Mini kegs

[TRXnMe]

I'm not sure if this has been asked before, it it has I can't find the thread but I'm abysmal with the forum search facility so...

Are these mini kegs any good for home brew beer? I'm thinking for the secondary fermentation and dispense, if they are they look brilliant for parties and even just supping in the house as they'll fit in the 'normal' fridge.

Will they take carbonation pressure like bottles? If so, I'm going to have a bid, I suspect they wont though, so I throw myself on your collective experience.

 

[Rwilts]

Here you go,
viewtopic.php?f=23&t=28564&hilit=lidl+keg

I decided after reading up here and watiching youtube that it wasnt worth the bother, :

 

[ceejam]

I recycle Minikegs from my local Microbrewery.
They sell beer in the ones with an integral tap.

I wash them out and reuse them for homebrew (I have loads of them from a few mates aswell!)
I use new bungs everytime - you can buy them online - or hassle the local MB

Once opened, the beer goes off after 5 days or so, but it's only 8.8 pints.

 

[MacKiwi]

I've just finished some experiments with bottles, mini-kegs and poly-pins.

The result was a win for the mini-kegs (the ones with the built-in tap), I'll definitly be using them more. Secondary fermentation was fine, and they are easy to use. Like Ceejam I've been recycling them, and also bought a few for £5 each. I've been reusing the bungs, but it is too early to say if there might be issues with this or not.

As was pointed out in the other thread, if you try and use the tap when it is pressurised, you just gets pints of foam. But the solution is simple, just crack the vent on the top first, and then pour normally (this is the opposite way around to the instructions you get from the micro-breweries). Provided you don't fill it completly to the top, you don't get any foam escaping out the top when you crack it, and then it pours fine.

I found that the beer tasted just as fresh and lively out of the minikeg as a bottled version, and with comparable carbonation. The plastic poly-pins didn't compare on these. I would note that I don't carbonate a lot (maybe 70-80g of priming sugar per 23 litre batch), so I don't know how the mini-kegs will go if you want lager levels of fizz.

Poly-pins do still have some advantages - they can be connected to a beer engine, and collapse as you pour, so no air gets in. But I don't have a beer-engine, and the wife and I have no trouble getting through a mini-keg in the 4-5 days it takes to spoil once opened, so I'm planning on using mini-kegs a lot more.

 

[ArmChair]

I recycle Minikegs from my local Microbrewery.
They sell beer in the ones with an integral tap.

I wash them out and reuse them for homebrew (I have loads of them from a few mates aswell!)
I use new bungs everytime - you can buy them online - or hassle the local MB

Once opened, the beer goes off after 5 days or so, but it's only 8.8 pints.

Where do you get your bungs mate?

 

[BIGJIM72]

Leyland homebrew stock them I think

 

[ArmChair]

I bought 10 mini kegs from them about 6 month ago and the bungs they sent me were plastic cheapo ones that have no chance of holding pressure

 

[Fil]

candirect sell em and all things to do with em, just google the german for united kingdom before you try and order as the country drop down box for delivery address hadnt been translated when i last ordered :)

 

[BIGJIM72]

the bungs they sent me were plastic cheapo ones that have no chance of holding pressure

True enough,but the bungs that are sent out with the kegs IMHO are just there to keep the kegs clean during transit or storage.

Have a quick look at the link (zoom down in front of the kegs)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Homebrew-Beer ... 4ac039b25f

I use these with a party star tap- no problems with pressure.

Don't really think that they are much cop for lager though.

@ MacKiwi -the manufacturers' instructions recommend quite a low amount of sugar for priming-no more than 2 teaspoons per keg

 

[ceejam]

I've been buying the bungs from here
http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/aca ... PO2Dr8gGc0

But if you have a friendly local microbrewery that uses them it's worth asking if they'll sell you a few when buying some of their beer

 

[johnnyh]

I bought my mini kegs from brewsmarter.co.uk and they included the grey rubber bung with the centre bit that the beer tap pushes out. Think I paid 4.95 per keg which seemed about right.