Kegging Red Bull at $0.14 per 12 oz can

[shafferpilot]

So what would be the best way to add more caffeine to a homebrewed version of Red Bull?

You've heard about americans ordering prescriptions from mexican and canadian pharmacies, right?

Caffeine is a controlled substance in America and cannot be purchased by consumers.

It is a supplement in both canada and mexico.

The internet is an amazing thing.

Heads Up: caffeine powder is EXTREMELY concentrated and downright deadly if mishandled. 50 miligrams is a normal dose. Do calculations carefully and use a high quality scale!

If you can put together all of these statements into a way for getting your hands on caffeine, you're all set.

BTW, I'm betting that IF I made something called "Evil 'Tang Soda"; it would theoretically become one of my most popular "brews". It would be a mix of Tang mix, lemon and lime juices, water, little bit of brandy and spiced rum, LOTS of Tequila, vodka, and caffeine. But of course I can't make it since caffeine is not available in the US......

 

[tszetela]

Ya' know this give me an idea for next years lawn mower beer! It could turn out to be a bad idea but who knows!

 

[kpr121]

Ya' know this give me an idea for next years lawn mower beer! It could turn out to be a bad idea but who knows!

Next year? I dunno where you live but around here theres still plenty of lawns to be mowin!

 

[tszetela]

I will not have time to brew until mid Sept so by the time it would be done, it would be snow blower beer!

 

[BrewThruYou]

Caffeine is a controlled substance in America and cannot be purchased by consumers.

It is a supplement in both canada and mexico.

The internet is an amazing thing.

This is a joke, right? First search for caffeine powder hit SciFit Caffeine Powder at Amazon, bodybuilding.com, etc. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002VOB0DO/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[shafferpilot]

This is a joke, right? First search for caffeine powder hit SciFit Caffeine Powder at Amazon, bodybuilding.com, etc. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002VOB0DO/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

That stuff is heavily cut with crap that will NOT taste good in any drink. It's probably only 5% or less caffeine. Ever had a tylenol stuck in the back of your mouth? Only 99.9% pure is suitable for beverage making IMO... Anyways, yes, playing like it's illegal was only a joke. The part about it being potentially very dangerous, however, is not. I have only found pure caffeine available from a store in Canada. Search harder and you'll find it.

 

[shafferpilot]

Wow, now that I look around, it's way more prevalent than it used to be. I got a couple pounds years ago and have more than I'll ever use in a lifetime!

 

[WhyBeNormal]

Wow, now that I look around, it's way more prevalent than it used to be. I got a couple pounds years ago and have more than I'll ever use in a lifetime!

Why did you need to buy a few pounds?

 

[beesy]

So tonight's project involves a couple bottles of soda stream red bull mix, a couple of liters of vodka, some h2o and a keg in prep for a friend's wedding this weekend.

I used 1.5 ounces of vodka (1 shot) per 8.4oz can of red bull as my ratio and figured i will need 96.97 ounces of vodka, 28.17oz of sodastream (approx 1.66 bottles) to get a fv of 5g. This is gonna be a fun project!! :rockin:

 

[mrgstiffler]

I've used this stuff quite a bit. Would work pretty well to add a kick to one of these mixes.

http://www.purecaf.com/

 

[h22lude]

My buddy has a soda stream and uses it every day. He also used to work at a soda company so he can get actually ingredients to make soda instead of the syrups. I have tried a few of the soda stream flavors and they were pretty good. The Dr Pepper is a good one.

I was talking to him about making a keg of diet tonic water and adding gin to make gin and tonics on tap lol We might try this or rum and coke using his soda stream first. I have also thought about sangria on tap. The options are endless lol

 

[mychalg9]

The bar I used to frequent when I was in my mid-20's had Red Bull (or a knockoff) on their tap-gun. I wonder if thats why they could get away with selling $3 Jager Bombs so often

 

[ronllave]

Any tips on force carbing the energy drink mix? I'm going to make a 3 gallon batch in my 5 gallon corny and hook up to CO2. I was thinking of setting at 30 psi, shaking for a few minutes and leaving overnight. Then dial down to serving pressure the next day. Will this method over-carb it? Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[kpr121]

Any tips on force carbing the energy drink mix? I'm going to make a 3 gallon batch in my 5 gallon corny and hook up to CO2. I was thinking of setting at 30 psi, shaking for a few minutes and leaving overnight. Then dial down to serving pressure the next day. Will this method over-carb it? Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!

This is what I am doing right now. Have a 2-liter sitting in the kegerator at 30 psi. I doubt it will overcarb it, since most sodas are served at around 20-30 psi to begin with. Real Red Bull is awfully carbonated, I would like it with a little less carbonic bite to it.

 

[beesy]

Any tips on force carbing the energy drink mix? I'm going to make a 3 gallon batch in my 5 gallon corny and hook up to CO2. I was thinking of setting at 30 psi, shaking for a few minutes and leaving overnight. Then dial down to serving pressure the next day. Will this method over-carb it? Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!

When I made mine, the water was already cold, but a just put it on 35lbs and shook the **** out of it for a couple minutes and then set it at like 10 psi and called it done.

 

[Dr. Francois]

The Coke Zero is pretty much dead-on.
Diet Mountain Dew, not so much.
I really want to find the tonic water syrup.

