GrowlerWerks uKeg Carbonated Growler, 128 oz, Black Chrome

So, I am one of those persons that looks at a non-essential item for months reading about it, looking at videos, and then rationalizing in my own mind if I need it or not. This time was no different, for over a year I looked at this Growler by GrowlerWerks. Let me first tell you it is everything I expected to be... I was ready for some of the peculiar things associated with the growler. For instance, after you draw your beer, you will get a couple of drops that drip from the nozzle. Now to be clear this is not a defect, it is just that a couple of drops of beer or stay in the nozzle after the pour and you move the growler around will cause it to drip. No big deal, just place some paper towels and it will take care of that right nicely. The first time I walked into my local place that makes craft beer and fills growlers, a handful of the beer aficionados commented on my beautiful growler were asking me where I bought it from. I must admit, I puffed out my chest a lil with the pride that I felt setting up this beautifully crafted growler on the bar and getting all those compliments. Well, I had it filled with Texas Bock, brought it home, and set the pressure gauge to "5" as the easy-to-read instruction book indicated. I came back to it about 2 hours later after it was nice and cold in the fridge. BTW, the 64oz growler fits nicely in one of the side doors in my fridge (basically, it does not take up a lot of room). The first pour was almost flawless, as has been almost every pour after re-filling the growler a total of 3 times since I first received it. I love how you get the perfect head and each beer is icy-cold. Now, I do want to comment that the growler comes with only 2 8gr CO2 cartridges, while that is good to start out with if you like beer and plan on using the growler regularly, you are going to need more CO2 cartridges. I went ahead and ordered some Mr. Fizz (brand) CO2 cartridges from Amazon and now have a nice supply. Thus far, I have found that a cartridge will last about 1 fill and use of your growler. I use the last bit of the pressure in the cartridge to flush out the system when cleaning in between beer refills. So, after all this,,,,, was it worth it? You Bet! I had guests over a couple of nights ago and it was a hit! beautifully made, works as it should and you get to bring home your favorite beer! Having a growler is environmentally friendly since you use the same growler over and over and avoid throwing more cans and bottles into landfills. So, if I did not make it clear before, this growler is beautiful as well as functional. It will become a very fun and functional conversation piece in your house or backyard.

I already own a 128oz growler with a really nice durable handle in the 128oz size. I got it from REI. There was an extra accessory called a Keg top. I bought it along with the 12gram CO2 cartridges. Since the products nor my experiences with both companies were not perfect, I feel I can report on this in a unique way. I not comparing apples to oranges. I'm comparing full sized apples to really shiny tiny sized apples.Growlerwerks growler has a built in CO2 top and a gauge to help dial in the correct pressure to serve up your beverages. They also have a clear section where you can see the level of liquid inside instead of simply guessing. The spout pours out with a nice force. It's impressive to look at. It's lightweight and I love the shape and the vintage look. It came beautifully and safely packaged. There is no way it can get damaged in shipping. There is nothing I don't find pleasing to the eye about my growlerwerks. The Cons are that the generous amount of printed material that arrives with the unit doesn't say much...doesn't instruct very well and is hard to see. Except for the universal symbol that is usually on the knobs of coleman gas stoves and things like that, I wouldn't have known how to install the CO2 cartridge or be confident about what I was doing. It all turned out to be extremely easy although I really do worry about wearing out the threads on the the cap since you never feel a definite stopping point. I try to be careful not to over tighten it. The 8gram cartridge was only good for one single use plus running water through it (which you MUST do). You really don't have a way to measure how much gas is left in the tiny cartridge. Customer service never responded to my inquiry. I had concerns about trying the 12g cartridge in it and I felt the directions were unclear about whether or not I would need an adapter to use my 12gram cartridges. It's been nearly 2 weeks. They didn't bother to address my email. The other con is that it dripped quite a bit from the spout at first. I put a towel under it to catch it. My other growler drips all the time so I was kind of expecting it.My other growler with the keg top is huge! It has a wonderful handle and a more masculine appearance if you will. It's really durable with a powdercoat finish and 12g cartridges are more easily gotten at local stores than are the 8g. The cons are that it broke the very first time I used it. It was difficult at the campsite to keep up with the CO2 cartridge and filling adapter but I managed not to lose it. Although it said I only had to give the gas once, I had to constantly squirt gas in. The stem inside the nozzle on the inlet on the cap broke on my third time putting in more gas. It leaked constantly but I have to say I was soooooo happy with that growler UNTIL the plastic on the clamp that keeps the caps on broke off too! Customer service was so rude and passive aggressive. They didn't believe me that it broke even though I sent them a receipt of how I had ordered replacement parts for it. I had kept the broken piece for a while while they were considering what to do but by the time they asked me for a photo of the broken piece I had lost it. Needless to say customer service at both places kind of sucks. Customer service at REI is wonderful but I chose to report my bad experience to that company so that they could have the chance to improve the quality of their plastics. I eventually had to replace my 128oz growler from REI because of all the breaking plastic things. Even though customer service was hella rude and acknowledged nothing--apologized for nothing, they DID send me replacement parts for the cap as well as some CO2 cartridges and a little clip to help the hose from sagging and thus curb excess dripping.In conclusion, I wish I had purchased the 128oz growler from Growlerwerks. Even though their customer service is neglectful, I feel their product is going to outlast that of the competitor. I love the convenience of the built in CO2 cartridge as there is nothing to misplace! This growlerwerks handle is smaller so it fits better in my picnic backpack. I LOVE picnics! It oozes style and luxury. It's way more impressive than my other growler. Both have their uses but if I had it over again to do, I'd pick the Growlerwerks one even though it is pricier. Neither one are for people on a budget so I don't really think that should even be a factor.

This is a fairly unique product. It offers the convenience and luxury of bringing home a growler without the need to drink the beer right away before it goes flat and stale. I bought the 64 oz and I could/should probably have bought the 128 oz based on how much I use it. Two 64 oz Ukegs would be good as well for a variety in beer. I was considering a small keg and tap, but my local brewery doesn't fill them for walk in patrons. The Ukeg fills that need.While it is a small item it has some complexities. The CO2 cartridge puts a lot of pressure on the screw top housing. That pressure can blow out the rubber cap (as designed) if its tightened too hard, which is something I did. I also found the tap and sliding lock can get stuck if you don't rinse or clean it well after use. Beer gets sticky when it dries.These things were easily remedied through the excellent customer service from GrowlerWerks. Email responses were very fast with detailed instructions and pictures of how I could correct these things myself. They also offered to do it for me if I shipped it in. I had never owned a keg before and anyone brewing beer knows how important it is to keep their equipment clean and sanitized. These aren't issues with the Ukeg itself, they were due to a lack of my own experience. Again, I can't say enough of how helpful and responsive their customer support was with my communications.