Flat Lager in King Keg

[Markus]

I made the mistake of priming a lager kit into a King Keg. It tastes like flat Kronenbourg, after 2 weeks at 20C and 2 weeks cold conditioning in the fridge.

Is it likely to get any better with age? Is there anything I could do? Or shall I chuck it and get an ale in there asap?

Cheers

 

[eggman]

Is the keg actually holding pressure? Maybe you've got a leak somewhere, although pressure kegs are not ideal for lagers you should be getting some levels of carbonation :hmm:

 

[bigdave]

A keg cannot hold enough pressure to carbonate a lager so the best you can expect is slightly sparkling but generally flat lager.

 

[Markus]

Yeah, I put some more in a while ago. First bulb went in so I put another in and the release went off and sent it back out. So it must be holding.

 

[eggman]

Put it down to experience, get some mates round to help quaff the lager then get an ale in there :

 

[pittsy]

also get it out the fridge this will help a little , you should be able to get some carb just not lots as wanted but storing keg cold just makes it worse

 

[theboytony]

also get it out the fridge this will help a little , you should be able to get some carb just not lots as wanted but storing keg cold just makes it worse

Have to disagree with that, co2 gets absorbed easier at a given pressure the lower the temp. King kegs should be able to hold a pressure of 10psi quite easy, so in theory if you can get your keg down to 0-2 deg c and keep the pressure up for a week or so the lager will absorb approx 2.5 vols of co2, which is about where you want it.

 

[pittsy]

well all i can say i've tried it and you just can't get enough pressure in the first place for it to be absorbed enough , at best you will get a nice head of foam and some fizz a bit like a bitter

 

[Markus]

Zero head on it either. Maybe oxygen played a part. I didn't gas the keg when I sealed it up

I might try to drink some but it's pretty rough. It came free with a starter kit so I'm guessing no big loss anyway. Not sure about making anyone else drink it. Not the best advertisement for home brew. I have other brews conditioning in bottles that should be MUCH better. Couldn't be any worse to be honest.

 

[Markus]

Maybe I could get everyone started on the good stuff then break out the keg :twisted: .

 

[eggman]

Maybe oxygen played a part. I didn't gas the keg when I sealed it up

You shouldn't need to. I take it you primed it with some sugar?
In what way does it taste rough? Is it just the flatness or has it got oxidised ie tastes of wet cardboard?
:

 

[Markus]

Yeah man, I actually primed it with about 150g of glucose.

I read about the wet cardboard taste, but this really just tastes like if you've left a pint beside you and fallen asleep for a few hours. Lager but just flat and not really pleasant. Not sure if that's the same thing.

 

[eggman]

Hmm that doesn't sound too promising. Has the keg kept pressure the whole time, has it glugged air in the tap? I Might be wrong but it sounds like it's oxidised to me, were you careful to avoid splashing when you kegged it?
If it had oxidised I'm afraid to say the taste won't get any better with age, I had a keg that leaked some air in with about 10pints left in it and as much as I wanted to finish it I just couldn't it tasted so bad :sick:

 

[Wezzel]

Sounds like a leak to me. Even at 5 psi I have to pour very slowly so as not to get a pint of froth from my King Keg.

 

[Markus]

Even when I pour slowly, like open the tap a tiny bit, there is no head at all. I was pretty careful about not oxidising it when I siphoned (no splashing) and the tap was tightly shut and I used vaseline on the lid, but it does seem like something has gone awry. I might try to force some more CO2 in there and see if it can absorb it.

I'll try to upload some of the photos I took but not sure they will reveal much.

Anyway I appreciate the feedback folks. Great to have people willing to share knowledge and experience :

 

[Markus]

 

[Markus]

 

[eggman]

:wha: I'm at a bit of a loss, didn't mean to sound condescending about splashing mate was just trying to rule out any other possibilities. If the keg's holding pressure it's obviously not leaking gas and it looks like you've syphoned carefully.
Only other thing that could cause any off flavours is fermenting temperature, did it go above 21 deg?
Also as mentioned by Pittsy the colder you store it the more co2 it will absorb up to a certain point so it's possible that the beer has absorbed all the gas and you might need to add more to serve it
:

 

[Markus]

The temperature inside my fermentation cupboard is around 20C. But it might be an idea to monitor the actual temperature of the brew I suppose. It could be a little higher :shock:

I think I'll add some more CO2 and wait a half hour then try another pint tomorrow. See if it's any better :thumb:

If nothing else I've learned a hell of a lot from this first batch. I just hope the next go smoothly.

 

[ScottM]

If you have the whole keg in the fridge then I would try adding some pressure to see if it will soak up the CO2. It's worth a shot, if there is a leak then you'll get nothing. Even with something wrong with the beer itself the liquid will soak up the CO2 so as long as you add a decent amount of pressure and leave it for a week you should get at least SOME fizz.

I bought a king keg lager kit MANY moons ago. It was my first mistake of many, absolutely hopeless. I chucked a whole pack of CO2 bulbs at it before I got it to a level of carbonation even worth drinking. But then the lager tasted like **** so the whole effort was binned lol.

Ahh the memories