Bottling from keg, what's the best solution

[jceg316]

I started kegging about 2-3 months ago and I'm loving it so far. Still need to properly build a keezer but that's another story.

Anyway, I do find myself wanting to fill bottles on quite a regular basis but don't have a good way of doing this. I've been researching ways to do this and it seems each has pros and cons, so it would be really good to hear anyone's opinions if they use certain methods. I will add I do have a fermzilla as well and bottling straight from here would be good.

Counter pressure bottle filler. Pros: relatively cheap and keeps the transfer oxygen free and beer stays carbonated; Cons: it looks really slow and quite fiddly. Maybe works if you're filling one or 2 bottles but there are times I'll wanna fill quite a few.

Beer gun. Pros: looks really simple to use, probably the most simple to set up and use out of all. It has the ability to purge O2 as well; Cons: I have read mixed reviews about the cheaper ones but the Blichmann is supposed to be great but it's expensive. Cost isn't too much of an issue if it's a thing that works and is the only bottling device I end up buying. Beer needs to be very cold and preferably the bottles cold before pouring beer in, otherwise it can foam a lot meaning mess and beer loses its carbonation. Sounds like a faff when considering filling 5+ bottles.

Tap cooler counter pressure bottle filler: This looks like a really good solution. A counter pressure filler which plugs into the taps. The benefits of a regular counter pressure filler but more wieldy and quicker; Cons: quite expensive and I'm wondering if there's a "learning curve" to it? In videos it looks very simple but something tells me it will require some practice before I get it right. The cost is quite high - £95 at TMM - however kegland have released one way cheaper that Angel homebrew will have in stock, but I don't know when.

Boel iTap bottle filler: a tap I can install on my keezer once it's built. Seems as equally foolproof as the beer gun but with the benefits of the CP bottle filler. I would go for this but... Cons: it can only hold glass bottles, swing tops or plastic bottles. This is a fairly big drawback as I do bottle in swingtops as well as crown caps. If there is an easy work around for swing tops I could probably live with that. I think this is the most expensive one at ~£110. Again if it's a thing that works and is worth the money I don't mind paying.

What are your opinions on these solutions?

 

[Justin Dean]

I have boel itap and it is fantastic for the same challenge I experienced as you describe above. I did use for a couple of years a tap cooler counter pressure tap with the quick change gas connect and a intermediate tap to the bottle filler so you could clamp the tap on and then turn on the beer flow but. before which was decent but not a patch on the convenience and usability of the boel itap. The tapcooler had tubes which go every which way and a iboel that is all hidden away, so easy. It is an investment but will last a long time so good investment for the longer future, i have the pet, glass and swing top fittings which are super eaay to change. I do a lot of bottling for shares and comps

 

[BlackRegent]

How many bottles are you intending to fill at a time? If you are doing full batches, I would go with the Blichmann beer gin. I have v.2 and it works great. I actually quite enjoy the process of sitting down and bottling. If you plan only to fill a few at a time to take to a mate's etc, I would get the Kegland Tapcooler clone. You can get it from AliExpress as of now. It cost me £32.89 (which included shipping and taxes) and it arrived unusually quickly - within a week. It also included all the bits and pieces to make it usable straight out of the box.

 

[jceg316]

How many bottles are you intending to fill at a time? If you are doing full batches, I would go with the Blichmann beer gin. I have v.2 and it works great. I actually quite enjoy the process of sitting down and bottling. If you plan only to fill a few at a time to take to a mate's etc, I would get the Kegland Tapcooler clone. You can get it from AliExpress as of now. It cost me £32.89 (which included shipping and taxes) and it arrived unusually quickly - within a week. It also included all the bits and pieces to make it usable straight out of the box.

I'm planning to fill anywhere from 3-4 bottles for competitions, taking to my friends' houses etc. to half or all the batch. It would be good to fill from a couple of kegs in one bottling sitting. If I'm taking beer to a friend's house it's nice to have a variety. I don't know if that changes anything at all?

