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Author Topic: Configuring a wedding beer bar  (Read 1209 times)

Offline Whiplash87

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Configuring a wedding beer bar
« on: April 29, 2016, 12:30:36 pm »
This is my first post and I have no prior knowledge or experience with beer other than of course drinking it. So getting married in october here in California up in the lower sierra, 2300ft elevation. I'm planning on building a wooden framed beer bar that will have three taps and it will eventually be a permanent installation to our house when we can afford one. Will be serving beer from bevmo kegs for convienance. Likely sierra nevada ipa, angry orchard apple cider for the gals and another beer to be determined. I just want to make sure I'm on the right track so far. I have looked at buying kegco's add a tap conversion kit X3, nsf commercial grade double gauge regulator X1, an aluminum 3-way air distributor and a 5 lb aluminum co2 tank from beveragefactorydotcom. planning on having 10ft beer lines and subtracting from there. As far as keeping the kegs cold is a large tub filled with ice sufficient or am I needing to cover and insulate the kegs themselves. Is there anything missing or any preferred vendors or better companies to deal with? thanks in advance, I still have lots of research to do.

Offline kramerog

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Re: Configuring a wedding beer bar
« Reply #1 on: April 29, 2016, 02:23:40 pm »
One of the issues is that the pours will likely be foamy because the beer will warm up in the beer lines if the beer lines are not actively cooled.

Offline blair.streit

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Re: Configuring a wedding beer bar
« Reply #2 on: April 29, 2016, 04:53:02 pm »
One of the issues is that the pours will likely be foamy because the beer will warm up in the beer lines if the beer lines are not actively cooled.
+1. Had lots of issues with this on my first kegerator.

There are likely lots of folks that have way more experience setting up and balancing draft systems. That said, my "50,000 foot view" understanding is that you can either minimize the line length (i.e. taps coming directly off the kegs at lower pressure) or actively cool the tap lines (e.g. figure out a way to blow cold air or recirculate cold glycol near them).

If you want to go for cheap and easy, I think picking a lower serving pressure and connecting taps directly to the kegs would be the way to go. Anyone smarter have better ideas?

No matter what -- keep it as cool/cold as practical. Even if you have cool beer all the way to the faucet and then pour it into a warm glass that's been sitting in the sun it's going to foam a lot.

Offline smkranz

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Re: Configuring a wedding beer bar
« Reply #3 on: April 30, 2016, 05:32:33 pm »
You won't necessarily have foaming problems due to warming beer lines as long as the beer is flowing fairly frequently at your wedding.  Standard beer lines (3/16" I.D.) are thick-walled and will help keep the beer inside them cool between pours.  But obviously the longer the beer sits between pours, the warmer it will get, then you might get a couple ounces of foam.  So, just have a dump bucket ready.  For your purposes if you can't actively refrigerate the lines, you could help them by buying some small-diameter pipe insulation to wrap the beer lines in it.

Keeping the kegs in a tub or buckets with ice will be good.
Steve K.
BJCP Beer & Mead Certified
Midnight Homebrewers' League
http://www.midnighthomebrewers.org

Offline Whiplash87

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Re: Configuring a wedding beer bar
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2016, 10:33:05 pm »
Awesome! Thanks for the replies. Will look into line insulation and finding some sort of tub I can cover and insulate the kegs in.


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