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Okay, you love beer and would like to drink draft beer at home, but maybe a full size keg is just too much for your needs and not practical. However, you still want the draft beer experience, from the flavor to the joy of self-pouring a cold frosty beer at home.
The best way to get this experience is with a countertop mini keg beer dispenser.
Mini kegerators are perfect for the small party, either inside or outside your home. And with their rise in popularity, an increasing number of breweries are offering their beer in a mini keg size, and can be purchased and filled nearly everywhere these days.
There are plenty of options on the market, and each have a number of different bells and whistles to suit your particular home beer drinking needs. These products can do far more than keep your beer cold. Before making your decision, you will need to consider which aspects are necessary for your home bar experience.
Table of Contents
Quick Recommendations
Have a quick look at our favorites if you don’t have a lot of time, or keep scrolling down the page to see the complete list with reviews.
- Best Beer Dispenser for Value and Quality: NutriChef Pressurized Growler Tap System
- Best 5 Liter Beer Tender for Ease of Use and Warranty: Krups and Heineken Beer Tender
- Mini Keg Cooling System for Versatility: Homecraft Mini Keg Cooling System
- Easy to Use Mini Kegerator and Beer Dispenser: SPT Mini Kegerator and Dispenser
- Best Single Serving Beer Dispenser: Fizzics DraftPour Beer Dispenser
- Honorable Mention Draft Keg System: Keg Smiths Portable Draft Keg System
- Pressurized Mini Keg for Portability and Storage: TMCRAFT Pressurized Mini Keg
- Best Non-Pressurized Keg Growler for Simplicity and Price: YaeBrew Mini Keg Growler
Best Table Top Mini Kegerators and Beer Dispensers
NutriChef Pressurized Growler Tap System - Mini Keg Cooler with Tap
Best Overall 128oz Beer Dispenser for
Quality and Customer Satisfaction
What’s required: CO2 cartridge (not included)
Material: Food grade stainless-steel
Capacity: 128 ounces
Keeps beer fresh: 60 days
Pros: Easy to fill and clean, adjustable regulator
Cons: Is top heavy, won’t work in the horizontal position
Bottom Line: This NutriChef Pressurized Growler Tap System is a great option for serving draft beer at home. The stainless steel mini keg cooler will keep 128 ounces of beer cold and fresh up to 60 days. It has an upgraded adjustable regulator which fine tunes the pressure, allowing for better carbonation and a better pour, and also includes a neoprene Koozie.
Krups and Heineken B100 Beer Tender
Best Premium 5 Liter Beer Tender for
Ease of Use and Warranty
What’s required: 120 volt AC
Capacity: 169 ounce/5 liter Heineken, Heineken Premium Light, Newcastle Brown Ale mini-kegs
Keeps beer fresh: 30 days
Pros: Simple to use. Comes with a two year warranty
Cons: Limited selection of beer choices, beer temperature is not adjustable. Expensive.
Bottom Line: This BeerTender is a collaboration between German kitchen appliance maker Krups, and the Dutch brewer Heineken, which leads to this well-designed mini keg dispenser. The Peltier cooling system is quiet and keeps beer fresh and chilled at 37.4 °F for up to 30 days after you tap, but the temperature is not adjustable like similar models on our list. There is also has a large and removable drip tray to help eliminate messy spills on your counter or bar top. Yes this beer tender will put a dent in your pocket-book, but you can also find used ones on Amazon for 50% to 75% of the price of new.
Homecraft Easy Dispensing Tap/Mini Keg Cooling System
Best 5 Liter Mini Keg for
Versatility and Features
Whats required: 120 volt AC, standard threaded CO2 cartridge or N20 cartridge (3 included)
Material: Black Stainless Steel
Works with: All standard 5 liter pressurized/non-pressurized gravity kegs or you can use the included growler keg
Keeps beer fresh: 30 days
Pros: Thermo-electric chilling system for quiet operation. Adjustable temperature settings for specific beer styles. Comes with a reusable growler keg for filling with your favorite beer.
Cons: Can take time getting the carbonation level dialed in, which means more CO2 will be used.
