Are high ABV beers better on tap?

No experience with Devil Dancer, but kegs seem to do a better job of aging (lack of oxidation). Also having the beer from the tap always seem to be a more enjoyable experience.

 

In general, I've had plenty of higher ABV beers on tap, and haven't noticed any difference.

For Devil Dancer in particular, I had on tap at the Founders brewery fresh. I've also drank a 1 year old bottle side by side with a fresh bottle, and preferred the aged bottle (this was back in 2011). I thought the aroma was more like weed, not onions.

 

Can you give a reference for this? I'm not disputing this or trying to argue, just want to know where you heard this. I realize that the surface area to volume ratio in a keg is much less so that may partially explain it but is the ball seal on a keg that much better than a bottle cap?

 

i have no proof. I know nothing about the ball seels on kegs. I mostly referring to the light that gets into the beer bottles. Kegs are also pressurized. Maybe that has something to do with it as well.

 

Everything is always better on tap. Don't know why, just know I'm right.

 

Well, light has nothing to do with oxidation but zero light is a plus.

 

I've had several big stouts both in the bottle and on tap, and anecdotally on tap tastes better. That said, I think I get more enjoyment out of sipping a big beer over a long period of time, noting the changes as it warms up,etc. Can't always do that at a bar or over dinner.

 

As @paulys55 says, light struck is different from oxidation.

I have no proof of this, but my perception is similar to @paulys55 that kegs have less surface area to volume; but also kegs are usually stored refrigerated throughout their life cycle. Continuous cold storage for bottle/cans is unreliable, to say the least.

I would also like to know what if any differences there are in freshness [i.e. oxidation/staling] for a keg vs bottle/can. I am paging some people who might have more technical answers to this... @jesskidden @Peter_Wolfe @hopfenunmaltz, @Starkbier, @bulletrain76

 

I have found that certain bottle conditioned Belgians taste better from the bottle than on tap. I can't imagine that a brewery would tie a keg up long enough to impact the age of the beer. They want to turn them over fast. After its tapped even with the bar gas kegs can go off over time. Most British ales taste better on tap and anything that benefits from being fresh will too. Old ales, Barleywines, sours and wild ales often improve with in the bottle with age. With sours and wild ales I have had issues with them exploding every now and then after a few years Hahn that is a sad, sad thing.

 

High ABV beers are better in my mouth.

 

Kegs preserve beer better than bottles, and a lot of people prefer beer on tap. Low abv beer almost always tastes better fresh. Many reasons.

But to directly answer the question, it has nothing to do with abv.

Given any two pours of the same beer in a bottle vs. a keg that are the same age, it only comes down to personal preference. There is nothing special about high abv beers that make one package taste better than the other.

 

Maybe. Needs additional research. I'll get right on it. Thanx for the excuse.

 

Kegs are also completely purged with CO2, bottles are not. If the seal on a keg leaked, you'd lose CO2 but not let O2 in (unless you ran your tank empty).

Some of the bigger craft breweries (i.e. Sierra Nevada) do have very advanced bottling lines that limit O2 ingress to negligible levels.

 

Had KBS on tap and I would drive 100 miles again to get it on tap.. liked it a lot more than in a bottle and i fckn loved it in a bottle

 

The biggest factor is definitely the cold storage. Given that the packaging lines are modern and running well, the initial headspace O2 in bottles and cans is extremely low (and virtually nonexistent in kegs since they are purgeable pressure vessels). It's still enough to have an influence certainly, but the effect of storage temperature is a much larger factor. Kegs are generally stored cold for their entire lifetime, and that unfortunately isn't the case with bottles and cans.

ABV does have a moderating effect on staling rate, but all things being equal (very low O2, kept cold throughout lifespan) I wouldn't expect a high ABV beer to taste inherently better on draft relative to a bottle.

 

usually I like aging big beers, the anticipation leads to extra enjoyment

 

Exactly. It's how it's stored, rather than what it's stored in, for the most part.

 

Thank you!

@paulys55, @raynmoon See above.

 

Most beers are better on tap regardless of ABV.