Salter Professional EK4919 Chilled Beer Dispenser, Freestanding Home Draught Machine and Beer Tap, Compatible with Any Non and Pre Carbonated 5L Keg, 3 x CO2 Cartridges, Integrated Cooling System

Product Information

The first beer poured out a bit “lively” as they say in the industry, but after that, it came out very easily and made us look like a professional. Consider yourself a bona fide beer aficionado? If you know your IPAs from your stouts, chances are you've considered setting up an at-home bar of some sort to enjoy your brews away from the local watering hole. It should go without saying that tabletop beer dispensers are growing in popularity – much to your local barkeep's chagrin – and even if the weather is winding down to winter and BBQ season is over, it doesn't mean you can't enjoy a good sup from the comfort of your own sofa. Just take a look at the wealth of beer advent calendars to see the truth of that statement. When you’ve filled the glass around 2/3rds full, it’s time to focus on the head. Lower the glass further from the spout or if using the Fizzics machine, flip the tap away from you for the final foamy flourish.

PerfectDraft kegs have an internal aluminium bag that holds the beer, with the machine using a compressor to push air into the keg to maintain pressure without affecting the beer. There’s no faffing about with CO2 canisters, as is the case with the Salter Pro Universal Chilled Draft Beer Dispenser. Performance Prepare your chosen beer in the dispenser, ensuring it's at the optimum drinking temperature for a crisp finish. Each type of beer requires a slight variation in the chill, so get prepared and know your temps. For example, an IPA excels at around 5 degrees Celsius. Grab your pint glass and chill it, either in the freezer or run it under a cold tap. We also liked the easy-to-read temperature display on the front and the indicator that tells you how full your keg is. Once you’ve gone through a keg, you clean the system again. It’s a case of pumping water through the beer dispensing tap like you did when setting the beer dispenser up the first time. All of this is a lot of effort for some beer that is readily available by other means. It'll take a while to get your canisters to the correct pressure and to cool your beer, but the process doesn't require a lot of input from you. What is the best home beer dispenser?We've seen these used in bars and pubs, so we had high expectations for the pour, and it didn’t disappoint - it’s a very professional beer that comes out of the pump, chilled to a refreshing 2 degrees. Pull the perfect pint at home with an adjustable CO2 gas control and built in cooling system to chill kegs between 3 and 6 degrees.

The machine was heavy, and we couldn’t lift the box on our own. It’s quite plain looking but we liked that you could customise the beer pump with a selection of badges.The instructions were the most confusing of the ones we tested though, as some of the diagrams were a bit difficult to understand. So not only is this the only machine we tested that’s portable, but it’s also the only one that doesn’t require you to buy a specific keg.

Whatever you're brewing, it will take between four and eight days, but the process is very clearly explained and instructions are super easy to follow. The difficulty with the Salter Universal Chilled Draught Beer Dispenser is that it needs to cater for both types of keg, neither of which has been specifically designed for machine use. To fit a keg, I had to position the long adaptor. This has to be pushed through the hole on top of the keg (vent or tap), but it isn’t as easy a process as I had first thought. Freestanding design: Suitable for use anywhere, including the games room, kitchen, bar, office and more We initially thought this machine was the ugliest of the bunch, but our partner insisted the temperature gauges, high-quality drip tray and the fact you can see the keg were all very appealing. Value for money: we assessed whether the performance, ease of use and additional functionality justified the price. We also tested beer dispensers at a variety of prices to see if it was necessary to spend more money.

That made it super easy to use, but it felt a bit pointless. Fizzics says it uses sonic wave technology so you get a draft taste from any can or bottle of beer.

It claims to enhance the aroma and give you a smooth mouthfeel. But we tasted the same beer straight from the can and it didn’t taste noticeably different.Introducing the super sleek and stylish draught beer dispenser from Salter Professionals. Suitable and compatible with universal 5L kegs such as Heineken, this beer dispenser allows you to create tasty frothy beer from the comfort of your home as Co2 cannisters are provided. With a mains operated and manual function, this easy-to-use beer dispenser will be even easier to clean with the removable drip tray to wash and return, ready for a fresh beverage.