Bottom Line: This easy dispensing tap and mini keg system is simple to use, and will look great on your countertop or home bar. The adjustable cooling system will chill the beer to a wide range of temperatures, from 36° to 53° and is much quieter than other similar models that use a compressor for cooling. Not only will it work with all 5 liter universal kegs, it also includes a 5 liter reusable growler that you can fill with any beer you choose
SPT Mini Kegerator and Dispenser
Best 5 Liter Mini Kegerator for
Those On a Budget
Whats required: 120 volt AC, CO2 cartridge (3 cartridges are included)
Material: Stainless steel housing
Capacity: 169 ounce/5 liter universal kegs and Heineken mini kegs (CO2 cartridge is not used with Heineken kegs)
Keeps beer fresh: 30 days
Pros: Adjustable thermoelectric cooling and a LED temperature display so you always know the temperature of the beer.
Cons: Small diameter beer lines make for a long pour. Can take almost a full day to cool a warm keg (it’s best to start with an already chilled keg)
Bottom Line: This mini kegerator from SPT is attractive and will look great on any countertop. It uses a standard CO2 cartridge pressure system that will chill your beer within 19 to 21 hours, and keep it cold, carbonated and fresh for 30 days, and three cartridges are included. It will accept a standard 5-liter beer keg and 5-liter Heineken mini keg. It does include three CO2 cartridges but you do not need them when using the pressurized Heineken mini kegs. It is constructed with a stainless steel housing, removable drip tray, and features the peltier cooling system and thermo-electric cooling technology. This unit will adjust to keep a temperature between 36° and 39°F and has a LED temperature indicator for easy monitoring.
Fizzics FZ403 DraftPour Beer Dispenser
Best Beer Dispenser for
Single Servings
Whats required: USB cable or two AA batteries (not included)
Material: Composite with corrosion resistant zinc
Works with: All size beer cans and bottles up to 750ml
Keeps beer fresh: Depends on how fast you drink it 🙂
Pros: Weighs only 4 pounds so it can be taken anywhere. No CO2 cartridge is needed
Cons: Limited to one beer at a time. Parts are not dishwasher safe. Doesn’t always completely empty the can or bottle
Bottom Line: This beer dispenser by Fizzics is for those who just want a simple and basic way to enjoy a glass of draft beer.This model is by far the easiest beer dispenser to use on our list, and a great way to convert a bottle or can of beer to draft. All you do is open the can or bottle of your favorite beer, remove the cover, and insert the dispensing tube into the beer. It is so lightweight that it can be used anywhere in the house, a backyard cookout, camping, or while tailgating. Keep in mind that it’s not for storing and chilling beer, but a quick way to enjoy draft beer on tap. Just make sure you are using a beer that is already cold. This will make for a perfect gift for anyone who loves drinking beer.
Keg Smiths 128oz Portable Draft Keg System
Best Draft Keg System for
Value
Whats required: CO2 cartridge (not included)
Material: Stainless steel
Capacity: 128 ounces or 8 pints
Keeps beer fresh: Two months
Pros: Versatile – works will a wide variety of beverages. Adjustable regulator for standard pouring or force carbonation, holds twice as much as a standard growler
Cons: Might be too tall for some refrigerators (so measure before you buy)
Bottom Line: This portable draft keg system by Keg Smiths is an attractive mini keg dispensing system that can be easily taken on the go. It can hold 128 ounces of beer, hard cider, kombucha, coffee, sparkling water, iced tea, or just about any other beverage. This mini keg system can be assembled and ready to go in 15 minutes. The regular can be adjusted with a lower psi for more precise pour, or it can be set higher to force carbonate your beer or kombucha. If you plan on using your keg outside on warm or hot day, there is a neoprene “keg kooler jacket” that can be bought separately. Once empty, the keg can be easily cleaned with warm water and a cleaning tab.
TMCRAFT 64oz Pressurized Mini Keg
Best 64oz Pressurized Mini Keg for
Portability and Storage
Whats required: CO2 cartridge (not included)
Material: Stainless steel- Black matte finish
Capacity: 64 ounces or 4 pints
Keeps beer fresh: 60 to 90 days
Pros: Compact design makes it easy to transport. Will easily fit in a standard size refrigerator and most mini-fridges.
