Bob the Kegerator is AWESOME, but...

[DeadSquirrel]

I'm worried about a couple of things when it comes to Kegging, force carbonation, & bottling from a keg. Here goes:

I've read that I should (after purging oxygen) Fill with 30psi, pop into the fridge for two days to carbonate, then take it out and throw it into a closet until I'm ready to use. My issue is this: Won't it change the flavor? I have a three gallon keg I'm going to bring to bbq's this summer and the last thing I need is that horrible bitter sour taste. My kegerator is awesome, but will only hold one 5 gallon keg at a time. So it's cold, then warm, then chilled before serving?

If I bottle from my kegerator tap, how long will the beer still be draft quality tasty? Is there a decline in quality over time? How much time? Could I bottle from my keg and then ship it off to comps and still expect the same beer taste to come out of the bottle as they test it? And then I have the same temp. change flavor question here too. It would be coming cold out of the kegerator, then get warm in transit, then cold again...

Thanks for your time!

 

[ian]

sorry

just out of curiosity - did you get a good deal on the 3 gallon keg? Every one I see costs more than a 5! Lots more, I guess its a matter of availability . . .

 

[Mindflux]

Temperature swings, for the most part don't sour beer (Unless the beer is in extreme heat for long periods of time). What sours/skunks beer is UV light. Since it's in a sealed keg.. you've got no worries there.

 

[vtfan99]

I'm worried about a couple of things when it comes to Kegging, force carbonation, & bottling from a keg. Here goes:

I've read that I should (after purging oxygen) Fill with 30psi, pop into the fridge for two days to carbonate, then take it out and throw it into a closet until I'm ready to use. My issue is this: Won't it change the flavor? I have a three gallon keg I'm going to bring to bbq's this summer and the last thing I need is that horrible bitter sour taste. My kegerator is awesome, but will only hold one 5 gallon keg at a time. So it's cold, then warm, then chilled before serving?

If I bottle from my kegerator tap, how long will the beer still be draft quality tasty? Is there a decline in quality over time? How much time? Could I bottle from my keg and then ship it off to comps and still expect the same beer taste to come out of the bottle as they test it? And then I have the same temp. change flavor question here too. It would be coming cold out of the kegerator, then get warm in transit, then cold again...

Thanks for your time!

I would think that if you took it out of the fridge, a lot of the CO2 would come out of solutiong, meaning it would need to be chilled for quite a while for the beer to reabsorb it. In which case I wouldn't even bother with putting it in the fridge to start. Just hit it with gas to seal and throw it in the closet until you're ready to use it. I may be way off base here as I do not share your space problem

If you bottle from your kegerator tap, the beer will be draft quality for a small period of time. Exactly how long...I have no idea, but the CO2 will be released from the beer and it will go flat eventually, especially if it got warm. This is why they invented the counter pressure bottle filler and, more recently, the beer gun. It lets you bottle from the keg without losing any pressure. Pretty handy item.

 

[DeadSquirrel]

sorry

just out of curiosity - did you get a good deal on the 3 gallon keg? Every one I see costs more than a 5! Lots more, I guess its a matter of availability . . .

Totally! I paid 60 bucks on ebay after watching for over a month for something cheaper. And it's used. And it's Pin-lock. Ugh. But I wasn't about to bring a five gallon corny to a bbq, so I bit the bullet and got a small tap and cO2 gun.

 

[david_42]

To get around the excess weight of a full 5 gallons, I fabricated a connector, so I can transfer part of a keg to another. With half the volume full of CO2 (I'll charge it to 10 psi), I don't even have to take the tank and regulator.

 

[Sneakysnitch]

So rather than spend the extra (actual beer making cash) on a 3 gallon tank for a bbq, you just transfer over 1, 2, or 3 gal from a full 5 and take the partial right?