Most convenient and effective portable option?

[TheIronFistOfDeath]

I've recently started brewing 5 gallon batches and want to give a gallon each to my father and brother after brewing and I'm considering my options: portable keg or bottles.

On one hand, bottles are more labor intensive, take up a lot of real estate in the fridge, and take longer to carb but are a time tested reliable option.

On the other hand, a portable keg is easy but still might be a little much to put in the kitchen refrigerator, especially with a tap and co2 connected. Then there's the issue of quality and reliability (looking at you GrowlerWerks).

What are your suggestions? And are the uKegs as bad as I read? They would be perfect but not if they're constantly failing.

 

[AlexKay]

1-liter EZ-Cap bottles.

 

[RCope]

If you are kegging your beer and you want to give out gallons of it then nothing beats a pressurized growler. It'll keep the carbonation at the right level for weeks. If you know the gallon will be consumed quickly (all at one time) and soon after gifting then a standard growler is fine.

It is a bit more work, but bottling from a kegerator is a great way to give away 6 packs, with no significant time pressure for consumption and no learning curve for your recipients. Look into the TapCooler.

I don't know what you've read about the uKeg growlers. I own 5 and have given 5 more out as gifts. They work perfectly with a bit of maintenance and a short learning curve. O-rings and gaskets wear but are simple to replace. It's even easy to "rebuild" the pressure cap, the faucet, and replace the regulator gauge when/if necessary.

 

[aceluby]

I haven’t done this, but I’ve heard that two liter soda bottles are a great option for larger bottle conditioning

 

[Bramling Cross]

I would focus on making good beer and standing firm against bottling.

If you do that, they'll buy their own kegs, regulators, and tanks.

At which point, assuming that they're smarter than a box of rocks, you'll have the pleasure of teaching them to brew.

Been there, done that, many times over....

 

[ba-brewer]

If your father and brother come to your house and like pouring a glass of draft beer steer them toward small kegs and offer to fill them. Managing kegs may not be for everybody.

If your father and brother are not into managing kegs and drink beer in a reasonable amount of time you can fill bottle using this method from your kegs and preserve most of the keg beer flavor.
We no need no stinking beer gun...
A beer gun that allows you to purge the bottle with CO2 will extend the fridge life of the bottled beers.

@Bramling Cross "smarter than a box of rocks" made me laugh.

 

[Beermeister32]

There’s more to unpack here than at first glance.

Most people aren’t into the whole beer thing like we are. They are used to popping a cap off a bottle or opening a can and that’s about it. Try explaining how you have to decant a pour or what the junk is at the bottom.

Then there’s the problem of big bottles. My Dad would only drink about half a 12 oz bottle when he was older. If he poured it off a big bottle, now you’ve murked up the beer to settle. Plus oxidation. Plus lower CO2 levels.

A lot of them don’t drink regular growlers. It would sit a week or two in their refrigerators while they drink some occasionally. No easy way to replace with CO2, so oxidation and flat beer.

Kegs in their fridges? And CO2? Learning all that management? That’s for beer fanatics like us, not all the pedestrians out there.

About the most practical as I see it is make it as easy and “normal” as possible for them as they would approach it.

You or I will chug through 4-5 of the 16 ouncers at one pass. A lot of these other drinkers are full with one or two pathetic little 12 oz bottles.

Nevertheless, that means using “export” type bottles with a shoulder to hold back the dregs. 12 oz size, they would view that as normal. Maybe even some old Sierra Nevada bottles, they store nicely if you keep the box. Pouring instructions or training to hold back the last ounce, and use a beer glass, don’t drink directly from the bottle for crying out loud !!!!

 

[bwible]

I got one of these Tapcooler counter pressure fillers recently. I haven’t used it yet but I’m looking forward to it.

https://www.morebeer.com/products/t...MIkPCAmu3Q-gIVma_ICh1twA6xEAQYAyABEgI7YfD_BwE


It works with front sealing taps like Perlick. You put it right in the end of your kegerator’s faucet and fill bottles.

If you’re kegging this looks like a great option to pull off a few bottles to put a beer in a competition or to pull off a 6 pack to give away. The plus here is no bottle conditioning, no yeast in the bottom of the bottle.

Bottles are cheap or free if you save them from beers you drink. You just have to buy caps.

On the ukeg - I have the one that doesn’t have the fancy sight glass on the outside. It’s red. Half gallon, 64 oz. I think it was $100. I use it to take beer places like to homebrew club meetings. It works well enough. I’ve had beer in it for 4 days with no issues. My only gripe is having to buy co2 cartridges all the time because you use one every time you fill it up.

 

[bwible]

MoreBeer also has torpedo kegs in 1.5 gallon and 2.5 gallon sizes in addition to 5 gallons. These are not cheap. But the uKegs are about the same price? And this would require whoever you are giving beer to to have their own co2 bottle and regulator. Plus a way to keep it cold.

https://www.morebeer.com/products/torpedo-ball-lock-kegs.html
They make things like this for portable dispensing out of the kegs, but then you’re back to buying co2 cartridges

https://homebrewing.org/products/co...MIsaWJj_TQ-gIVUeDICh0dfAG7EAQYAyABEgLO6PD_BwE

 

[camonick]

I started using the no stinking beer gun but got tired of unhooking my lines from the kegs. The clean up is also a bit more involved and you can’t purge the bottles with CO2 before you fill them. It does work well for short term solution and there’s really not that much of a problem if the beer is consumed quickly. I received a Tapcooler mentioned above and have had good luck so far with it. There’s a little bit of a learning curve and you have to have an extra CO2 line for the purging function. I’ve heard reports that it doesn’t fit certain Perlicks and I have one Intertap that it won’t fit either for some reason. Clean up is easier. It only takes a few minutes to fill a 6 pack. You can give away beer to friends and family that is clear and carbonated. Have them rinse the bottles with fresh water and return them for refills.

 

[bracconiere]

drink beer in a reasonable amount of time

 

[bwible]

There’s a little bit of a learning curve and you have to have an extra CO2 line for the purging function.

My kegerator is set up for 2 kegs. So all I have to do is pull the gas fitting off the keg I’m not bottling out of and stick it on the end of the tapcooler. I got the ball lock adapter fitting.

 

[camonick]

You should be good to go as long as it’s long enough to reach the tap.

 

[camonick]

My kegerator is set up for 2 kegs. So all I have to do is pull the gas fitting off the keg I’m not bottling out of and stick it on the end of the tapcooler. I got the ball lock adapter fitting.

I’m still struggling with proper flow rates. I feel like the spring on the pressure relief plunger is too strong/ long. I have to unscrew it almost all the way to get decent flow. I’m thinking about cutting off about 1 coil or so to see if that helps. Lube the plunger with some keg lube too if you have any… I’ve found that helps too.