Home bar: To Keg or not to keg

[Gizzygone]

Hello all,

I’ve been paroosing your forum for a few months now, but finally got around to subscribing!

I’m headed towards the end of my mancave build. It’s a beautiful (to me!) 6 person bar, loaded with a dishwasher, two beer fridges and a space I added for a kegerator (if I ever chose to go that route).

I’ve been toying with the idea of a kegerator for a couple of years now, but financially it doesn’t seem to make sense to me (1/6 barrels always end up being more expensive than cans/bottles when I do the math). Recently, though, I discovered one of our local Cider houses sells cider in 1/6 barrels direct for about 1/2 the price of loose cans!


So a kegerator is back on the table.


I’m not looking to break the bank (still paying down construction costs on the basement) but I’m interested in possibly TRYING this whole draft thing.


The way I see it is as such:

1: No Draft at my bar: (most beer is cheaper as cans than 1/6 barrels, I am not limited to one beer for a given time, zero maintenance with cans!)

2: Best Buy insignia dual-Tap kegerator: It’s an entry-level kegerator.... and with my friend’s employee discount it’s quite affordable. It comes with everything I need, and I can upgrade components if I get more serious. If I don’t like it, it comes with the shelves to convert right back into a fridge

The cons of the Insignia : it’s not rated to be installed in a cabinet , so it may not do well in the bar. Also; I’ll have to rig up some sort of tap tower extension (a few inches) as I’ll be mounting the taps to the bar above).


3: build a keezer. A keezer would allow me to be picky with my taps/regulators, etc up front, while only costing a few bucks more than the Insignia kegerator.

The cons here: the keezer won’t fit into the space I gave for the kegerator. I’d have to build an enclosure in the basement (taking up floor space) and then run lines (about 5 feet) to the taps. It’s a direct shot, so I should be able to get away with a PVC solution, but the glycol/forced cold air solutions im reading here are making my head spin...



I hope somebody can weigh in! I appreciate any input!

 

[Toejam792]

Why don't you put a keg in one of your existing fridges? You could put tap on the door or run line to tower in bar.

 

[Gizzygone]

Why don't you put a keg in one of your existing fridges? You could put tap on the door or run line to tower in bar.

The two smaller fridges that I have are cheap-o dorm-style fridges with Glass Doors. So they don’t hold a consistent temperature, and Id have to get crafty with the taps!

 

[Horseflesh]

I'd do a keezer but I understand the desire to spend the dough and be done with the project. Either way, having beer on tap is decadent and I highly recommend it!

You may be able to find local breweries that will fill your own Corny kegs too. I just found I can get 5 gal of decent craft beer in my own keg for $66... Not too bad if I am short on homebrew. Sounds like you're not a brewer yet, but you can get those kegs for maybe $50 used or $100 new. Might be an alternative to always having a keg deposit to worry about.

 

[Gizzygone]

I'd do a keezer but I understand the desire to spend the dough and be done with the project. Either way, having beer on tap is decadent and I highly recommend it!

You may be able to find local breweries that will fill your own Corny kegs too. I just found I can get 5 gal of decent craft beer in my own keg for $66... Not too bad if I am short on homebrew. Sounds like you're not a brewer yet, but you can get those kegs for maybe $50 used or $100 new. Might be an alternative to always having a keg deposit to worry about.

Nope! Not a home brewer yet! I was given a starter kit as a gift and I look forward to trying, but I need to finish the basement project before I can even consider a new hobby!

I’ll gave to ask the local breweries (plenty of them opening around here!) if they fill Corny kegs. Thanks for the idea!

 

[MaryB]

Try to find a mid size fridge instead of a dorm fridge, maybe one that is bar top height. Add taps in the door...

 

[zpack]

Caution This is likely to be long and poorly written

I was in the exact same spot you are in a very short time ago. The only difference is I was positive I wanted kegs (I didn't do the math and frankly my wife is the one who cares about the cost). I built my 6 person bar AFTER building my keezer, I had built it to house 2 corny kegs (ball lock) and 2 commercial (sankey) kegs. I was filling my corny keg with a local brew that I really like for $55 and had a pear cider my wife likes ($100) on tap, I would buy another local brew seasonally ($100) and my dad bought a dark beer ($100) keg. My wife and my dad's kegs lasted a long time but my kegs were lasting a very short time as a five-gallon keg is only 40 pints. My wife was pissed that I was spending over $100 a month on kegs the shortest only being on tap for 16 days (obviously not drinking every day). I realized I had to find kegs cheaper if I wanted to keep my kegerator full.

My only solution was to homebrew. My only experience in homebrewing is going to a place with my dad and brewing in their equipment following their recipe (they also help you do it if you ask) letting it ferment there for 2 weeks then going back and bottling. My other issue is I am not a craft beer guy. I am a see-through beer guy, if I can't see through the beer I'm not drinking it. I live pretty close to Adventures in Homebrewing so I grabbed a buddy and made the trip just over a month ago. I bought the equipment to do extract brewing and 2 beer kits for ~$200. I was pleased with my first brew a pilsner and had a pale ale close behind. I have now brewed 4 kegs (2 are in fermenters now). I am not adventurous and will likely stick to beer kits for a long time, the beer tastes good to me and my buddies and I can keep beers on tap for much cheaper and that is the most important thing (to my wife mainly).

Having draft beer was something I for sure wanted and was important for me and finding a way to get to that cheaper was a compromise with my wife so in the end brewing my own beer was the solution. If you really want draft beer in your bar I would suggest homebrewing. In the meantime you could get your kegs filled locally for a decent price in my area there aren't many so they can charge a premium.

