Filling bottles from the keg (I promise I searched)

Searched for a bit, couldn't get any results because bottles and keg where in the name of hte forum and getting lots of results that had nothing to do with what I wanted.

I just started kegging, got my first keg carbing up right now. It's going great too, no leaks, all the hook ups are working, anyway, on to my question. If I wanted to fill some bottles from the kegs is it as easy as .. well .. filling the bottles from the keg and capping them? Will they retain the carbonation they had before coming out of the keg? Is it possible to get the same quality of bottled beer this way as opposed to priming and bottling flat beer?

You'll find mixed reviews on a $60 gadget called the Blichmann Beer Gun. I get great results with mine. Others have had trouble with it. Search for that one and see what comes up (also search beergun as one word).

BierMuncher has put together a little gadget that he uses to fill bottles. Looks easy/cheap and looks like it worked well. Don't have the link but you could search for 'counter pressure filler' posted by him.

Cool, thanks for the replies, got some search terms now. I just have this APA that I really want to get through so I can hook up something else. I haven't even tapped it yet. Figured I could fill a couple of my big growlers to help me get through it.

Ó Flannagáin said:

I just have this APA that I really want to get through so I can hook up something else.

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I have a similar issue. I want to do a 10 gallon batch again this weekend. Everything has to shift up by ten gallons. The ten in the primaries displaces the ten in the secondaries, and the ten in the secondaries goes into kegs. The problem is that I only have one empty corny.

Funny how you can have two similar problems and two completely different solutions. You want empty your keg into bottles after processing, and I want to empty my keg into the toilet after processing. I'll use a mug, and you'll use a beer gun. I guess the one similarity is that we'll both be using a gun in the end.

Yes, that beergun thing is easy to use, but it can be a hassle to clean and hook up if you are only doing a few bottles. You also usually need a few more parts to interface it to your system (often $20-$40 additionally). I own one, and rarely use it. If you are only filling up a couple of bottles per keg then this is the easiest way:

Freeze the bottles - like in the freezer for a day (yes, it's a PITA and you will worry about sanitation, but I haven't had a problem to date). Then from a carbonated, normal serving keg, turn down the pressure to like 60% of what you serve at and fill your chilled bottles to the very top, and cap on the foam. Put them back in the fridge. They will be carbed and excellent.

Cheers!

If you are going for longer term storage i say go beer gun, if you are talking short term, a couple of weeks or so, i have found that if you fully carb up your beer in the keg, then set at a serving pressure of like two or three PSI, you can get away with the hose in the faucet/cobra tap, method. Ghetto, but works for a short term fix.


Cheers

Fingers said:

I have a similar issue. I want to do a 10 gallon batch again this weekend. Everything has to shift up by ten gallons. The ten in the primaries displaces the ten in the secondaries, and the ten in the secondaries goes into kegs. The problem is that I only have one empty corny.

Funny how you can have two similar problems and two completely different solutions. You want empty your keg into bottles after processing, and I want to empty my keg into the toilet after processing. I'll use a mug, and you'll use a beer gun. I guess the one similarity is that we'll both be using a gun in the end.

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It's terrible, actually. I haven't even tried my APA yet, and I bet it's going to be delicious. It was just the first beer I brewed when I got back from moving hiatus last month. I've done 7 batches since and haven't tapped into any of them. I really want to try some of the ones that are about to be ripe, but I have to tap my first two first: APA and standard Stout. Fridge is only big enough for 2 kegs .

You will need the beer very cold, and the bottles very cold.
I like Chillhayze's suggestion on freezing the bottles.

Glibbidy said:

You will need the beer very cold, and the bottles very cold.
I like Chillhayze's suggestion on freezing the bottles.

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Sorta...

When using the Beer Gun, I attach it straight to the kegs in my kegerator. They're around 40 degrees F. I don't bother chilling the bottles, though it may help slightly with the bit of foaming I sometimes experience. I always give it a couple of seconds worth of CO2 purge before filling. I've yet to have a flat bottle of beer with this method.

FWIW I have found that if I get the beer and the bottles down to around 38f, during the bottling process it drastically reduces the foaming.
my 2 cents worth.

Save yourself the $100. I sanitize the required bottles, let them dry a little but you want the inside to still be wet on all surfaces(rinse with a little distilled water if you're worried about sanitizer). You can use ice to bring temp of sanitizer down so that bottles will be cool when you fill. Then I take my marvelous version of the beergun(a piece of sanitized tubing long enough to reach the bottom of the bottle) and jam it tightly into my picnic faucet. Turn regulator pressure way down and bleed pressure from keg. Add just enough pressure to push the beer out and use the assistance of gravity if possible. It's not quite as fast as the BG and I do get a slight amount of foam, but I bet I lose less than a beer or two per batch. I usually only bottle from the kegs for travel or gift purposes.Something I discovered when I started kegging.....Damn, I'm gonna need several more kegs. I'd rather have kegs sitting around without fridge space than have to bottle so many batches(except HG batches/belgians). What a waste of time in my ever shortening life.

I'm in agreement with Left Field Brewer except I bypass the tubing.

I just set my regulator to 1 psi and slowly fill the bottle with a cobra tap making sure the edge of the tap and the bottle are always touching. It takes about 45 seconds to one minute to fill each bottle but I have literally no foam when I'm done. Just a few bubbles on top. I have some in the fridge that I bottled this way close to two months ago and they are still just as fresh and carbonated as they were when I bottled them. I am aware that some carbonation is lost in the process but it is so minimal that I can't tell the difference.

I'm sure if I bottled more than I do I would spend the money on a beer gun or another alternative but I have been very happy with the results following this method.

Best of luck with whatever you choose.

Brian