Have you used the Kegland tapcooler much yet? If so what are your initial thoughts?

 

[phildo79]

Plastic PET bottle, carbonation cap, length of beer line, jumper cable. And all for a fraction of the price of a beer gun gizmo. Can be a little bit of a faf if you're doing a good few bottles. I only use it for doing swaps, comps etc.

If your reason for doing this is for bringing beer to a party etc., I'd advise investing in a half corny keg, sodastream bottle and mini reg. Takes away an awful lot of faffing around.

 

[MickDundee]

I’ve got the new Kegland Nukatap filler which is their own version of the Tapcooler and I’m very happy with it (although the proof of its effectiveness will be when the January comp is judged this weekend). Got it off AliExpress for £31 incl delivery.



https://www.instagram.com/reel/CY_du_AMMDY/?utm_medium=copy_link

 

[Corbières]

I started kegging about 2-3 months ago and I'm loving it so far. Still need to properly build a keezer but that's another story.

Anyway, I do find myself wanting to fill bottles on quite a regular basis but don't have a good way of doing this. I've been researching ways to do this and it seems each has pros and cons, so it would be really good to hear anyone's opinions if they use certain methods. I will add I do have a fermzilla as well and bottling straight from here would be good.

Counter pressure bottle filler. Pros: relatively cheap and keeps the transfer oxygen free and beer stays carbonated; Cons: it looks really slow and quite fiddly. Maybe works if you're filling one or 2 bottles but there are times I'll wanna fill quite a few.

Beer gun. Pros: looks really simple to use, probably the most simple to set up and use out of all. It has the ability to purge O2 as well; Cons: I have read mixed reviews about the cheaper ones but the Blichmann is supposed to be great but it's expensive. Cost isn't too much of an issue if it's a thing that works and is the only bottling device I end up buying. Beer needs to be very cold and preferably the bottles cold before pouring beer in, otherwise it can foam a lot meaning mess and beer loses its carbonation. Sounds like a faff when considering filling 5+ bottles.

Tap cooler counter pressure bottle filler: This looks like a really good solution. A counter pressure filler which plugs into the taps. The benefits of a regular counter pressure filler but more wieldy and quicker; Cons: quite expensive and I'm wondering if there's a "learning curve" to it? In videos it looks very simple but something tells me it will require some practice before I get it right. The cost is quite high - £95 at TMM - however kegland have released one way cheaper that Angel homebrew will have in stock, but I don't know when.

Boel iTap bottle filler: a tap I can install on my keezer once it's built. Seems as equally foolproof as the beer gun but with the benefits of the CP bottle filler. I would go for this but... Cons: it can only hold glass bottles, swing tops or plastic bottles. This is a fairly big drawback as I do bottle in swingtops as well as crown caps. If there is an easy work around for swing tops I could probably live with that. I think this is the most expensive one at ~£110. Again if it's a thing that works and is worth the money I don't mind paying.

What are your opinions on these solutions?

I’ve got a Boel Itap and have the one bottle holder for crown caps and a different one off swing tops ? When you say drawback what problem do you see ? Also they are available on AliExpress - they don’t say Boel sometimes in the listing but they look identical and are actually Boel. I bought mine on AliExpress - not advertised as Boel but it is and came in a Boel boxed.

 

[jceg316]

I’ve got the new Kegland Nukatap filler which is their own version of the Tapcooler and I’m very happy with it (although the proof of its effectiveness will be when the January comp is judged this weekend). Got it off AliExpress for £31 incl delivery.



https://www.instagram.com/reel/CY_du_AMMDY/?utm_medium=copy_link

£31 is a pretty good bargain! Also good to see it comes with the gas & liquid posts as I wasn't sure whether they come separately. How have you found using it?

I’ve got a Boel Itap and have the one bottle holder for crown caps and a different one off swing tops ? When you say drawback what problem do you see ? Also they are available on AliExpress - they don’t say Boel sometimes in the listing but they look identical and are actually Boel. I bought mine on AliExpress - not advertised as Boel but it is and came in a Boel boxed.

