Your patience, belief, and unwavering trust mean everything to us. This journey hasn’t been easy, but we’ve worked relentlessly to deliver a product we’re proud of. It's about time to share a new update.
🚀 Quick Summary
✅ First container delivered – 20 CRAFT GEN 3 units have arrived at homes across the USA, including Puerto Rico, and Canada
✅ Batch 2 in production – Kegs are completed; final assembly is in progress
✅ Support improved – 100+ new answers now live on our support page
🎉 Batch 1 Delivered
The first Exobrew units are now in the hands of users! Users who ordered via MiniBrew and Exobrew. Along with the machines, we’ve included welcome gifts, such as our Icelandic Pale Ale recipe, and for some users, starter essentials like cleaning materials and CO₂ cartridges.
🍺 Recipe Kits Are Now Available!
We’re excited to announce that four Exobrew recipe kits are now available to order! Whether you're just getting started or ready to experiment, these kits are a great way to dive into brewing with fresh, high-quality ingredients.
To keep things moving, we’re currently sourcing kits from Northern Brewer and Brewmaster — two trusted suppliers in the homebrewing space in the USA.
What to Expect
Unlike the EU kits, these are not pre-measured into exact quantities for a single brew day. Here's why:
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Our current order volume is still too small for custom pre-packing
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We don’t yet have a centralized location in the USA to repackage large-format ingredients
So, for now, you'll receive ingredients in bulk packaging:
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Crushed barley in full bags (typically 3-5 lbs, depending on the recipe)
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Hops in standard sealed packets (e.g., 1 oz, 2 oz, etc.)
Depending on the supplier, your kit might look like this:
📦 Option A: Multiple packages with all ingredients from Northern Brewer
📦 Option B: Multiple items from Brewmaster. Malt is crushed and mixed
Either way, you’ll get everything you need to brew your selected recipe — you’ll need to weigh and portion ingredients on your own. On our support page, you will find specific instructions alongside the app and browser instructions you receive.
What’s Next
We’re working toward more curated, pre-portioned kits in the future as we grow. Our goal is to eventually match the convenience and consistency of our EU recipe packs — but for now, we appreciate your flexibility as we scale up in North America.
💻 Membership
Our partner, MiniBrew, has made a significant shift towards a pro-environment, subscription-based model. Similar to services like Netflix, Disney+, Peloton, and Ring, this approach is designed to make the platform sustainable by moving beyond hardware sales alone.
For our first Exobrew customers, we’ve waived the membership fee and granted free Ambassador-level access as a token of appreciation for your early support. In the future, we will offer the same three membership tiers:
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Free
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Pro
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Legend
Each tier will provide different features and benefits tailored to users’ needs. Once we deliver batch 2, we will share more details, as MinIbrew is still finalizing the details.
🏋️ Support & Office Hours
We’ve been entirely self-funding this effort, navigating manufacturing complexities, customs regulations, and support logistics — all to make brewing in the USA and Canada possible.
That said, we recognize the need for more updates. We’ve now fully integrated our support system with the MiniBrew team, which offers a 24-hour response time, maintains an updated support page, and actively participates in Facebook community chats to assist users directly.
We’re laying the foundation for a more responsive and transparent experience — and we’re grateful to have your voice helping guide that progress.
The Minibrew team has introduced Office Hours — a dedicated time where the team is available for one-on-one video calls to help you get the most out of your experience. These office hours are also available for Exobrew users. Whether you need help with setup, want tips on creating your recipe, or have a few questions, we’re here to help.
📅 Book a 30-minute session with us here:
👉 https://calendly.com/minibrew-support/30min
🔍 Listening, Learning, and Improving
The first batch of Exobrew units shipped to the U.S. and Canada is part of our 2024 EU production run, carefully reworked to meet North American electrical and compliance standards. While we've taken great care to adapt the system and test it extensively, we know that real-world use is the ultimate test.
We’ve been in close contact with early adopters, offering hands-on support and gathering valuable feedback. There are a few things we discovered that can be easily adapted in production run 2.
Cooling Performance
As part of this first wave of feedback, we've identified a cooling performance issue in some units. Specifically, the cooling system is currently achieving a temperature delta of approximately 15°C, rather than the intended 17–19°C. In practical terms, this means that while cold crashing is still possible in a 20°C ambient environment, performance isn't fully up to our standards.
We’ve spoken directly with our factory partners over the past several days, and the good news is: this issue has a clear and straightforward solution. Improving the paste. It does not require a redesign or replacement parts, and we’ve already implemented a fix for the next batch in production.
