How do you limit beer consumption off kegs?

[Brewmech]

Easy... brew 10 gallon batches. Buy more kegs. I couldn't keep up with my friends demand for beer so I brewed bigger batches. Problem solved.

 

[NickTheGreat]

Put a coin slot or bill reader on it.

 

[Dirty25]

You don't. Brew more or don't have friends over. All my friends are welcome too all the beer they want from my kegorator. The faster they kill it the faster I get to refill it.

 

[IL1kebeer]

I don't brew beer to enjoy it by myself, even if it is an "A" list brew. So i could care less if my friends/family drink most of my beer. It actually makes me proud that they can't get enough of my brew. Don't get me wrong, I drink at least a pint of my homebrew daily, but the best part about homebrewing, in my opinion, is to share it with good friends/family. Plus, if they finish half of my keg it gives me a reason to brew more.

 

[bleme]

I think it would also help if they understood some of the cost. I can't think of a single time that I have served my beer to a group and someone didn't ask about the cost of homebrewing. It is tempting to just total up the grain bill - it makes you look smarter and keeps the eavesdropping wife happy - but if you add in ALL the costs, they will get a truer picture. Think yeast, propane, ice, StarSan, CO2, OxyClean, bottled spring water, shipping, minimum wage... You come out looking like a real dumbazz spending $100+ on 5 gallons of beer but they will respect the brew more.

 

[stpug]

I've swapped what keg I had connected to a tap prior to company coming over but not necessarily because I didn't want that keg being drank but because I thought the new keg was better. Because I wanted my friends to taste all of my offerings I simply poured out a growler of the "lesser" beer prior to swapping kegs and the growler was offered up for drinking along with the taps. You could do similar by pouring out some of your good stuff in a growler(s) so you can limit how much of it gets drank.

Additionally, you could simply disconnect a keg and remove the tap so you have a blank spot there (at least there's nothing to pull ).

 

[Jipper]

http://morebeer.com/products/beer-faucet-lock.html?site_id=7

I'd say lockup the taps that you don't want people to drink, and allow the B-List beers to go. I don't have enough room in my kegerator, so I personally allow them to drink whatever / however much they want. If I have a special beer like an imperial stout or lambic that I worked a long time on, I put a lock on it. If one of my friends is interested in trying it, I grab them the appropriate glass, unlock it, pour one out, and lock it back up!

Sorry for your loss though, but sounds like you had a great beer that people just couldn't get enough of, so congrats on that!

Cheers.

 

[beernutz]

Put a tip jar near your taps.

Use smaller glasses.

Get new friends.

 

[mattd2]

Put a coin slot or bill reader on it.

or a CC reader... and then completly deny that you are the cause of fraudulant charges on you freinds cards
...
too soon?

 

[Rhumbline]

My first response was that you need to put the fear of God into them so they can be trusted around your beer.

My second response, after reflecting on me and my friends is that you should have known better.

My final answer... let them know how much a keg of beer costs to brew, and how much work is involved. Tell them you are replacing the beer, and that they have been volunteered to help you brew it as well as buying the ingredients.

Of course, this will result in them drinking even more of your beer during the process, but it at least drives the point home. Tell them they will be bringing the snacks for brew day.

All said tongue in cheek, my friends would drink every drop in the house, eat everything that wasn't fuzzy, and raz me for being such a chump that I left them in the a/c with unlimited beer whilst putzing around outside.

 

[Braufessor]

lots of good suggestions. #1 - brew more beer. That helps a lot - I am pretty stingy with my german lagers that take 10-16 weeks to be ready. I am not about to let people swill those down to get drunk. Same with other beers that are expensive/a lot of work/ or I simply want to keep for myself. I will hand out smaller sample glasses perhaps, or save some pints for people who will really appreciate it - but nothing wrong with just keeping some kegs "off-line." I try to brew regular batches of a few beers that have fast turnarounds and are good session beers - british bitter, british mild, american pale ale..... I keep them low alcohol, but full of flavor. No one gets "wasted" and if we burn through a bunch - no big deal, I can have another keg brewed and on tap in 3 weeks easy.

 

[chocotaco]

Step 1) Be glad you have a great keg system!
Step 2) Be glad your homebrew is so great that people can't stop drinking it!
Step 3) Put away the chainsaw and join your friends! The tree will still be there tomorrow, or next weekend.

Have some fun. YOLO. If you are upset that people *you invited over* enjoyed your brew so much that it's half gone, you have what's called a "good problem." Brew some more! It's what you love doing! If it's about the money, have them bring over some 2-row and hops and help you brew another batch! If they would "help" you cut up a tree, then they would certainly help (no air quotes) you brew some tasty beer.

Value your friends; if you want to "beat the crap out of them" for having one too many of your homebrews then you're not a good friend.

Two cents given.

 

[Billy-Klubb]

I say beat the crap out of your friends with a chunk of that tree! ALPHA MALE!!!! if your friends can't take a beating after finishing your keg, then they ain't friends. take that to the bank.

 

[pjj2ba]

I'll second to idea to give them smaller glasses. I have lots of 6-10 oz glasses (as well as pints) and ask folks which size they prefer. Most folks take the smaller glasses so they can try all of the beers I have on tap (almost always 4)

Besides a plug on the tap you don't want then to drink from, also take the handle off.