Cons: Doesn’t hold as much beer as its big brother
Bottom Line: If you’re looking for a pressurized growler beer tap, but want something a bit smaller than the ones shown above, this mini keg from TMCRAFT is what you need. It’s small enough to fit in most refrigerated spaces and coolers, and it’s the perfect size to take to your local craft brewery for taking your favorite draft beer to go. It also has an upgraded regulator for better fine-tuning of your desired carbonation level, and includes an insulated keg cooler jacket.
YaeBrew Mini Keg Growler
Best Non-Pressurized Keg Growler For
Simplicity and Price
Material: Stainless steel
Capacity: 128oz, 170oz, 340oz
Keeps beer fresh: Up to 2 weeks if kept cold and sealed
Pros: No breakable parts if dropped. Easy to fill with your favorite beer or any cold beverage
Cons: Unpressurized means the beer won’t stay fresh and as long
Bottom Line: This mini keg growler from YaeBrew is a simple way to take your beer to any indoor or outdoor activity, and is available in 3 different capacity sizes. Because it isn’t pressurized, it’s not intended for storing your beer for long periods of time, but a newly filled and closed growler will stay carbonated when stored in a refrigerator. You can also carbonate and condition your homebrew by adding priming sugar to the growler. Just make sure you use a brewing calculator for the correct amount of sugar.
What's Most Important To You in a Pressurized Beer Dispenser?
To figure out which mini kegerator or beer dispensing system is the right one for your needs, consider the following:
Cost
A full size kegerator is basically a refrigerator that is converted to a draft beer dispenser, so they certainly will cost more money than a mini kegerator. Large kegerators are designed to house large kegs of beer, use parts like compressers, and come with more features than a mini version.
Many good quality countertop beer dispensers or mini kegerators can be purchased for less than a few hundred dollars compared to the full-size models.
Capacity and Physical Size
Mini-keg dispenser models that will handle a 5 liter (169oz) universal keg are much like any other kitchen appliance, as they are made to sit on a table or any kitchen countertop.
The capacity of a pressurized beer growler can range from just 64 ounces all the way up to an enormous 340 ounces. It all comes down to how much beer you want to have on tap at any time.
Some models can be used when it is laid down, but others will only work if they are standing upright, which can be a storage problem for some. Of course you want to make sure you have enough room in your refrigerator before you buy one, and then find out it won’t fit.
Duration of Freshness
Just like when you consider the size, you need to consider how long you want to keep your beer fresh.
Are you looking to tap a mini keg and come back to it off and on for a month or longer, or will you and your party be consuming the entire quantity in one sitting?
Not every unit has the same tapped shelf life. Some will only last for a few days, while others can last up to two months if properly sealed and carbonated.
Assembly and Maintenance
Although most mini kegerators will involve some basic assembly, they can be ready to use in less than 15 minutes. Most of the parts from these beer dispensers can be easily cleaned with just soap and water.
Need Something Bigger?
If you are more interested in having more than one beer-on-tap, or just a larger amount, these pressurized mini-keg beer dispensers are not what you want.
A full-size kegerator can supply up to four different beers with a beer tower that can accommodate 1, 2, 3, or 4 taps. Check out our review page of some of the most popular kegerators on the market.
Final Say
All of these products have different functions and do a fine job of bringing draft beer to your home bar. From our testing, the best mini-keg dispenser is the NutriChef Pressurized Growler Tap System.
At 128 ounces, it has the capacity to hold more draft beer than similar products. It can also safely handle different types of beverages like root beer as well.
It’s tough, durable, and will keep your beer fresh for up to two months. Plus, with proper cleaning and maintenance it should last you for many pours and many years. It is also one of the more reasonably priced mini keg dispenser on the market.
Regardless of your choice, any mini kegerator or beer dispenser listed here will certainly enhance your draft beer experience and make gatherings even more fun.
Cheers!
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