So about 3 years ago I sort of fell out of homebrewing. I was a devout Brewing TV fan and as Chip, Jake and Michael left NB - I stopped brewing. Not because of that but I went back to college, life stuff etc. So now, 3 girlfriends, 1 degree, 3 jobs and a new house later - I want back in. Started poking around and NB itself has changed quite a bit. Some of the beers I wanted to brew but never did aren't there anymore. Always liked their kits and was going to do one to get back in the swing. Seems like a lot less available from them that way. No more Civilian Brewing Division gear either. NB has obviously changed a lot since their merger. What else has changed? Where should I be looking for good gear and advice now? Rebel Brewer? I didn't want to do kits forever - just one or 2 to work on process again and then jump to AG which is what I was working on when I dropped out of the hobby. BUT NB always posted good recipes for their kits - Paetersbier, Dawson's Kriek etc. Gone. Who's good, whom do I stay away from?
The kits may be gone, but the recipes may still exist. You can always piece the ingredients needed from a local homebrew store (assuming you have one available). For online stuff, I have ordered from Midwest, AIH and a few others. But I generally buy locally.
You should try contacting them directly. Talk to one of the guys in charge like Lance and tell him what you said here and I bet they still have the recipes on file and would share them with you. Or build the kit up for you.
But to answer your question, I like the NB kits like you, and the kits from Austin Homebrew Supply. Like NB, the shipping is cheaper if the order is $50 or more. They recently changed their web site and lost many of the reviews, but their kits are good.
Black IPA is dead. Gose and "juicy" East Coast IPA are in. Using WAY too much salt in your gose is super hipster cool. If you're not impressed with the new NB (I agree they're not as great anymore), MoreBeer has good stuff and better deals. Also, if brewing all-grain, protein rests still hurt and do not help, and DMS is nearly non-existent with today's malts so you don't even need to boil your pilsners for an hour much less 90 minutes. And, olive oil doesn't work for "aeration" at all.
Another 'vote' for "MoreBeer has good stuff and better deals." I used to order frequently from Northern Brewer but I am an infrequent customer now. Cheers!
