon of cold or warm water and dissolve. Rinse or soak equipment and bottles with the One Step solution. For best results, a 60-second contact time with the One Step solution is recommended.

We recommend the use of One Step in the sanitation of our fermenters. It is the only environmentally sound no-rinse cleanser in the home-brew market today and, unlike other cleansers that require rinsing because of their alkaline nature or use materials that can be harmful to the environment( i.e: Acid-based sanitizers ), One Step is the original no-rinse cleanser and uses active oxygen to clean your home-brew and winemaking equipment. One Step uses oxygen entrained within a mineral crystal that dissolves when combined with water, which in turn releases the oxygen to form hydrogen peroxide – a compound long known for its sanitizing and disinfectant abilities.

Acid-based sanitizers,( i.e.: Star San ), are not recommended to sanitize our fermenters. Acid- based sanitizers will weaken and eventually eat through the plastic on the tap, plastic caps, and the fermenter.

This is a “Best Before” date and IS NOT an expiration date. So don't worry, the malts are still good for years past this date. It simply means after this date the malt may begin to darken past its original SRM (color based on standard reference method).

It depends. Our standard refills can be made in approx. 14 days, but for the best possible results we recommend: 2 weeks in the fermenter, 2 weeks in the bottle and 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Some of our more complex recipes can take up to 4 months.

A lid gasket is the rubber seal which is placed under the lid to make the fermenter airtight when using an airlock or blowoff. The lid gasket is reusable, but it is recommended that you replace it after every 5-8 batches, or if the gasket becomes frayed, torn, dented or stained.

The washer on the tap assemble goes on the outside of the fermenter. And remember not to overtighten the nut.

The yeast packet is packaged under the black lid on each hopped malt extract.

We use safbrew S33 from Fermentis. It is a great all purpose ale yeast that flocculates well at the end of fermentation. It can handle quite a range in fermentation temperatures and works well for home brewers who don't need to fuss too much around it.

In the process of brewing beer, trub (from the German for lees) is the layer of sediment that appears at the bottom of the fermenter after yeast has completed the bulk of the fermentation. It is composed mainly of heavy fats, proteins and inactive yeast.

Not likely. We've designed space for 2 cups of trub before coming close to the tap area. Our standard or even the big 6.5% abv seasonal recipes (coming 2013), don't even come close. Never say never though, but it's highly unlikely given the volume of beer you will be making.

The fermenter including lid sits 9.25 inches wide and just under 16 inches tall. With its base it sits just over 10 inches wide and 16" tall. And depending on the type of airlock you use, it can add another 3 - 5 inches to its height.

Your beer should finish its primary fermentation about 4 days after adding the yeast, the next 3 days are to allow the beer to clear. Stronger and hoppier recipes may take longer. The most accurate way to check is with a hydrometer. It measures the specific gravity of a beer. When the specific gravity remains the same over a 24-hour period, your beer has finished fermenting.

Our conical fermenter holds just over 3-gallons of liquid, adequate head spacing for a 2 1/2 gallon batch.

Make sure you sanitize the airlock and rubber stopper (inside and out) before using, and place a sanitized lid gasket under your lid. After you have made your beer and added the yeast, tighten down the lid and add your airlock. After the airlock is firmly in place, add water to the fill line(s). Sanitized water or alcohol (like vodka) is preferred. (FYI: if need be, refilling it with regular tap water should be fine).

Remove the airlock before opening your tap (for bottling or testing your beer) or the liquid from the airlock will wind-up in your beer.

First, check and see if you have a lid gasket placed under the lid. Second, ensure that your airlock or blowoff is in place. Just because the airlock didn't bubble doesn't mean fermentation isn't taking place. CO2 molecules are very small and even the slightest gap in any seal can create an escape route other than the airlock. More importantly, CO2 is heavier than air and will create a protective blanket over your beer. This will prevent contamination from outside air that may enter through unwanted gaps. Continue following the instructions and after 5-7 days draw a small amount from the tap; if it tastes like flat beer, it’s ready to bottle. If it tastes sweet, give it a few more days.

This unique system allows CO2 to escape while keeping harmful contaminants from entering and spoiling your beer. The venting plug saves you the trouble of using an airlock and space on your counter.

As beer finishes its fermentation process, inactive yeast and other fermentation by-products fall out of suspension and create a layer of sediment (called trub) at the bottom of fermenters. This trub has the tendency to cause off flavors and add a cloudy haze in your finished beer. A conical fermenter allows the trub to be “funneled” down to the tapered bottom of the fermenter. This creates a smaller contact area between the beer and the trub, resulting in less interaction between the two. Then the tap, which has been strategically placed above the trub, allows for the fermented beer to be gravity fed out of the fermenter without disturbing the trub.

