How long do your 5 gal batches last?

[saeroner]

I just tapped my 1st keg and feel like it's only going to last a night with a couple of buddies.

 

[mtyquinn]

mo buddies mo problems. (keeping beer around anyways)

 

[Clonefan94]

Depends on what is going on. I've had parties where 5 gallons has gone in a couple of hours. For the most part though, with my regular drinking schedule, I get a couple of months out of a 5 gallon keg, with 3 on tap. That's an average as some go quicker than others obviously. My Amber is usually pretty easy drinking, where the chocolate vanilla porter, where tasty, is more of a sipper.

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[Rockn_M]

If your friends and family like it, 5 gallons wont last long. I've had kegs last a few hours and others almost a month.

 

[Bowtiebrewery]

Well I suppose it comes down to a few factors...
1. How sessionable (if thats a word) is the beer
2. Is it really a great tasting beer that you and your friends like
3. How good is your draft system and do you end up with significant losses
4. How often do you drink

Mine last a while because I don't often have a ton of friends over. And to be honest my last beer was pretty poor in quality... However my zombie dust clone is freaking fantastic, and will probably go quickly.

 

[FloppyKnockers]

Not long enough. I think it evaporates at a rate of two to three pints a day or something. I would like to get to the point someday that it lasts longer in "ready to drink" mode than it dis to get there.

 

[ArkotRamathorn]

I have a kitchen sink stout thats going on 9 months (basically a pregnancy), not because its a kitchen sink, its just a punch in the mouth since its such a mouthy chocolaty sweet beer (not bad, just big and creamy). I have a dry rye stout thats got a little over 7 months as well.

My smaller beers, after they are conditioned (yes, I bottle), can go quick. My buckwheat honey dunkelweizen I only have 9 or so bottles left of a 5 gallon batch and I drank most of it within 8 weeks of bottling.

Rule of thumb, if SWMBO likes it, its gonna last a LOOOONNNGGG TIME because she doesnt drink that much. If she doesn't and its not a super high abv style, its gonna be gone in as little as 6 weeks.

 

[solbes]

3-4 weeks on tap (I have 1 tap only at the moment). Batches that are bottled are usually gone in 2-4 months as I come back to them less often.

 

[dnslater]

I just started kegging with a two-keg kegerator. Definitely a different mindset than with bottles, planning ahead to have kegs ready to plug in when you empty one. Of course I'm probably now drinking more, and filling up the occasional growler for a family member. I'm thinking my kegs will probably last anywhere from 3-6 weeks depending on style, etc.... with holidays coming up, I need to brew a couple of batches this weekend for my que.

 

[Kozwald]

I just started kegging with a two-keg kegerator. Definitely a different mindset than with bottles, planning ahead to have kegs ready to plug in when you empty one. Of course I'm probably now drinking more, and filling up the occasional growler for a family member. I'm thinking my kegs will probably last anywhere from 3-6 weeks depending on style, etc.... with holidays coming up, I need to brew a couple of batches this weekend for my que.

I agree with dnslater: Planning is everything. I have a 3 tap keggerator and always, or at least try to always have a a keg or two ready to go. Nothing worse than draining a keg with no back up. I hate having to by comercial beer!!:fro:

 

[Zekk]

I bottle my beers, and they usually last me between 6-9 months. I usually drink a few bottles over the weekend but I don't drink during the week and my wife is pregnant so she's no help. So yeah, beer lasts a long time at my house

 

[dnslater]

I agree with dnslater: Planning is everything. I have a 3 tap keggerator and always, or at least try to always have a a keg or two ready to go. Nothing worse than draining a keg with no back up. I hate having to by comercial beer!!:fro:

Only downside is that when you plug in the new keg, it takes a week or two to carbonate. Suppose I could start throwing in a little corn sugar when I keg - maybe 2 ounces so that it could begin priming a bit ahead of time....although this will put yeast back in suspension...........

 

[solbes]

Only downside is that when you plug in the new keg, it takes a week or two to carbonate. Suppose I could start throwing in a little corn sugar when I keg - maybe 2 ounces so that it could begin priming a bit ahead of time....although this will put yeast back in suspension...........

I sugar prime about 90% of my kegs and it is not a problem (1/2 cup of dextrose usually). The exceptions being lagers where I want them crystal clear and kolsches where the yeast is so stubborn to floc out. After you chill the keg down, pull off or drink 1/2 pints once a day for 3-4 days. At that point I notice it being as clear as if I had force carbed it. And no carbonic bite either.

 

[catskinr]

Only downside is that when you plug in the new keg, it takes a week or two to carbonate. Suppose I could start throwing in a little corn sugar when I keg - maybe 2 ounces so that it could begin priming a bit ahead of time....although this will put yeast back in suspension...........

I keep a second co2 bottle and regulator in the beer storage area and pressure the kegs up as soon as they're filled so they are ready to go as soon as 1 blows. Plus if I have a party or something going on and want I can put one or two kegs on picnic taps to go with the 3 in the kegerator and have up to 5 beers on tap.

 

[catskinr]

My kegs seem to last between 1 month and almost a year. Something really big, really special I might only drink a few pints a month. Interesting to see how some beers change over that long of a time. Most lighter easier drinking beers may be a month or less depending on how many friends are helping to find the last pint in the keg

 

[GHBWNY]

Depends partly on the beer and who likes what. And how many choices are available. And what time of year it is and what's going on. Higher consumption in the summer around here. If it were a matter of one batch at a time until it's gone, probably 6-8 weeks on average. But, with overlapping brews, all different styles, 5 in storage with one on the way, it's hard to say.

