We no need no stinking beer gun...

[WScottCross]

I don't lower my pressure or chill my bottles. I also don't use a stopper and it works just fine. I do bottle from the tap with a length of SS tubing, so there is 10 ft of line between me and the keg.

10 ft of tubing will definitely lower your pressure for you. I only have about 3 feet of line from the keg to the tap.

 

[TastyAdventure]

Will a standard plastic bottle filler about 18 inches long work instead of the racking cane?

 

[brewshki]

This is harder than it looks. Wish I had thought to figure it out sooner. Have to drop off beers for NHC soon

 

[mesooohoppy]

This method has probably already been discussed. But I went to the brew store this past weekend and I told him about the racking cane and stopper for bottling from the keg.

The guy had a 'simpler' approach and suggested I try it. He cut 9-10 inches of hi temp tubing and said that was all I needed. He also suggested I chill the bottles prior to filling em up.

Seems like it would be a pain in the ass to keep sanitary bottles chilled. Although I think ive got a process, sanitize the bottles and caps, put caps on said bottles (not capped), and stick in the freezer to chill. Fill once chilled.

Any suggestions? Hopefully going to try my hand at this tonight.

 

[brewshki]

This method has probably already been discussed. But I went to the brew store this past weekend and I told him about the racking cane and stopper for bottling from the keg.

The guy had a 'simpler' approach and suggested I try it. He cut 9-10 inches of hi temp tubing and said that was all I needed. He also suggested I chill the bottles prior to filling em up.

Seems like it would be a pain in the ass to keep sanitary bottles chilled. Although I think ive got a process, sanitize the bottles and caps, put caps on said bottles (not capped), and stick in the freezer to chill. Fill once chilled.

Any suggestions? Hopefully going to try my hand at this tonight.

I did something similar. I sanitized the bottles and covered the opening with sanitized foil. I then put them in the freezer upside down. I used those to bottle and then capped with caps sitting in sanitizer.

 

[mongoose33]

Will a standard plastic bottle filler about 18 inches long work instead of the racking cane?

That's actually what I'm using. I had two of them, I cut off the end at a 45-degree angle, pushed on the stopper, added some vinyl tubing to connect it to the picnic tap, and I was good.

BTW, I used a Dremel to cut off the end.

 

[Bacon488]

This method has probably already been discussed. But I went to the brew store this past weekend and I told him about the racking cane and stopper for bottling from the keg.

The guy had a 'simpler' approach and suggested I try it. He cut 9-10 inches of hi temp tubing and said that was all I needed. He also suggested I chill the bottles prior to filling em up.

Seems like it would be a pain in the ass to keep sanitary bottles chilled. Although I think ive got a process, sanitize the bottles and caps, put caps on said bottles (not capped), and stick in the freezer to chill. Fill once chilled.

Any suggestions? Hopefully going to try my hand at this tonight.

I just chill the bottles then hit them with a quick squirt of Star San from a spray bottle. Swirl around to coat the glass, give it a minute, dump it out, then fill.

 

[TastyAdventure]

So I tried this as described. Too much foam! It's probably a big issue that I cannot dial in my PSI with my crappy regulator... Anyways, now I have a few bottles that are 3/4 full...

 

[Dolomieu]

So I tried this as described. Too much foam! It's probably a big issue that I cannot dial in my PSI with my crappy regulator... Anyways, now I have a few bottles that are 3/4 full...

There is a learning curve to this.

If you can't dial in your regulator, try using a longer hose. I bottle from the tap @ 12 psi with 10ft of hose and it works really well. I don't chill my bottles either.

 

[TastyAdventure]

There is a learning curve to this.



If you can't dial in your regulator, try using a longer hose. I bottle from the tap @ 12 psi with 10ft of hose and it works really well. I don't chill my bottles either.

Thanks. I went out and got 10 ft (had about 5 1/2 before). Haven't tried it yet but just by observing how it pours regularly now, I bet bottling will be easier now

 

[ten80]

sanitize bottles, chill, then spray with iced starsan solution right before bottling. The wet starsan keeps foam down and it won't warm the bottle because it is iced.

 

[str1p3s]

Do you need a separate picnic tap than your normal serving tap? i.e. can you pull the modified bottle filler out once you are done or is it jammed in there so well that it's stuck or you'll break something?

 

[carvetop]

Do you need a separate picnic tap than your normal serving tap? i.e. can you pull the modified bottle filler out once you are done or is it jammed in there so well that it's stuck or you'll break something?

No problem using your dedicated picnic tap. The bottle filler wand slides in and out with no issues.

 

[Gusmedic]

With over 1,200 posts on this topic, it's been tough to find a clear answer. What's the sanitation protocol for all this? Same as normal bottling? Or is it just rinsed cleaned bottles and not much of an infection worry because sugar is all used up and it's going to be typically stored cold?

 

[tmendick]

Sanitation is always good practice, if you're just doing this for personal consumption soon you could be more lax, I supposed. I wouldn't skimp on sanitation though.

 

[TexasWine]

Or is it just rinsed cleaned bottles and not much of an infection worry because sugar is all used up and it's going to be typically stored cold?

Bottling is bottling. Sanitation needs are identical, whether you're bottling a dry wine or adding sugar before bottling a beer. The sugar added for bottle conditioning a beer has no impact on the sanitation needed.