As another option, I keep a keg of sparkling water at all times. I pour the water, then add the mix in the glass. Much easier to clean and you don't have to worry about foam and stickiness issues issues that can come up with dispensing soda. You can also pre-mix in 2L bottles and store in the fridge.

I treat my tap water with 1/8tsp potassium metabisulfite and let it stand overnight. Otherwise, it is like drinking a carbonated swimming pool.

 

[Runyanka]

I plan on making this tonight in the extra keg. Have any of you used a keg for beer after having this product in it? Did you have to replace your seals, beer lines, etc.?

 

[kpr121]

I plan on making this tonight in the extra keg. Have any of you used a keg for beer after having this product in it? Did you have to replace your seals, beer lines, etc.?

Havent actually tried it with a full keg yet, but my 2 liter bottle reeked of redbull after rinsing it a couple times. As with other soda products, I think dedicated lines and kegs (or replacing orings) is a must for this stuff.

I plan to get a secondary reg, and having a seperate soda/seltzer water tap line in the bar set at 25-30 psi. At those pressures you need alot more beverage line anyhow, I figure its a good idea to keep it all seperate. This will all be sent to a picnic tap that will be snaked through a hole in the top of the bar/underbar kegerator for now.

 

[solavirtus]

Thanks for the original post! SWMBO is nuts about red bull, we buy cases from Costco. Even then, it's too dang expensive. A couple things:

One of these doesn't make make 5 gallons, it's a little over 3 gallons. So I bought 2, and plan on combining them to put in a 5 gallon keg. The small amount of leftovers can go toward the next batch or something.

Also, how are the sugar free and the regular energy drinks different? It looks like the regular one doesn't have sugar, and uses Splenda. Anybody have an idea?

Here's a link to BBB for the regular energy mix that explains the Splenda thing:
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?sku=17345605&

UPDATE: Turns out BBB is a liar. Looking at the soda stream website, the regular has sucrose (standard sugar) and the diet energy has sucralose (Splenda).

 

[beesy]

Fyi - a full corny keg of soda stream red bull premixed with vodka at a wedding is a BIG hit. Mine turned out really well - many comments that is was no difference between it and real red bull and vodka.

 

[SpamDog]

Turns out BBB is a liar. Looking at the soda stream website, the regular has sucrose (standard sugar) and the diet energy has sucralose (Splenda).

On the soda stream site it shows Splenda (sucralose) on the regular. All the ones I found at BBB had Splenda on the label, that is the only reason we don't buy them.

Spamdog

 

[SouthernCross]

Hadn't realized. I just checked the cabinet here at the house, and indeed, each there says Sucralose, Splenda brand at the end of ingredients list. They all also list 'sugar' as the 2nd ingredient...

And none of those are diet or sugar-free.

 

[fckwalm]

anyone know of a true redbull syrup? ... I was trying to look around but it seems that there are only knock-offs (from what ive seen)

 

[gnef]

I've devoted one tap to this now, and drink it when I need some extra focus. I was buying cases from Costco, but that was definitely getting expensive.

I wanted to keep the keg low maintenance, so I only made one bottle of it, 3 gallons, and enough pressure so that I shouldn't have to repressurize it before it empties.

 

[midfielder5]

anyone know of a true redbull syrup? ... I was trying to look around but it seems that there are only knock-offs (from what ive seen)

Red Bull only sells it in cans. The energy drinks you order at a bar on the "gun" are cheap knock-offs. The product being dispensed comes in 3 gal bibs (bag in boxes) which the gun mixes with carbonated water.

 

[mattd2]

...I wanted to keep the keg low maintenance, so I only made one bottle of it, 3 gallons, and enough pressure so that I shouldn't have to repressurize it before it empties.

Now thats a good idea!

 

[Thefirebuilds]

The only thing more dangerous to me than a keg of beer in the basement is a keg of redbull... sure, her projects would get done, but what of my bat**** paranoia?!

 

[korisu]

anyone know of a true redbull syrup? ... I was trying to look around but it seems that there are only knock-offs (from what ive seen)

Roariing Lion was created by people who actually worked at Red Bull, and split off to form their own company that catered specifically to the Bag-In-Box market. They've had moderate success so far, but they're still relatively unknown. Coming from someone who's drank at least one Red Bull a day for the past 5+ years, this is the one Red Bull knockoff that actually tastes like the real deal. Echoing the poster from page 4 - if you can set up a keg with Roaring Lion syrup (at the right carbonation levels), you won't be disappointed.

 

[jjotmo]

I thought this was a great idea so I bought a carbonator and some of the energy drink mix from bbb. Wow this stuff stinks, literally. Have any of you guys noticed this?????????

 

[jeffsciv23]

Fyi - a full corny keg of soda stream red bull premixed with vodka at a wedding is a BIG hit. Mine turned out really well - many comments that is was no difference between it and real red bull and vodka.

:rockin: WIN!!! i thought that same thought when i seen the little jug of energy drink mix at the store. i was gonna research if it would be possible. glad to hear it is. time to start a new kegerator with two taps and enough room for a full size comventional keg and a corny. cant wait lol.
so about how much vodka do you use per 3gal corny?