Was I saved or??

[FirefightingBrewer]

So about 4 months ago I had kegged a nice brown ale and then went away on business. Upon my return I broke out a glass to try my recently kegged brown only to find a slow stream of beer pouring into my glass. I checked the co2 tank and found that it had completely emptied.

Obviously it leaked out and I wrote off my beer as being ruined. Now I never emptied the keg, I simply left it in my refrigerator until today when I needed to get prepared for keging two new brews tomorrow and I needed that keg. I pulled it out of the fridge and went to pop the top and realized that, "hey this thing still has gas on it." I pulled the relief pin and sure as ****, a good volume of air rushed out.

So my question is, do you think this beer is actually good to drink? You think just getting some co2 on it will bring it back to life? Looking for a quick answer so I don't throw out what could possibly be good beer?

Thanks

P.S. It has been holding steady at 36 degrees the entire time.

 

[ong]

It should be fine! Try a glass and see. It may not even be flat, if it was pressurized the whole time.

 

[anico4704]

Why would the beer be ruined in the first place, i am missing something here? Beer can sit in the keg uncarbed for months if you want it to, no different than a secondary really. The only issue i could see would be oxygenation eventually if there`s no carb but thats still a pretty low risk. Carb her up and drink it for sure!

 

[Pratzie]

Yeah def. especially if there was pressure inside that kept any and all nasties out.

It pretty much has just been sitting and conditioning inside. I'd guess u have some tasty brew inside. Give it a taste once its carbed and let us know how it turns out!

 

[FirefightingBrewer]

Why would the beer be ruined in the first place, i am missing something here? Beer can sit in the keg uncarbed for months if you want it to, no different than a secondary really. The only issue i could see would be oxygenation eventually if there`s no carb but thats still a pretty low risk. Carb her up and drink it for sure!

Originally I believed the korny was the cause of the leak and not the gas lines, thus allowing in some nastyness. I did not check at the time...you know the saying about assumptions...so lesson learned for sure.

Guess I need to get a new korny for my new brew (a Belgian IPA) and enjoy a nice 4 month aged brown ale. You all made me feel like a kid on Christmas, or that I found $20 in an old pair of jeans.

 

[BigFloyd]

Even if the corny was leaking CO2 out around the lid gasket, you would still be left with CO2 covering the beer inside the keg.

Gas it, enjoy it.

BTW- Keg lube all of your seals and check all connections by pressurizing and spraying with StarSan.

 

[anico4704]

Originally I believed the korny was the cause of the leak and not the gas lines, thus allowing in some nastyness. I did not check at the time...you know the saying about assumptions...so lesson learned for sure.

Guess I need to get a new korny for my new brew (a Belgian IPA) and enjoy a nice 4 month aged brown ale. You all made me feel like a kid on Christmas, or that I found $20 in an old pair of jeans.

Gotcha, definitely check the seals as the previous poster stated, and lube everything up. Also, when sealing the lid turn the pressure to 30PSI and connect the gas line with the lid in place, but not sealed. When pressure stops flowing seal the metal piece on the lid. This works very well to ensure no leaks in the lid, which is hard sometimes to get to not leak otherwise.

 

[FirefightingBrewer]

Update: Threw some gas on it yesterday, and poured this delicious Brown Ale?? Nope! It was a Robust Porter...haha. I thought I knew what had been drunk and what had not...4 months is a long time. Thanks again for your support guys...much appreciated.

 

[BigFloyd]

That's good news. A brew like that would certainly benefit from the extra aging.

Enjoy.