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Bottling vs. Kegging
I was reading the conversation on Used Keg Equipment when I started to wonder about the specific advantages to kegging over bottling.
Obviously if you are making a beer like a Guiness, kegging will make a difference due to the pressure, but what are some of the other big advantages and disadvantages?
I'm interested in this, too.
I always assumed it would be quicker to use kegs, because washing and capping bottles takes time.
In my case, my "bar refrigerator" is too small for a keg, though. Do you need a special refrigerator with the tap sticking out, or can you put the whole thing inside?
Unless you're brewing for a party, bottling will allow you to enjoy your brew over time. Putting it in a keg means that once it's tapped, you'll have to be able to serve enough up within a reasonable time.
kegging is MUCH easier and quicker. you can put a keg in any refigerator at all, as long as it fits. you can also buy "kegerators" that have the tap sticking out, but they are not necessary if you can fit a keg in your normal fridge. kegs can be drank over the course of 2 weeks, and if you think you can't drink 5 gallons in that time (usually my friends can, even if i can't) then, you can split 5 gallons between 2 kegs and just tap one at a time.
the carbonation of a keg is very similar to that of bottling. you can either force carbonate, using co2 or another compressed gas from a tank, or you can prime the keg with sugar just as you would bottles. the main advantage to force carbonation is that it is usually ready to drink about a week earlier than bottling. (force carbonation can make a brew ready to drink in 24 hours if necessary, but it will be better the longer you wait, up to 1 week)
i do usually serve beer at parties and events, so i love kegging, but i always bottle a 6pack or so to save for later.
The main reason I prefer kegging to bottling is the ability to force-carbonate the beer. I find I have greater control over the final CO2 level in the beer and can carbonate it in less time. It doesn't hurt that its easier to clean one or two large containers as opposed to 50 or so small ones either. Having your beer "on-tap" when friends and relatives come over is pretty impressive as well.
someday i will have kegs.. oh yes....someday...
it would probably increase my beer consumption 2x if i had beer on tap in my house.
I keg and will never go back to bottles unless I enter a competition...kegging is awsome and cheaper! Switch and you will not be disappointed
Here are my reasons for keggins:
Speed: It used to take me between 2 1/2 to 3 hours to wash bottles, fill and cap them. That is assuming about 50 12-oz bottles. Now with kegging, I siphon into my corny in about 10 minutes, crank the co2 up to 30 psi, roll it around on the floor for 15+ minutes, tap it, and drank it. About a half hour (or less) from the original 3 hours.
Carbonation: Natural carbonation takes anywhere from 5 days to 2 weeks. Co2 is instanteous. I bottle of sunday and we're talking 1 week minimum to drink. If I keg at noon, roll the keg around for 20 minutes, I can be drinking it by 12:30, assuming it is cooled or I want it room temperature.
Cost: Ok, kegging does cost a LOT more on the start up. Let's just say you shell out $150 on a kegging system (cost widely varies, so again we will assume), since you will be saving 2+ hours over bottling, you now have that extra time to do other things.
Space: 50+ bottles takes a lot of space. A corny keg holds 5 gallons. Much less space. Whether you put it in a fridge, outside, or whatever, sure that is more space, everybody has a fridge so you are only using the space you already have. Plus once you suck the bottle down, you don't have a bunch of nasty empties collecting flies. Just keep pouring beer into your glass.
I guarantee that once you keg you will NEVER want to bottle again. I slowed down brewing because I hated bottling so much. My first keg sold me on buying 9 more.
I must disgaree with the statement about using a keg quickly before it goes bad. I retapped a keg of winter ale I made back in December. Just tapped it last month again. Tasted fine. If yours is going bad sitting in a keg, sounds like you have a pressure leak somewhere. You should easily be able to let it sit in a sealed, pressured keg for MONTHS without degrading. I have.
It's not cheap to start kegging, but you will love it. It's so nice to rack beer into a keg and be able to drink it the same day.
Another vote for speed. It is a lot faster to keg.
I both bottle and keg. I love the ease of kegging, but have found that kegging only makes me drink that beer quicker than the others. What I have been doing is filling the keg, force carbing, drinking it from that keg until the next brew is ready to go to keg. When I have another beer ready, I pull out the beer gun and fill the remaining beer from the keg into bottles and then add the new beer to the tap.
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