The Hemperor ruins tap lines

This doesn't surprise me. The Old Chicago in Casper had the same problem.

 

I am not arguing your point, but I am glad you mentioned it because I have been thinking this since I put 14th Star on. Cheers and will never get Hemperor as a 6th again. Had to have it once and bottles weren’t around yet when I got it.

 

Had a keg of the Hemperor on at the shop, and there was certainly a noticeable lingering Hemperor note as we switched kegs. Thankfully any remaining flavors or aromas were eliminated when we did our weekly mechanical agitation / recirculation cleaning the following morning. I could imagine if it was left longer there may be more noticeable aromas, but we had no issues after cleaning.

 

Will this work for lines ruined by root beer?

 

Best to ask this in the home bar forum section. Great group of guys respond to all these questions. Probably best just to replace the lies though since its so cheap.

 

Lotsa factors at play here. What root beer it was, how long it was on tap and the type of line in question are all part of the equation.

With a direct draw, simply replacing the line is the easiest, fastest and most foolproof option.

With a long draw system and glycol trunk lines, it depends a lot on the duration of exposure and the type of beer line used.

New systems are incorporating barrier lines which resist material growth and staining. Older systems have vinyl lines which, once stained, are really tough to clear.

A one hour soak of Draftec at 1.5 strength after close followed by packing the line with white vinegar overnight (8 hrs min) will normally do the trick.

The regimen outlined above is worth a shot in any case as it will cause absolutely no damage to the system in an effort to rid the line of flavor staining. Feel free to increase all of the exposure times if you have the time to invest.

 

Awesome, thank you!

 

New Belgium should adopt that line for their advertising campaign for this beer.

"Tastes like Light Struck Heineken!
Double the Price w/40% more alcohol"

having been rejected.

 

I concur. Hemperor should have been called Skunkeror, no similarity to hemp/pot. Bongwater would taste/smell better.

 

All great advice. Before these kids started putting hemp in their IPAs, there were other things that could wreak havoc on lines. Extracts, spices, smoke beers, chille beers (Habanero Sculpin being a notable offender).
I’d agree that anyone setting up a new system would really be saving themselves plenty of later headache by installing barrier lines from the start. I’ve pulled through pilsners after barrel aged stouts on these lines with ZERO rinse and there was no residual flavor.

I’ve had success with stubborn lines by following the same cleaning procedures that usually cleans everything else: hot cycle with a strong base (caustic), rinse, warm cycle with a strong acid (nitric-phos), rinse.