Difference between a cask and keg

[pod_021]

Hey all, i know this is a dumb **s question but what's the difference between a keg and cask?

 

[carnevoodoo]

Cask is naturally carbonated and pulled out of the vessel with a hand pump. Keg is typically force carbonated with a bottle of co2, and then pushed with co2.

 

[pod_021]

Cask is naturally carbonated and pulled out of the vessel with a hand pump. Keg is typically force carbonated with a bottle of co2, and then pushed with co2.

Cheers, and is a cask made from wood or are they both from stainless steel?

 

[JetSmooth]

A cask is generally steel, just like a keg. In fact, you could serve "cask" ale from a "keg" if it met the criteria already mentioned.

 

[Goliathnz]

Cask is naturally carbonated and pulled out of the vessel with a hand pump. Keg is typically force carbonated with a bottle of co2, and then pushed with co2.

But what is the hand-pull beer engine replacing into the keg when it's being pulled? Natural air? Isn't this bad for the beer for tomorrow or next week? (having a bit of a discussion in another thread about my keg set-up with a handpump, where necessary but the natural carbing method lasts for several weeks in the keg).

 

[Goliathnz]

Hmm it looks like a lot of work to make my standard 'sanke' keg into a cask with a breather spile etc...

 

[thezepster]

But what is the hand-pull beer engine replacing into the keg when it's being pulled? Natural air?

Thats how its done the old fashioned way, which is fine if you plan on drinking the cask in a day or two. But nowadays pubs have a co2 tank connected to a breather, then to the cask. The breather replaces the space in the cask with co2 at atmospheric pressure which greatly extends the life of the beer.

 

[remilard]

Thats how its done the old fashioned way, which is fine if you plan on drinking the cask in a day or two. But nowadays pubs have a co2 tank connected to a breather, then to the cask. The breather replaces the space in the cask with co2 at atmospheric pressure which greatly extends the life of the beer.

Maybe. CAMRA doesn't allow a breather and a great deal of the cask beer served in the world is in the UK conforming to CAMRA guidelines.

 

[thezepster]

Maybe. CAMRA doesn't allow a breather and a great deal of the cask beer served in the world is in the UK conforming to CAMRA guidelines.

I was letting him know that there is a way to keep the beer fresh. I didnt realize we had to follow camra's guidelines

 

[Goliathnz]

Yeah obviously camra rules don't apply (or interest) me. Interesting tho that the uk pubs that have real ales on tap prob don't put co2 back in the cask. And they clearly won't finish a cask/keg in a few days. 2 weeks if you are lucky surely depending on the pub?

 

[muthafuggle]

Yeah obviously camra rules don't apply (or interest) me. Interesting tho that the uk pubs that have real ales on tap prob don't put co2 back in the cask. And they clearly won't finish a cask/keg in a few days. 2 weeks if you are lucky surely depending on the pub?

I believe the Goal is 3-5 days on a cask. Real camra freaks claim they can tell how many days the keg's been tapped by taste, color and smell of the beer. All I have to say to that is "find a busy pub with a decent publican"

 

[mattd2]

Maybe. CAMRA doesn't allow a breather and a great deal of the cask beer served in the world is in the UK conforming to CAMRA guidelines.

I thought CAMRA did actually allow for cask ale to be connected to CO2 via a low pressure reducing valve that would supply CO2 at atmoshperic pressure for pubs with low turn over.

 

[thezepster]

I thought CAMRA did actually allow for cask ale to be connected to CO2 via a low pressure reducing valve that would supply CO2 at atmoshperic pressure for pubs with low turn over.

Ya im like 90% sure they do too. I looked all over their website and couldnt really find anything about breathers. All I found was:

"Real ale is a beer brewed from traditional ingredients (malted barley, hops water and yeast), matured by secondary fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served without the use of extraneous carbon dioxide."

That to me sounds like you can't use breathers, but we use breathers and are compliant to camra guidelines. There might be a gray area there.

 

[jjanderton]

The Big difference between a cask and keg is in the appearance. A Keg beer does not have shive on the side. Also, Keg is different from cask in the manner that it does have a centrally located downtube and a valve which allows the flow of gas out and flow of beer inside at the time of filling beer and reverse operation at the time when beer comes out.


Home Brew Ireland

 

[bonzombiekitty]

Ya im like 90% sure they do too. I looked all over their website and couldnt really find anything about breathers. All I found was:

"Real ale is a beer brewed from traditional ingredients (malted barley, hops water and yeast), matured by secondary fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served without the use of extraneous carbon dioxide."

That to me sounds like you can't use breathers, but we use breathers and are compliant to camra guidelines. There might be a gray area there.

To me that sounds like you can't pump CO2 into the beer at high pressure, but replacing it at atmospheric pressure would be fine, since that wouldn't be "extraneous" CO2.

 

[IrregularPulse]

Ya im like 90% sure they do too. I looked all over their website and couldnt really find anything about breathers. All I found was:

"Real ale is a beer brewed from traditional ingredients (malted barley, hops water and yeast), matured by secondary fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served without the use of extraneous carbon dioxide."

That to me sounds like you can't use breathers, but we use breathers and are compliant to camra guidelines. There might be a gray area there.

To me that sounds like you can't pump CO2 into the beer at high pressure, but replacing it at atmospheric pressure would be fine, since that wouldn't be "extraneous" CO2.

Agreed. There's a difference in serving with pressure and replacing co2 with atmospheric pressure.

 

[bonzombiekitty]

Agreed. There's a difference in serving with pressure and replacing co2 with atmospheric pressure.

On the other hand, introducing O2 into the environment may change the character of the beer over time and not necessarily as a negative if the turn over is quick enough. It'd also be a more authentic effect, which would be more in line with the concept of real ale.

But I still think the guideline of not using extraneous CO2 means not pumping in CO2 to keep the beer carbonated. I would think that even though not using CO2 at atmospheric pressure is more desirable in real ale terms, as a campaign they'd have to allow for it for pubs and bars that don't have a quick turnover or else a publican could lose a lot of product.

 

[doctorRobert]

Oxidizing the beer is part of the flavor profile. It doesn't have to be bad. Most popular pubs will easily go through a cask in a day or two.

More importantly, is the weather. Since the Casks are generally just cellared, they can get funky in the summer. (and they probably sell less ale and more lager, increasing the amount of time to go through the cask)

 

[patto1ro]

Agreed. There's a difference in serving with pressure and replacing co2 with atmospheric pressure.

There have been long and acrimonious disccussions about cask breathers within CAMRA. They are most definitely not allowed and pubs using them are barred from entry in the GooD Beer Guide.

 

[patto1ro]

I believe the Goal is 3-5 days on a cask. Real camra freaks claim they can tell how many days the keg's been tapped by taste, color and smell of the beer. All I have to say to that is "find a busy pub with a decent publican"

Five days is way too long. A decent pub shouldn't have a cask on for more than two days.

 

[mattd2]

There have been long and acrimonious disccussions about cask breathers within CAMRA. They are most definitely not allowed and pubs using them are barred from entry in the GooD Beer Guide.

yeah I saw a quote somewhere saying CAMRA doesn't endorse the use of cask breathers, and it sound like they were meaning CAMRA was against them but didn't want to come off sounding like d**ks.