Water Outlet
The current water outlet is designed for a 3/4" BSP (British Standard Pipe) thread, which is commonly used in the world of washing machine connectors. However, based on early user feedback, we've learned that this is causing compatibility issues for many in North America.
Because BSP threads differ from the 3/4" NPT (National Pipe Thread) standard used in the U.S. and Canada, users have had to purchase additional G-to-NPT adapters to make the connection work. We recognize this creates unnecessary friction and confusion.
To make things easier and align with regional standards, we’re updating the water outlet in all future units to a 3/4" NPT fitting. This should provide a seamless connection with standard North American hoses and plumbing parts — no adapter required. This saves a trip to Lowe's or Home Depot.
CIP Container
The current CIP (Clean-in-Place) container is designed to handle flow rates of up to 1 gallon per minute under normal pressure. However, in some cases, users have experienced higher-than-expected pressure buildup, which has caused the top cover to blow off, occasionally resulting in an unintended fountain effect. This should not happen under normal operation.
We’re actively working to improve both the container material and the sealing mechanism to ensure better pressure resistance and a more secure fit.
Updating the colors of a few parts
In our instructions, we currently recommend that users place the yellow parts in the dishwasher. However, we’ve discovered that some yellow parts are not removable, which has confused USA users.
Our factory has addressed this issue and is working on an updated design. Shortly, we will implement these improvements to make cleaning easier and more intuitive.
🛠️ Batch 1 Spares
Exobrew uses many industry-standard parts that are readily available at local stores for easy replacement. However, some components are custom-made and require direct replacement from our team.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve proactively taken a selection of essential spare parts from the EU to the US. This helps us avoid tariffs and provides additional security, ensuring faster support and smoother repairs for our customers in North America.
🔧 Batch 2 - Production Update
Batch 2 is based on EU production and is being reworked to USA standards. Here is a quick look at the production line. The products that are made will fulfill the outstanding orders of Exobrew and the remaining orders MiniBrew. This includes back-orders from the first orders.
These GEN 3 have the current color scheme. The brown will be introduced in batch 3.
💰 Production and Shipping Update
Our production process operates in batches, which is necessary given the scale and complexity of manufacturing high-quality brewing systems. Since we’re still new to the U.S. and Canadian markets, we’re producing well below the factory’s typical 1,000-unit minimum, which is usually required for cost-effective manufacturing.
To support our U.S. launch, we’ve partnered with our EU-based manufacturer, MiniBrew, which has already produced 1,500 units for the European market. From that production run, we’ve successfully reserved 50–70 units specifically for U.S. and Canadian customers. These units are being adapted to meet North American standards, including voltage, compliance, and compatibility requirements.
Here’s a breakdown of how we’ve progressed so far:
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At the end of 2024, we began with a limited run of 1–5 units, shipped to early testers.
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Early 2025: We delivered the first real batch of 20 units to customers in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada. This was Batch 1.
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Now: We’re preparing the next production run of 20–100 units, which includes your order. This is Batch 2.
🧾 Why Payments Affect Production
To make low-volume runs possible, we had to secure full payment for all Batch 2 orders to proceed with production. Unfortunately, not all orders were paid in full by the deadline.
Instead of pausing completely, we renegotiated with the factory to begin manufacturing kegs first, as they’re more modular and quicker to produce. That part is now completed.
The next step is assembling the base stations, which is what we're focusing on right now. Once this is done, we’ll move directly into final testing and packaging for shipping.
📦 Estimated Timeline for Delivery
While exact delivery dates depend on factory lead times and logistics, here’s our current projection:
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Base station assembly: Starting mid-June 2025
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Final assembly & QA: end of June 2025
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Shipping to customers: Estimated July 2025
We know this isn’t as fast as anyone hoped, but it’s the most responsible path to deliver a high-quality, working product and incorporate the feedback from batch 1. If anything changes or accelerates, we’ll keep you updated directly
🇺🇸 Tariff Situation
Recent U.S. government tariffs have significantly increased import costs. Previously, we paid around 3% plus container shipping, but new regulations now require up to 30% in upfront duties at customs clearance.
However, a recent U.S. court decision temporarily blocking these tariffs has created some uncertainty. It’s currently unclear whether U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will enforce or suspend the payment requirement. We’re closely monitoring the situation and exploring all options to minimize delays and costs.
🍻 Thank You for Being Part of This Journey
This is just the beginning. Your support has turned an ambitious idea into a working product in homes around the world. We can’t wait to share what’s next.
Stay tuned. Stay inspired. And most importantly — brew like never before.
Cheers,
– The Exobrew Team
Chey, Berry, Rolf & Bart