 

[BilboBrewin]

OK, so who else here has forgotten to unlock the tap before moving onto the next bottle? Besides this guy, of course Beer shower!

 

[wingedcoyote]

Just switched to kegging recently, and my next step is to set up my BMBF for bottling. I think I'm all set to bottle normal beers for competition etc, but I also have some apfelwein in a carboy that I want to keg and then bottle (because I never want to deal with yeast gunk in bottles again). My vision for this presents two challenges:

1) I want this stuff as fizzy as possible, for that pseudo-champagne experience. Minimum 3 atmospheres, more if I can get it.

2) I'd like to bottle in 750ml Belgian bottles and cork&cage them.

For the high pressure, I'm thinking I'll be OK as long as I keep everything super cold and use a long length of tubing (10 or 12 feet?). But I don't know for sure what additional challenges this might create.

Not sure exactly how to handle corking, since I imagine I can't "cap on foam" like you'd normally want to. I figure what I'll do is fill as normal, place sanitized caps or foil on the bottles, then go back and vent a little CO2 into each bottle before driving in the corks - should that be good enough to prevent oxidation? I'd like to be able to put up some of these bottles for a long time, so excluding oxygen is important.

 

[BilboBrewin]

Question for those who have done this before - how full should the bottle be? I want to bottle more tomorrow, but did a trial run today with two bottles, both of which are nearly completely full. Is it like a growler where you can fill it all the way? Note that these two bottles will be enjoyed today.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

I filled mine to the top when I did it. When removing the bottle wand it should leave you the proper amount of headspace.

 

[fun4stuff]

Do you need a separate picnic tap than your normal serving tap? i.e. can you pull the modified bottle filler out once you are done or is it jammed in there so well that it's stuck or you'll break something?

You can use any picnic tap just be careful when you insert the racking cane. I made the mistake of pushing too hard and broke the plastic lip on my picnic tap. It doesn't have to be all shoved up in there- a gentle push is all that's needed.

 

[fun4stuff]

With over 1,200 posts on this topic, it's been tough to find a clear answer. What's the sanitation protocol for all this? Same as normal bottling? Or is it just rinsed cleaned bottles and not much of an infection worry because sugar is all used up and it's going to be typically stored cold?

Clean bottles and rinse with starsan. Rinse caps with starsan. Cover bottles with foil or caps then chill in freezer.

If you're going to be drinking within a day or two, you can be a little more lax. But if you plan on aging beer for any significant length of time, then you need to be more stringent with sanitation. With that said, it takes 5 seconds to do a starsan rinse...

 

[user 141939]

Attempt #2 of this was spectacular. First attempt not so much. First time, the hole in the stopper I got from LHBS was too big. Air leaked around racking cane so pressure unable to build up.

Second attempt with a different stopper worked great as the hole was smaller.

One thing that worries me is there are bubbles in the line from all the constant starting/stopping of the picnic tap when switching between bottles.

Does everybody get this or am I doing something wrong? Only way I could seen to prevent it is trying to turn the co2 pressure on higher.

 

[carvetop]

Attempt #2 of this was spectacular. First attempt not so much. First time, the hole in the stopper I got from LHBS was too big. Air leaked around racking cane so pressure unable to build up.

Second attempt with a different stopper worked great as the hole was smaller.

One thing that worries me is there are bubbles in the line from all the constant starting/stopping of the picnic tap when switching between bottles.

Does everybody get this or am I doing something wrong? Only way I could seen to prevent it is trying to turn the co2 pressure on higher.

The bubbles are common and not usually a problem if you run a small amount of beer out into a bucket immediately before filling each bottle. If they still create too much foam, simply fill as much as you can, set the bottle aside and gently top it up when the excess foam subsides.

 

[ba-brewer]

Attempt #2 of this was spectacular. First attempt not so much. First time, the hole in the stopper I got from LHBS was too big. Air leaked around racking cane so pressure unable to build up.

Second attempt with a different stopper worked great as the hole was smaller.

One thing that worries me is there are bubbles in the line from all the constant starting/stopping of the picnic tap when switching between bottles.

Does everybody get this or am I doing something wrong? Only way I could seen to prevent it is trying to turn the co2 pressure on higher.

You can do as carvetop said and dump a little beer into the bucket (or a glass for later)between bottles or just empty it into the next bottle and give a little time for the foam to settle before continuing to fill the bottle. No need to mess with the tap once your start filling, just release pressure with the stopper at a slow steady pace. Let the foam escape with the CO2 and stop/close the tap when beer starts to squirt out.

I found with some of my kegs if I lower the pressure too low(5PSI) I get more bubble in the line so I usually transfer with about 8PSI. I have even had pretty good luck using the serving pressure of about 12PSI but the additional pressure can blow the tap off of the filler wand.

 

[user 141939]

Very good thanks. I'll try a higher pressure next time and see how that works for me.

 

[Diver_Alan]

Has anyone tried this to bottle a stout that is on beer gas?

 

[cantrell00]

I've wanted to try that to see if it would work.

 

[TxBigHops]

sub'd to save.

 

[Dolomieu]

Got this set up with my new intertap faucets. I no longer use the stoppers. Also attached are the old vent matic filler and perlick. Just thought I'd share. This thread really helped me figure out my method. The short fillers from the tap have made things very convenient.

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