The best beer dispensers for pouring a pint at home

You’ve heard of the king of beers, right? Well, the Philips PerfectDraft is the king of beer dispensers. Sure, Philips is best known as a trusted manufacturer of TVs and electric shavers. As it turns out, the boffins at Philips know a thing or two about good quality booze, too.

The PerfectDraft guarantees fresh tasting beer by maintaining an optimum temperature of 3°C (temperature and freshness are displayed on an LCD screen). It also keeps beer fresh and drinkable for 30 days.

It’s compatible with a range of beer brand kegs. There's a Philips PerfectDraft Pro too, which is similar but topped up with smart features.

If you want the quality of Philips PerfectDraft but want to spend a little less, the Statesman Beer Dispenser Tap could be a good alternative.

It's fairly new — hence the lack of reviews — and sells for a much lower price. This beer dispenser also holds a little less than the Philips model — this one is compatible with 5 litre kegs — but also works with wine and Prosecco.

What we especially like — particularly for the lower price — are its adjustable features, which should allow you to pour a pint exactly as you like it. There's an adjustable CO2 control option, controlled via a dial, plus a built-in cooling system that allows you to set the keg temperature between 3-12°C.

Compared to the hi-tech beer dispensers you'll find elsewhere in this roundup, the XXL Biertower is a cheaper and most certainly cheerful option.

It’s not going to replace the experience of pulling pints in the pub. Instead, it’s made for parties, barbecues, and get-togethers — or any time you just want a generous supply of ice-cold beer on hand. And we do mean ice cold. There's a removable ice cooler in the centre of the machine. It does reduce the capacity slightly, which is a shame, but there are few substitutes for crisply cold beer.

Another great thing about the XXL Biertower is that it’s not restricted to just beer. You can keep any drink chilled in there. Whatever your tipple is.

You probably know Krups as a top coffee brands. They’re one of the most trusted manufacturers of Nespresso machines. But, as you can tell from the distinctive Krups The Sub, the brand knows the value of a decent pint, too.

The Sub is a compact dispenser that will fit snugly onto any kitchen counter. It holds 2 litre torps, which are like oversized cans that you can keep in the fridge before loading into the Sub dispenser. The Sub continues to keep the beer at 2°C and promises to keep the beer fresh for up to 15 days.

There’s a wide (and ever-growing) range of beers in the torps cannisters, though because of the smaller capacity you'll have to change them over regularly. Otherwise it’s hard to find fault with this.

The Fizzics DraftPour seems like a bit of a novelty but it's a very decent bit of kit for comnmitted beer drinkers. It's also a great gift idea for beer lovers.

Simply put a can or bottle of beer in the column (it holds different sized cans and bottles, from 330ml to 750ml). It uses something called Micro-Foam technology to turn the beer into a pub-style draught pint. The technology works via sound waves, which creates a dense, consistent head, along with an enhanced aroma and evenly sized bubbles.

It seems pricey for what it is, but it's a well-made piece of kit that will serve up pint after pint.

The Pinter Fresh Craft Beer Maker is one for beer connoisseurs. It's not just a case of hooking up a keg and pumping out the beer. With the Pinter, you purchase packs of beer mix (and there's a good selection available from Pinter: IPA, stout, pale ale, cider, bitter, lager) and brew it yourself.

It's simple enough — perfect for brewing novices — and everything's explained on the Pinter app. You can order your beer mixes on the app too.

Beer takes 5-10 days to brew, so the only drawback is that it's not built for a continuous flow of beer, like keg-based dispensers. But flavour-wise, the Pinter is a level above the competition. Not to mention cheaper.