Craft beer appliance maker PicoBrew is eyeing some bold new directions in drinkables. The company’s taken to Kickstarter with the Pico U, a new machine that’s capable of brewing up a pretty broad range of different beverages.
That list includes, but is not limited to:
- Kombucha
- Coffee
- Tea
- Horchata
- Yerba Matte
- Soda
- And, yes, craft beer
The company’s CEO Bill Mitchell explains the genesis of the machine thusly, “When pioneering the world’s first craft beer brewing machine, we had to ensure incredibly precise process control to accurately produce great beers from around the world. We realized this technology also enabled the most precise brewing of coffee and tea and began exploring a broader world of brewed beverages.”
The system goes live on Kickstarter today, with a starting price of $169. That’s for the single serving configuration, which will jump to $249 at retail. There’s also a deluxe version, which can make up to five liters of craft beer, kombucha and cold brew coffee in a go. That one’s $189/$299.
The system features Wi-Fi, which lets users monitor brews through a smartphone app — or you can just use the display on the front. The company expects the thing to officially launch in Q1 of next year.