Curious which one people prefer. I checked previous forums but they were older and mainly focused on the process of either, not so much preference. I love the mouth feel of carving with priming sugar. BUT, I like not having to wait 2 more weeks.
I used to be an avid supporter of using priming sugar for everything, even kegs. I've backed away from that stance a bit, however. I think the issue with force carbing is really just being patient enough with it to let it set up properly. Lately I've been doing the "set it and forget it" method more often and the results to priming sugar conditioned kegs are very similar.
I keg almost everything so I am a proponent of force carbing. I do the set and forget method and find it works perfectly. The only thing it requires is patience. I can have 4 kegs on gas while serving 2 of them so I schedule my brew days to always have something on deck conditioning in the kegerator. That way when a keg kicks something is carbed and ready to take its place.
There's no option on the vote for "both". Also, I'm not sure if the question relates ONLY to kegging or to bottling as well. I use both ways depending on the beer. If it's one I will only drink occasionally, I will use priming sugar and bottle. Otherwise, I will keg and force carbonate.
Sometimes if it's a non hoppy style and i won't be tap for a few weeks I will naturally carbonate in keg with priming sugar. I had to do this for a party because I didn't have enough regulator to carbonate all 4 kegs I needed at once
Sorry guys. I was basically looking for carbonating in the keg. I never tried or really heard of people bottling from a force carbonated keg but I guess that's a thing. When some of you talk about "patience" and "set and forget", how long are you talking and at what psi? Also, when I force carb I put my Liquid ball lock on my gas line and carb from the bottom up as I rock it back and forth. I learned that at a local brewery a year ago. Pretty quick.
Two weeks, give or take. At whatever PSIs will carbonate the beer to the desired volumes of CO2 (and no further) at the fridge's average temperature. There are many charts on line to determine how many PSIs you need. Like this one:
I, too, use the force carb method. I never really had a problem with priming sugar, it's just easier and pretty much fool-proof with the force carb route. I also go the "set it and forget it" route with force carbing. I still wait about two weeks to drink it, but I'm patient just like with bottle carbing, so it doesn't bother me. After 2-3 weeks on the gas, the mouthfeel is the same IMO compared to bottle conditioning. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I heard it takes upwards of two weeks to have the CO2 hydrated, which creates that smoother mouthfeel. Doesn't matter how the CO2 gets there.
It's most definitely a "thing"...I've been doing it that way since 1987. I purge the bottles with co2, cap on the foam, and have always had stellar results.
Set it and forget it and, after two weeks, you've got pretty much the 'same' beer, CAMRA be damned! It makes no difference if you're priming or force carbing - two weeks is two weeks. Consider, too, that you'll need to add pressure to the keg to seal it anyway, so you're only adding more steps if you prime it with sugar (that's also why it's commonly recommended to use a bit less sugar than if you were bottling). The icing on the cake is that carbonation level is spot on, 100% of the time! Carbonation issues are a thing of the past.
I use the set it and forget it approach to force carbing, i.e., set it to the pressure the beer should be and wait 2-3 weeks. Or get impatient and start drinking under carbed beers and see how the change as they carb. I used to use sugar in my bottling days, and recently bottled a batch. I think I prefer the keg, although it is not an ideal comparison.