I hope that helps I was in your shoes a very short time ago and think a keezer is the best option and in the long run brewing your own will keep the costs down. Craigslist has a lot of brewing equipment. There are a ton of pictures of keezers on here to help you figure what you want if you decide to go that route. Here are pictures of my bar.

 

[Gizzygone]

Thanks all for the input! Zpack: I love the bar design! I wish I had planned for a Keezer in the beginning: as I would have built it in already! I was given a homebrew kit for a gift a year or so back, so I plan on eventually trying it: but I’m still picking away at my basement project (baby steps!).


I ended up grabbing the insignia. The deal was hard to pass up. I tend to dive into hobbies: so the kegerator would allow me to dip my toes in before I go nuts!

 

[metaltim]

I’ve been toying with the idea of a kegerator for a couple of years now, but financially it doesn’t seem to make sense to me (1/6 barrels always end up being more expensive than cans/bottles when I do the math).




1: No Draft at my bar: (most beer is cheaper as cans than 1/6 barrels, I am not limited to one beer for a given time, zero maintenance with cans!)

This is puzzling to me, as every keg I've ever bought or even looked at, whether 1/6, 1/4 or 1/2 barrel, is much cheaper than buying 6 packs of it (or even 12 packs if offered.)

All of the big names (New belgium, odell, avery, breck, deschutes, great divide, oskar blues, dry dock, sierra nevada, etc) are right around $10-$12 a gallon. ($50-$65 for 1/6 and $80-90 for 1/4)

That is much cheaper than cans, which in general is $10 for 72oz.

Then it's all relative as the beer gets more expensive.. like ballast point, funkwerks, green flash, north coast, river north, etc. They get up to $100 or so for 1/6, but 10 six packs or 14 four packs would be $140+.

You really save getting a keg of a beer that only comes in single bombers. It can easily be half the price.

Keg list of a big store in Denver:
https://www.argonautliquor.com/assets/5991

I'm interested to know prices in your area of standard offerings from big names. It makes zero sense for a brewery to price a keg to an end user at more than the packaging price per ounce.

I remember when I first moved to Denver, going to Rock Bottom, and they had 1/6 barrel kegs of their standard beers for like $35-$40.

 

[cmarshall1087]

holy crap thats a nice bar

 

[Gizzygone]

This is puzzling to me, as every keg I've ever bought or even looked at, whether 1/6, 1/4 or 1/2 barrel, is much cheaper than buying 6 packs of it (or even 12 packs if offered.)

All of the big names (New belgium, odell, avery, breck, deschutes, great divide, oskar blues, dry dock, sierra nevada, etc) are right around $10-$12 a gallon. ($50-$65 for 1/6 and $80-90 for 1/4)

That is much cheaper than cans, which in general is $10 for 72oz.

Then it's all relative as the beer gets more expensive.. like ballast point, funkwerks, green flash, north coast, river north, etc. They get up to $100 or so for 1/6, but 10 six packs or 14 four packs would be $140+.

You really save getting a keg of a beer that only comes in single bombers. It can easily be half the price.

Keg list of a big store in Denver:
https://www.argonautliquor.com/assets/5991

I'm interested to know prices in your area of standard offerings from big names. It makes zero sense for a brewery to price a keg to an end user at more than the packaging price per ounce.

I remember when I first moved to Denver, going to Rock Bottom, and they had 1/6 barrel kegs of their standard beers for like $35-$40.

I think my problem is the closest liquor store to me sells kegs starting around $90 for the craft brands.

But, I have two super-liquor stores within 10 minutes of my house (think supermarket size with nothing but booze in the aisles): so the craft beers tend to be relatively cheap... maybe 8-12 for a four pack of cans?

 

[zpack]

Selling kegs in Ohio can only be done by distributors which is why it costs me so much to buy a keg. You can get them filled by a brewery but there are not many near me that will sell by the gallon.

 

[metaltim]

Selling kegs in Ohio can only be done by distributors which is why it costs me so much to buy a keg. You can get them filled by a brewery but there are not many near me that will sell by the gallon.

I was referring to buying kegs from a store as well, which is through a distributor, not buying directly from brewery (except my rock bottom example).

I've lived in TX and CO, and both states have your many options for your typical, year round offering at the $60 mark for a sixtel.

It makes no sense whatsoever to have a keg priced the same as a 6 or 12 pack. Not sure if I should shame the brewery pricing it that way, or the distributor, or the store, but someone isn't thinking through that very clearly. Could you imagine if all the items at costco were the same unit price as the regular grocery stores? No one would go there!

 

[Gizzygone]

I was referring to buying kegs from a store as well, which is through a distributor, not buying directly from brewery (except my rock bottom example).

I've lived in TX and CO, and both states have your many options for your typical, year round offering at the $60 mark for a sixtel.

It makes no sense whatsoever to have a keg priced the same as a 6 or 12 pack. Not sure if I should shame the brewery pricing it that way, or the distributor, or the store, but someone isn't thinking through that very clearly. Could you imagine if all the items at costco were the same unit price as the regular grocery stores? No one would go there!

They probably see it at a novelty item and jack the prices up. I’m sure the restaurants don’t pay more!

But you’re right: it’s bulk beverage...and essentially zero cost to package (they get their kegs back, vs having to reupp in cans/bottles).

You could say the lack of demand could contribute: but I bought Sam octoberfest: that’s on basically every restaurant tap around these parts!