Building a Draft Beer System Part 1

Gas (CO2) Side

The gas side of a draught system is used primarily to push the beer out of the keg with carbon dioxide. CO2 (carbon dioxide) protects the beer from off-flavors created when oxygen interacts with flavor and aroma compounds in the beer. If you’ve ever had beer from a hand-pumped keg, then tried to drink from the same keg the next day, you’ve noticed how the flavor of the beer changes for the worse.

By using a CO2 tank (affiliate link) to provide pressure, you prevent air and oxygen from getting in contact with the beer, preserving the beer’s deliciousness. And also, you don’t have to use a hand pump to pour beer.

Homebrewers Need Extra

If you are just pouring beer, the gas side of your draught system just needs to push the beer out of the keg to your glass. Most people can just have one primary regulator (affiliate link) set to serving pressure, then add a manifold (affiliate link) to split the gas line to as many kegs as you have. If you know you need more than one serving pressure, you can see the notes further down for homebrewers, as your needs are more similar to our needs.

Primary Regulator is in the middle, with a hose leading to a manifold to allow two outputs, one of which is attached to a secondary regulator.

Homebrewers also use their draught system to carbonate their beer in the keg.

The main difference is that if you are serving commercial beers, you can generally serve more than one beer at the same pressure. But to speed the carbonation process, it is nice to have a secondary regulator (affiliate link) you can leave at serving pressure and have the primary regulator set higher to carbonate the keg more quickly.

Hidden from View

Unlike the liquid side, which has the faucet and tap handle readily visible, many people try to keep the gas side of their draft system out of view. If their converted chest freezer or refrigerator is large enough, some people choose to keep their CO2 tank (affiliate link) in their kegerator next to the kegs. Others add a hole to run the gas line from the tank through the wall or door of their kegerator to free up space for more kegs, as I did in the photo below.

Quick Disconnects

The connection between the gas system and your kegs depends on the type of kegs you use. Homebrewers choose between ball lock kegs or pin lock kegs. In the photo below, you can see I use MFL connections on my hoses so I can switch between ball lock and pin lock kegs.

Ball lock kegs and ball lock quick disconnects were used by Pepsi for distributing full kegs of their sodas to restaurants before the current use of concentrates. In a similar way, pin lock kegs and pin lock quick disconnects (affiliate link) were used by Coca Cola. They used different connectors to prevent their customers from switching to their competitors products without needing to replace their whole serving system.

Sanke couplers (affiliate link) are used by commercial breweries, and actually combine both gas and liquid into one connector rather than the two needed for Cornelius-style kegs used primarily by homebrewers.

Tying it All Together

Throughout this article, I’ve shown you all of the separate components that connect to kegs, tanks, and each other. But connecting all of them, you’ll need 5/16″ gas line (affiliate link).

These are the components you’ll need for a CO2 system to set up a kegerator tap system to pour draft beer. If you have questions, please post them below.

#BrewUpAnAdventure

Stainless Steel Growler Review – Keg King’s Ultimate Growler

Ultimate Stainless Steel Growler

Keg King sent me their Ultimate stainless steel growler to review. I spent some time on a Saturday logging data to see how it holds up.

Why a Stainless Steel Growler?

Keg King’s Ultimate Growler is a 64-ounce stainless growler for transporting beer from a tap to somewhere you want to drink that beer. Many growlers are made of glass, but this one is made out of 304 stainless steel. Many pools, beaches, and other public locations do not allow glass containers for safety reasons; this is a good alternative package to avoid that problem.

Since this is a stainless steel growler, you do not need to be concerned about it breaking inadvertently. The constructions feels solid, and the heft feels nice in my hand. The brushed stainless provides a good grip, even when it is wet.

The neck of the growler is a comfortable diameter and allows for easy pouring.

This Seal Barks, not Growls

One story of the growler’s origin states that the original tin containers emitted a growling sound because the lid could not form a tight seal. This caused the lid to vibrate, emitting a low growling noise. The Ultimate Growler has a tight bale-top lid with a food-grade silicone gasket to form a tight seal that barked loud when the top was flipped open.

You won’t need to worry about your beer going flat as long as the lid is closed.

Who, me? I’m just Chillin’

Chilled Growler
Initial Temperature 40 F / 4.4 C

To test the vacuum insulation, I filled the growler with iced water. The temperature settled at 40 degrees.

The growler rested on the counter in a 60-degree F room. I monitored the temperature every few hours.

4 hours later, the temperature was 42 F / 5.5 C

8 Hours Later
Checking after 8.5 hours, the temp had risen to 44 F / 6.6 C

18 Hour Temperature rose 10 F
After 18 hours, the temperature rose to 50 F / 10 C

Temperatures in the growler rose 10 degrees F / 5.6 C over the course of 18 hours.

I am happy with this growler, and think it’s a good option to transport your beer without taking a full keg.

HBW #9 – Kegging the Irish Red Ale

In this video, I finally get around to kegging the Irish red ale I brewed in my Homebrew Wednesday #6 video. My kegging process is pretty straightforward, and works pretty well. I’m relatively new to kegs, so I would appreciate any pointers from anyone with more experience (really, please leave a comment below).

One of my favorite tools for transferring is my auto-siphon. I use the 1/2″ size because it allows the transfers to happen more quickly. The 3/8″ auto-siphon can be used with a bottling wand if your bottling bucket does not have a spigot.

Keg systems can be a great alternative to bottling, but require more of an investment to get started.