Kegging AG Stout - no Nitrogen?

When i bought my kegs and gear for my kegerator, the store gave me a Stout tap head.

I've never brewed a stout before but as I'm in Ireland for work I'm sat here drinking Murphy's (because its nicer than Guiness) and thinking I'd like to brew a stout for those cold January and February nights.

I know that I need a CO2/Nitrogen mix but what would happen if I just low carbed it on a low psi and screwed on the stout tap without the nitrogen and just using my CO2 bottle?

Would the head disappear or would it remain like it does in the pub?

 

I've always used co2, don't see any reason to use nitrogen.

 

Fantastic to hear!!! Do you get the thick, creamy head still?

 

Not like guinness etc but I've been happy with the results then I tend to make stronger varieties anyway.

 

Do you use a stout tap as well?

 

My answer to that is - what’s a stout tap?

 

I'm not sure a "stout tap" actually works (at more than a dribble) unless you use ball-crunching pressure. But my understanding is you can remove the offending "restrictor plate" and use it like a normal tap? Someone will correct that if I'm wrong.

And stout pours fine without nitrogen. Guinness developed their nitrogen mucking about simply to get what the customer wanted (or had got used to) for cheaper and more consistently in untrained hands. They did a good job with the marketing 'cos it's got everyone believing that nitrogen is necessary: Complete boll%!*?%.

Guinness developed the nitrogen caper back in the 50s. At that time you could get Guinness, complete with creamy head, out of a hand-pump! Not that I got a chance to sample it (but I believe it was still available in the 70s?). I'd be impressed with anyone trying to emulate that: My own attempts at the old "high cask, low cask" system wasn't a success, although I expect to get volumes of thick creamy head just from a hand-pump (serving <3-5PSI) but can only maintain it for a couple of weeks, after which the head is only about 1/2" thick.

 

Cracking answer, thank you

 

Buy Guinness in a can then the extra stout in bottle. Compare the 2 and there is the difference. Btw i have a stout on at the min with just co2 and its fine but you don't get the big cascading head it just pours like normal beer