 

[Clonefan94]

Only downside is that when you plug in the new keg, it takes a week or two to carbonate. Suppose I could start throwing in a little corn sugar when I keg - maybe 2 ounces so that it could begin priming a bit ahead of time....although this will put yeast back in suspension...........

I know it might be a pain to most, but I hit my pipeline kegs with a shot of CO2 at least every couple of days, until I don't hear it accepting more CO2 into the keg. Obviously I'm not carbing up as it should be at room temp, but I find this usually gives me a 3 or 4 day head start on getting it up to the proper volume.

 

[Happywanderer]

I'm a bottler and my 5-gallon batches last about a month. I had a chocolate porter that my wife wasn't in to (and it didn't carb up as well because the sugar didn't mix in well). That lasted 4 months.

I drink a beer a day and my wife is drinking one every other day on average.

 

[Malty_Dog]

With just me and maybe a few friends periodically consuming, a 5 gal batch seems to last about 60-90 days. I've usually got several to choose from, which keeps that stretched out. That said, I recently tore through a Dales Pale Ale clone in about 30. Some styles you just reach for more often on a daily basis.

 

[beerman1957]

I end up with about 40 pints for every 5 gallons. Mas o menos.

 

[atom]

2 weeks to 2 months typically.

 

[fartinmartin]

Not long enough, my 24L ish gives me over 40 bottles, it's gone in less than three weeks, my wife goes mad !
Oh well , here we go again .

 

[beersk]

My kegs last about 4-8 weeks. I've been brewing 6-7 gallon batches lately so I can bottle some and have an archive as well. I've REALLY been liking that. It's fun to see how the bottled version tastes against the kegged version. There really is no difference from my observations.
I'm able to bottle right from the fermenter since I ferment in two 5 gallon kegs. I combine in the serving keg, and bottle the rest off the fermenter with a picnic tap/bottle wand setup and use a few grams of honey in each bottle, depending on the size of the bottle.

 

[GHBWNY]

I bottle my beers, and they usually last me between 6-9 months. I usually drink a few bottles over the weekend but I don't drink during the week and my wife is pregnant so she's no help. So yeah, beer lasts a long time at my house

Know what you mean. We have "lost" 3 HB consumers in the family in the past two months alone. One is pregnant, one has developed apparent heart problems, and one has recently discovered she might be allergic to hops (is there such a thing?). Consequently, my supply is stockpiling. Hey, wanna beer?

 

[evanmars]

My 5 gallon batches usually last about as long as a couple of cases would.

 

[RussPDX]

I usually get about 3-4 weeks from a brew. I try to brew every three weeks but it doesn't always happen which let's me keep more than one thing on tap. Regarding priming time, I have a dual regulator setup with a 4 port and 2 port manifold so I can force at 30 for two days while still serving. I also keep plain soda water on tap and make some simple syrups which can draw out the life of the beer a bit.....

Even if you don't have extra ports you can still keep some pressure on your next up keg to minimize switch over delays, just remember to top off the CO2 frequently until you equalize at serving pressure since the beer will be absorbing it quickly.


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[TheMattTrain]

I have a 3 tap kegerator. One tap is dedicated to cider (keeping it gluten free for the wife). Depending on the style, I can keep a keg around for anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months, maybe longer. I've got a #9 clone I made that I don't care for, so that only gets consumed by friends, really.

My fridge will hold 4 kegs, so I have a 4-way air distributor that lets me carb a keg while I'm serving 3, waiting for one to kick. As soon as one kicks, the backup keg is already carbed and ready to roll.

 

[SnakeRidge]

Most of my brews last about 30-45 days once I start drinking on em. I bottle, though and sometimes a few get mixed in with the longer aging stuff and I'll find them 6 months later. I brew a big Imperial Stout every year over christmas and I've still got some bottles from 7 years ago. Makes for some nice vertical tastings when I have some company over.

 

[catdaddy66]

A couple of months, that's about a six pack a week. Plus, whatever my family and friends drink.


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[worlddivides]

2 to 6 months, depending on the beer. My wife doesn't drink much and we're the only two people living here. I share beers with some of my friends, but that doesn't speed up the pace at which the beer goes away by too much. When I share beers with them, it's usually only 2 bombers for one night (although I have gone through 4 in one night with friends, but it was like 2 from one batch and 2 from another).

As an example, I still have 12 bombers of the cider I made about 3 months ago and I still have 8-9 bombers of the stout I made about 2 months ago. I have a feeling my kriek is going to go a lot quicker, though, since I only bottled it 1 and a half weeks ago and I'm already down to 22 bombers.

 

[thadeus_d3]

2 weeks between my wife and I.

 

[ABVIBUSRM]

Well after seeing how long alot of peoples kegs last, i realized im either a worse alcoholic then i thought or just a glutton..only time my kegs last for awhile is if they need aging..other then that a weekend and good bye keg but thats with my brothers help

 

[SnakeRidge]

You know, an alcoholic is someone you don't like that drnks as much as you do

 

[Kozwald]

Only downside is that when you plug in the new keg, it takes a week or two to carbonate. Suppose I could start throwing in a little corn sugar when I keg - maybe 2 ounces so that it could begin priming a bit ahead of time....although this will put yeast back in suspension...........

I force carb my kegs. They're drinkable usually within a week. I like to plan my brew schedule to always have a batch ready to be kegged and carbonated before i run out. Unfortunately that doesn't always work and I end up running to the local store for beer. The good thing is this allows me to try different beers that could end up being my next batch.

 

[RobbyComstock]

Depends on how thirsty we are With a few friends over it can go quick!!!