The reason for this is overexposure of your beer to Oxygen and /or Sunlight/UV rays, during fermentation and/or bottle conditioning.

It is almost always due to poor sanitation, causing infection with bacteria or wild yeast, at some point in your brewing process. This could include poor sanitation when cooling the wort, fermenting it, adding ingredients to the fermenter, sampling or measuring the beer, transferring it or bottling/kegging.

These off-flavors result from the breakdown of fatty acids in the trub, if your beer is left in the fermenter longer than recommended or exposed to greater trub surface area. Our unique funneled conical-fermenter reduces the contact of your beer with the trub, and for the most part eliminates this problem.

First off, make sure you’re not brewing a cider. The reason for this is adding too much cane or corn sugar to the boil.

Yeast in your beer can also produce a green-apple character when your beer is fermented at or above 80F, or when stored/conditioned in warmer than room-temperature areas.

It is almost always due to poor sanitation, causing infection with bacteria or wild yeast, at some point in your brewing process. This could include poor sanitation when cooling the wort, fermenting it, adding ingredients to the fermenter, sampling or measuring the beer, transferring it or bottling/kegging.

Medicinal off-flavors are the result of using chlorine-based sanitizers, which react with yeast phenols during your brewing process. The best way to prevent these off-flavors is to rinse your equipment in boiling water following sanitation.

Metallic off-flavors are caused by unprotected metals dissolving into the wort, especially when using Iron and Aluminum pottery, which can leach into the wort during the boil. Stainless steel pottery will not cause this.

A secondary cause is the use of tap water in fermenting your beer; High chlorine or Iron content, along with the use of softened water with salt or gypsum, will also result in medicinal and/or metallic off-flavors.

DMS-Dimethyl Sulfide is a volatile sulfur-based organic compound which, if present in excessive amounts contributes a flavor & aroma akin to cooked canned corn or celery. Source of contamination can come from "wort bacteria", and/or relating to process, such as the presence of precursors due to malting, infected yeast that is repitched, long lag time before fermentation, chilling fermentation too soon, or too high initial fermentation temperature. Treatments include proper sterilization of equipment, boiling wort for at least an hour - especially with canned extracts, & following proper fermentation practices.

This will occur if you add your yeast to the wort in your fermentor when the temperature is 80 F or above. This will produce too much fusel alcohols, which will cause your beer to smell alcoholy or taste harsh and sharp.

When yeast becomes stressed or is exposed to less than perfect conditions, some start to produce sulfur and cause cider to stink like rotten eggs. This off-putting aroma is often referred to rhino farts.

You can try degass the cider by swirling or racking to a clean fermenter. This releases CO2 that is left over from fermentation and can carry some of the sulfur out with it. But the easiest yet most time-consuming method is to simply let your hard cider bulk age and hope that the sulfur works its way out of the airlock on its own. Often times just letting a cider rest for a couple weeks to a few months can help remove sulfur and improve the overall flavor.

To prevent this from happening, use good fermentation practices and providing the yeast with a healthy environment will significantly help prevent sulfur in cider. The easiest way to ensure a good fermentation is to provide the right nutrients and temperature that the strain of yeast needs to thrive.

This is due to contamination from molds ( poor sanitation ), or when your wort/beer is exposed to musty or damp areas during fermentation.

After 7 days the beer in your fermenter should have stopped fermenting and should have started to clear. It’s now time to bottle! If you’re not sure, draw a small amount from the tap; if it tastes like flat beer, it’s ready to bottle.

If a beer(s) bottled before fermentation is complete, or if a beer is bottle-conditioned, that means there's fermentation happening in the bottle, and the resulting carbon dioxide can build up enough to break glass.

You will need 22 12-oz. bottles, or enough to hold about 270 fl. ounces. Remember: these bottles need to have previously held carbonated beverages. Empty soda bottles work great.

No! The bottles need to have previously held carbonated beverages. Empty soda bottles work great; just make sure you keep the caps. Glass beer bottles using a pop-cap also work, though these bottles will require metal caps and a bottle capper.

When the beer has cleared and is carbonated. An easy way to test is by squeezing each bottle, if they're firm to the touch (like a new 2-liter bottle of soda) they’re ready for the fridge! However, you can improve the flavor by bottle conditioning. This can be done a couple ways:

Warm conditioning: Keep your bottles in a dark, dry location away from sunlight and maintain a temperature between 50°- 70° F for several weeks to a month.

Cold conditioning: Place your bottles in the refrigerator for several weeks to a month.