Keging 1/2 my 5 gallon batch

[watergod]

I've been bottling my 5 gallon batches for the last 2 years but since I've just started kegging my 5 gallon batches I was wondering if there's a problem with kegging 2.5 gallons and bottling the rest? I like to give beer away to friends and bottling from the keg sucks even with a beer gun.

 

[day_trippr]

Depending on how you go about it, it could be fine to bottle half and keg half.

The bottling part isn't the issue, of course - do that part according to Hoyle. For the kegging part, it would be beneficial to have access to some CO2 to purge the humungous head space left in a half-filled keg to avoid an obvious opportunity for oxidation.

Otherwise, there shouldn't be a problem. From there you could use some priming sugar, seal up the keg and let a secondary fermentation carbonate the beer, or - if you still have access to that CO2 - go the forced fermentation route...

Cheers!

 

[Golddiggie]

I found kegging with the beer gun very easy, if you do it right. Chill the bottles before hand (after sanitizing them) and install a corny gas post on the gas-in feed for the gun. That makes it easier to connect to CO2. Then it's really just a matter of following the instructions that come with it.

If you don't have a CO2 tank, regulator, and such, then it will be far more difficult. But, with regular kegging gear, it's easy. Of course, I do have spare CO2 tanks, and two extra regulators, so maybe I'm just spoiled.

I've bottled my brew off of keg as well as from tap (either beer gun, or the attachment that goes into the faucet). For me, that's better than bottling half of a batch, primed with sugar. For one thing, there's no sediment in the bottles this way. :rockin: Plus, the carbonation level is solid for all the bottles. No high/low carbonation mixes here.

 

[watergod]

I may need to keep playing with the beer gun. I had some trouble getting it to work right so I gave up. Sounds like a trick may be to make sure the bottles are cold before filling them. That may stop the foaming problem I'm having.

 

[Golddiggie]

Warm bottles and cold brew will make for foaming bastards.

I put the bottles in the freezer for 15-30 minutes before filling them. For long necks, I cover the openings with foil. For swing-tops, I just close them up. I then remove a few at a time (or up to a half dozen), fill, cover, and repeat. I actually need to do some of this tomorrow with my English IPA so that I have some bottled for mom (she does love my IPA's). I'll probably do a 6-pack of long necks and a couple of 500ml swing-tops before stopping (hope I have enough).

 

[watergod]

Great I'll give that a try. Thanks for the info. cheers!

 

[Brulosopher]

Do what I plan to start doing: bump up to 6 gallon batches, keg 5 and bottle 1. I plan to use Coopers Carbonation Drops for the bottles (easy). My experience with kegging less than 5 gallons is the beer tends to over carbonate a tad quicker... if you're a shaker

 

[ContinuousD]

I bottle from the keg all the time. Before I start I throw a few frozen water bottles in a bucket of star san. Then I put the bottles in the cold star san for a couple of minutes. Chills and sanitizes at the same time. It solves the foaming problem fine.