Ahhh...West Coast Pale Ale! Probably the most basic, but at the same time most exciting, brew experience of my life. I brewed this up at the beginning of September 2009 following the 2-2-2 methodology (2 weeks fermenting in the Mr Beer keg. 2 weeks naturally carbonating in bottles until the plastic feels rock hard. 2 weeks conditioning so the flavors can round out) as per recommendations from the good people at Mr Beer Fans. Mr Beer's description of this beer goes as follows:
This refill has all the ingredients you need to make a crisp, sparkling and refreshing beer that will satisfy your most hard-earned thirst. Light in color and body, the flavor is punctuated with an assertive clean finish. An extremely drinkable beer and a true American microbrewery favorite!
Now, here's the thing with Mr Beer refills...they are, well...let's just say they are as basic as you can get. Yes, you will 100% make beer, however, you certainly can not expect a basic refill to compete with what most people would call "a real beer". Mr Beer basic refills come with a hopped malt extract, a pouch of fermentable sugars called Booster, and one-step sanitizer. It really is as barebones as a home brewer can get.
That being said, of the 2 basic refill kits I brewed up, this WCPA was actually a tasty brew. I must agree with its own MB description in that it was quite light and refreshing. It had a decent aroma, some subtle hop flavoring, and, most importantly, I MADE BEER!!!
So that was it. I was officially hooked on home brewing.