IS KEGGING REALLY WORTH IT

[boab42stout]

Just a quick question to forum members do you thimk your beer tastes better in the bottle or keg i have just built a keezer and all the bits that go with it including two cornies now filled with mackay 60 and the other a special bitter.
Also done a christmas beeer and vanilla porter for christmas which was very nice.
I also still bettle a few when im kegging and sometimes the body and taste of the beer is a litte with the bottle condition one.
Does anyone else have a xiew

 

[pittsy]

I like my beer better from the keg to the bottle , it seems smoother somehow . However long conditioned beer goes into bottles simply cuz i don't want a keg lost for an age . I think some are better from the bottle , not sure which or why . I know this much bottling used to be the worse bit about brewing for me but now i keg it's the easiest part .

 

[boab42stout]

i just kegged a mackay 60 and it just been in there 2 weeks and its very nice ans also as you say the beer can be smooth i have often wonered about seconery fermenting in a corny keg but have not tried it yet.
Another thing i have noticed is some beers have to be drank young or they can lose there hoppy flavour.
I am new to kegging but i enjoy the fact that at least you only sterilise a keg and a few bottles.
I was given a festival; beer kit which i will bottle for the summer months.
Ijust wish kegs would go down in price we get robbed in the uk :nono:

 

[IOMMick]

I've brewed 240 pints since I started at Christmas, I've 40 brewing now and I'm likely to stick on another 80 at the weekend. I didn't really know what I was doing with storage, basically using anything I can get my hands on - but I've now come to the conclusion that for my habits bottles would be better. Last night I sampled (ahem) 3 different bottled brews, I've another 2 split between a pressure barrel and bottles which are conditioning and I've another one just finishing the FV - if I was to try keg all those (which I have been considering doing at some point) it would take a hell of a lot of equipment. Also I was almost certain my first brew was a total failure, but after leaving it for 6 weeks in the bottle to condition it is now very drinkable (even the missus said she'd drink it) - if that had been hogging the likes of a corney keg I would have probably thrown it down the sink a couple of weeks ago.

 

[boab42stout]

i do like to bottle but i have limited space to store bottles and dont have a shed.
its interesting to note that a beer can improve over time in a bottle.
The thing i like about kegs is that if i want a small amount of beer i can do so instead of wastin a full pint.

 

[NickW]

I've started to use my keg for beers that come to condition quickly... hefes, hoppy APAs, lower gravity bitters etc.

This way I always have beer on tap so I'm less likely to touch those other beers I've bottled that will benefit with more time :thumb:

 

[Fore]

I only bottle what is left over from a Cornie. Like the fact that you get best of both worlds, ease of a keg, plus some bottles to store or take to a party. I used to use plastic kegs and so bottled lager to get the higher carbonation, but now I have Cornie's, I would never dream of bottling a full brew again; just more trouble than it's worth.

A cornie is just like a big bottle from which you can draw a little at a time. Risk of infection is limited if done correctly (purging air, etc). So I doubt a bottle could outlast Cornies by much. If long term storage (aging) is the ultimate goal, the only problem with Cornies is cost; to store a Cornie for a year or more, and the 12+ Cornies that would then be needed if you want to keep drinking regularly, would put a big hole in anyones wallet. I think I found a good balance with a secondary fermenter and 3 Cornies. By the time I'm drinking the last of a keg, it's aged about 4 months (1 month in secondary, start drinking 2 months after kegging).

 

[Jimmy321]

I bottle wheat beers and beers that I will keep for months or years, the rest gets kegged as it saves so much time and hassle.

 

[phettebs]

I bottle Belgian beers because I can't get the proper amount of carbonation in the keg without foaming all over. I also bottle high gravity beers because, well, I can't be trusted to have them on draught.

Everything else goes into the polypin or corny.

I bottled for about 4 years before getting into kegging. Kegging is just way more convenient. Only one bottled to clean, sanitise, and fill!

 

[boab42stout]

i do enjoy kegging im still learning all about temps and carbonation i just got another triple gas management system after my regulator blue my gas management board diaphram which i nee to repair at some point.
i suppose both bottling and getting both have there own uses.
If i ever get a cheap corny i might do an iperial stout and leave it for a year. :drink:

 

[Fore]

I reread your original question... I find I prefer Cornie served beer better than bottled beer, mainly because of the control possible. I can remove almost all yeast with an extended secondary, and then tailor the carb levels even while drinking. With bottles it can go wrong, and if it does, the whole 40 pints are wrong. With a cornie, the chance of this is much less, but even then it can be saved.

As a cornie is essentially just a big bottle from which you can add or remove CO2, I can't see how bottled beer could be better than Cornie served beer. It would come down to beer resting against stainless steel vs beer resting against glass. Anyone who says they can tell should be given a blind taste test.

 

[devexwarrior]

I don't care what the beer comes in as long as it gets emptied into a glass, then into me! Bottles are convenient for carrying round and long conditioning, kegs convenient for large volumes - that is all.

 

[boab42stout]

i liked your comment very well put and very true i think iys all down to personal preference
:

 

[fbsf]

I went from bottling to kegging for convenience, but found that I preferred the taste of bottled beer, so sold all my kegs and went back to bottling. It's also a damn site easier taking a few bottles round a mates and bunging them in his fridge!

I batch prime which saves a lot of hassle, and have a little bottler and bench capper. I also try to make sure all my bottles are prepared whilst the beer is fermenting, so that when it comes to bottling day, I only have to videne them and shove them on the bottle tree.

Saying that, if you have a kegerator, it is *very* cool to just go up to it and pour a cold pint... :