The cons to this are the expense really, and the attachments can do only one type of bottle unless you buy more, which put the price up even more. I think on TMM I priced up £165 for the itap with both crown caps and swing tops which is probably more than I'm willing to pay. However, didn't think of looking on Ali express. How much did you pay for yours?

 

[Corbières]

£31 is a pretty good bargain! Also good to see it comes with the gas & liquid posts as I wasn't sure whether they come separately. How have you found using it?

The cons to this are the expense really, and the attachments can do only one type of bottle unless you buy more, which put the price up even more. I think on TMM I priced up £165 for the itap with both crown caps and swing tops which is probably more than I'm willing to pay. However, didn't think of looking on Ali express. How much did you pay for yours?

I paid about £90 for mine delivered. Just checked and they’re are £80 delivered currently. I bought the crown cap version. I bought the swing top bottle holder from TMM at their ridiculous price.

 

[Tanglefoot]

I was kegging a beer a couple of weeks ago but misjudged amount left in keg I wanted to use.
Ended up filling a 2L bottle direct with my Pluto gun to empty it, stuck it in fridge and forgot about it.
Fortnight later tried it, crystal clear and perfectly carbed. Made me think I'll try bottling from keg more often.

 

[jceg316]

I paid about £90 for mine delivered. Just checked and they’re are £80 delivered currently. I bought the crown cap version. I bought the swing top bottle holder from TMM at their ridiculous price.

Is it possible to use the itap as another tap? Connect a keg and serve beer into glasses from it?

 

[Mayor of Simpleton]

I have an iTap and it's great. When I bought it I decided on bottling using one type of cap rather than spending a further ridiculous amount on adaptor s to cover all options. Historically I used crown caps and swing tops - when I bottle from kegs I just went with crown. Works for me.

I think you can use the iTap as a standard tap but you need another high priced adaptor if memory serves.

 

[Corbières]

Is it possible to use the itap as another tap? Connect a keg and serve beer into glasses from it?

Yes you need an additional part - AliExpress sell it for about £25

https://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/product/boel-technologies-g-connector/

 

[fgoulding]

I bought a cheap counter flow pressure filler from Aliexpress:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000181702959.html?spm=a2g0o.9042311.0.0.27424c4dpMaQFR
To be honest it’s a 2 person job to use it and whilst it works well, I now just brew 22 or 23 litres, fill one keg and bottle up the rest.

One tip I would give, regardless of what option you use, is to chill your bottles before filling them. It helps to stop foaming.

 

[samale]

I paid about £90 for mine delivered. Just checked and they’re are £80 delivered currently. I bought the crown cap version. I bought the swing top bottle holder from TMM at their ridiculous price.

Can you send me a link if possible

 

[jceg316]

Thanks everyone for your input, it's been really useful. For ~£30 I went with the Kegland Nukatap CP bottle filler. That price point makes it quite worthwhile and I'll see how I get on. I would have gone for the itap, but it's quite off putting needing different attachments for different bottles, and I do use different bottles.

 

[MickDundee]

£31 is a pretty good bargain! Also good to see it comes with the gas & liquid posts as I wasn't sure whether they come separately. How have you found using it?

I found it easy. Because it slots into the spout of the tap it makes it an easy one man job. Getting the balance between fast pour and no foam wasn’t particularly difficult. Only issue I had was I doing it a bugger to screw the spout attachment in when I first took it out of the box (it has a duo right Screwed in as default)

 

[Corbières]

Can you send me a link if possible

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/10050...er_id=d47a4d9da72848d2a0131d625d265283&is_c=N

 

[Corbières]

There is also a listing described as Pegasus on AliExpress - the photo is Boel

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/10050...er_id=d47a4d9da72848d2a0131d625d265283&is_c=N

 

[Leon103]

I have tapcooler and really like it. I often bottle 10 plus at a time and find it quick and easy. Like most things practice makes perfect but it's not hard to do