 

[kh54s10]

Don't allow your mooching friends to serve themselves. Pour them a beer and refill at your discretion.

 

[Dirty25]

It seems a lot of people love to drink their beer more then share. I am all about sharing my homebrew with them. I like all the compliments I get and really just like making beer. Spending my Sunday crushing grains, mashing, and brewing is a fun day for me. I never have put a dollar amount on my beer an look at it more of the enjoyment side.

 

[Dirty25]

*plus after about 1 gallon of my homebrew down I am looking forward to the next thing so I want to kill the keg anyway

 

[JonM]

"In-law dip tube."

 

[Babybatch]

I know a lot of people are saying get new friends. My friends and family come with faults and I accept them and they put up with my crap too. We are problem solving here people, thinking critically, out of the box. when I started this tread, I was thinking of limiting beer and now I'm thinking of decoy beer. Now we need a faucet that explodes.

Here is a fun/annoying idea. Maybe you could attach a loud horn to the tap. Or some kind of setup that plays a quote from a movie every time you pull the tap. Maybe you could attach it to a secret toggle switch so it only works that way when you want it to. I have ZERO skills with electronics but it seems that this hobby will be an education in that to some degree.

Arduino & Raspberry Pi here we come!!!

 

[Babybatch]

Put a coin slot or bill reader on it.

Might as well add an change machine.

Ooo. That would make a cool keezer conversion project!

It would be cool to tie in one of your taps to and arcade game. Get a high score get a pull! That sounds so fun!

 

[jnr1005]

I just started brewing so I don't have this issue yet, but I can understand the concept. I get the same feeling when I spend a lot of money on craft beer and a group of friends comes over and starts drinking it like its bud lite... On the other hand I look forward to sharing my creations when they are done. I think in the long run, maybe you need to limit to you pouring the tap beers and maybe have a "free for all" section of the fridge for the beers you want to share.

I know as much as I want to share what I brew with my friends, I will put a stop to it if it seems like my house just becomes the "free beer" house. It takes too much time and money for people to act like it grows on trees. Sometimes you just have to put your foot down, otherwise some people will take advantage.

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I've had a few people overindulge on my kegs, which is fine, I take it as a compliment. However, if they obviously just want to get ripped, I gently nudge them to the apfelwein tap. Takes care of them in short order, and takes about 5 minutes to make.

 

[geckholm]

My friends can drink as much as they care to. We had some friends over a little bit ago and we polished of 7 1/2 gallons...no big deal, I can make more or buy some while it is fermenting/conditioning.

I have a dual-tap on my kegerator, if there is a brew in there I don't necessarily want to lose quickly....when more than one or two people come over, I just disconnect the liquid post. If anyone asks what's on the other tap, the answer is nothing, I have something conditioning in the other keg. Not ready yet.

I agree with a couple of the others, beer is a communal drink, I share as much as possible.

 

[Crito]

I disconnect what I want to save. Doesn't happen often. I usually want the keg gone so I can keep brewing.

On a side note, had a friend bring one of his friends that I also knew. My friend didn't tell me in advance. I let the friend in but the other person I told that he wasn't allowed in my home. (That guy was a d-bag and annoying). I felt pretty good. My friend only stayed for a few. The other guy waited in my friend's car. Hehe

 

[beaksnbeer]

Like this have more then they can consume. If there is something off limits I explain or switch a keg out

 

[bleme]

My friends can drink as much as they care to. We had some friends over a little bit ago and we polished of 7 1/2 gallons...no big deal, I can make more or buy some while it is fermenting/conditioning.

I wish I could afford to do this. It just isn't realistic for a lot of us. I live in Central California and only ran the air conditioner 4 days this summer because every penny matters. I limit myself to one beer a day and that is exactly what I offer my guests.

 

[amfukuda]

I'm lucky in that most of my friends don't care for anything but coors but the few that do have helped me brew or build stuff for brewing and a couple are even nice enough to leave a little money for the next batch

 

[jpalarchio]

1. Brew more.

2. Invite your friends over on brew day so they can see the effort into creating beer is and let them know that's about 40% of it; make them stay through cleanup. (Maybe they take up the hobby themselves).

3. If it's a repetitive issue, find new "friends" that are more respectful.

 

[geckholm]

I wish I could afford to do this. It just isn't realistic for a lot of us. I live in Central California and only ran the air conditioner 4 days this summer because every penny matters. I limit myself to one beer a day and that is exactly what I offer my guests.

I brew inexpensive batches … maybe avg $15 per.

 

[luke_d]

Ugh this problem!! Why is it that people think that we have unlimited beer?! Once we had some friends over, and as I was going to show one of them my beer closet with my fermenting beer, conditioning bottles, equipment, etc...I walk in on one of our other friends who had already chugged down three 12 oz bottles of Imperial Stout that had been bottled for only about 3 days. Probably didn't taste the best, haha!

And I certainly don't have a problem with sharing, I love it! And if he would've asked I would've given him just about however much beer he wanted (within reason), but I thought it was pretty damn disrespectful to just go behind my back and start chugging beers that weren't even ready. Definitely smacked him.

 

[Randy_Bugger]

Tell your friends there is a three beer limit or whatever limit you choose. If they don't respect your limitation, then they lose their beer privilege. If they don't stop by your house after being cut off from beer, then they probably aren't the kind of friends you need to keep.