Keg vs bottles
 

I've only done bottles but keep reading post after post about kegs...what is good about kegging and why use them? Just want your thoughts on this matter

I think the biggest plus is simply being able to drink your beer sooner. No bottle conditioning. On top of that its much more easy to do. You don't have to clean, fill, and cap 50+ bottles.

but unless you are only drinking at home the kegging isn't convenient.. I mean I can take my bottles anywhere in a cooler or not and share easly... Why would someone want to spend on kegs, pressurizing, tap, adjusting pressure (huge head if you dont adjust well) , etc etc etc

Im not bad mouthing it, just want to understand it :confused:

So. You don't need to condition the beer before kegging? I mean, yes it gets carbed faster... but does the beer need to sit for an extra couple weeks as it would from bottling to meld the flavors?

You can bottle from a keg with picnic tap and bottling wand to take beer with you. The biggest plus to that is you don't have to worry about sediment in the bottom of the bottle because there is none when filling from a keg.

I do both keg and bottle. I like the ability to give away a lot of beer and take it with me places, which kegs are not always practical for. I have a 12 gal batch that I will be bottling within the next few weeks. I figure that will take me around 4 hours to bottle. Personally I don't mind bottling at all. But I do like to keep my kegs full as well.

beerloaf

Another advantage of kegging is you can pour yourself a half glass if that's all you want. Or just give a sample to someone before you pour them a whole glass.

Conditioning time is going to be beer dependent, no matter if you keg or bottle. Kegs also make great bulk aging vessels. They're also safer, and have a smaller footprint than a carboy. You can also naturally carb your beer in the keg just like you would a bottle if you prefer instead of force carbing. And, if you really want a few bottles to share, or enter into comps, it's really easy to bottle off the keg.

Each process has its own pros and cons. Kegging is more expensive up front for equipment and will cost more over time with supplies required like CO2. If you decide to keg and still like portability you can always use a beer gun to fill bottles and growlers easily.

While you can carbonate faster there is still some conditioning time for the beer just like in the bottle but the overall time is reduced due to the faster carbonation.

It really comes down to choice and what works best for you. While there is a lot involved in bottling, there is a lot involved in kegging as well. Yes you are only filling one vessel to keg but you also have to regularly clean and sanitize lines, taps, gaskets, tubing and everything else that comes in touch with your beer so IMO the time saved packaging is eventually consumed by the regular maintenance tasks.

Some will say draft beer tastes better, some don't necessarily agree.

This is all my opinion, I elect to bottle and do not keg. My final volume is always 6 gallons and requires 60 bottles. I can clean, sanitize and bottle an entire batch in about 1.5 hours solo, about 45-60 minutes with a helper. We enjoy the process and the ability to have a myriad of variety in the fridge on any given day or the ability to put together mixed 6 packs to head out to a party and share.

I'm sure others will chime in with their thoughts as well:)