ne0t0ky0
Well-Known Member
I've been chasing some off, astringent flavor in my last 4 or 5 beers. All tasted fine prior to kegging and post carb and age time smelled fine, tasted good at first, but had this lingering bitter, closer to soap than anything else.
Last week I got a keg filled at a local brewpub and today I sampled it and it had the same off-flavor. Talking with a buddy said, what about your lines? A quick peek inside the picnic tap and that gasket was all black. *yuck* I can't believe I didn't check this before.
So, obviously, time for new lines and new taps; it seems you can replace that silicon gasket inside the tap and a new tap is about $4 anyhow.
My keg cleaning routine is:
- Pull from kegerator when floated
- Within a day or two, rinse with water
- Mix up 2 gallons of 120F water and 4 scoops of oxyclean (Don't have the free kind yet)
- Put keg on my DIY keg/carboy washer and recirc for 20 minutes
- Switch oxywater out for clean water at 120F and recirc for 20 minutes
- Fill with a couple quarts of starsan, swirl, flip and push out bev line jumper into another empty keg.
- Keg stays pressurized until the next fill.
I sometimes, but not always pull off the gas and bev posts and soak. Usually if the keg isn't sealing, I pull off and re-lube them.
So, the 25 gallon question is: What about the beer in the keg? Would it be infected? If I get all new lines, will that clean things up? I'm about to order, so I won't know myself for a few days.
Last week I got a keg filled at a local brewpub and today I sampled it and it had the same off-flavor. Talking with a buddy said, what about your lines? A quick peek inside the picnic tap and that gasket was all black. *yuck* I can't believe I didn't check this before.
So, obviously, time for new lines and new taps; it seems you can replace that silicon gasket inside the tap and a new tap is about $4 anyhow.
My keg cleaning routine is:
- Pull from kegerator when floated
- Within a day or two, rinse with water
- Mix up 2 gallons of 120F water and 4 scoops of oxyclean (Don't have the free kind yet)
- Put keg on my DIY keg/carboy washer and recirc for 20 minutes
- Switch oxywater out for clean water at 120F and recirc for 20 minutes
- Fill with a couple quarts of starsan, swirl, flip and push out bev line jumper into another empty keg.
- Keg stays pressurized until the next fill.
I sometimes, but not always pull off the gas and bev posts and soak. Usually if the keg isn't sealing, I pull off and re-lube them.
So, the 25 gallon question is: What about the beer in the keg? Would it be infected? If I get all new lines, will that clean things up? I'm about to order, so I won't know myself for a few days.